“In the town they tell the story of the great pearl-how it was found and how it was lost again. They tell of Kino, the fisherman, and of his wife, Juana, and of the baby, Coyotito. And because the story has been told so often, it has taken root in every man’s mind. And as with all retold tales that are in people’s heart’s there are only good and bad thinks and black and white things and good and evil things and no in-between anywhere.”
Steinbeck based The Pearl on a Mexican folk story. This book is about Kino, a poor fisherman in a small Mexican village. It talks about how he finds a pearl and how it brings evil into his life.
The story starts with Kino and his wife, Juana, content with their life, even tough they are very poor. However, things suddenly become worse. Their baby, Coyotio, is stung by a scorpion. To save him, Kino and Juana decide to see the doctor. This is a bold step for them because everyone knows the doctor doesn’t see poor patients. As they had expexcted, they are unable to see the doctor and are very disappointed.
Kino and Juana return to the beach and take Kino’s boat. Kino will dive underwater in search of a pearl that they can sell and then they would be able to see the doctor. Juana’s prayers are answered. Kino finds a pearl as “perfect as the moon”. They both are very happy becuase they know the pearl will bring them a lot of money.
The news of Kino’s “Pearl of the World” travels around the village quickly and everyone is a part of the dreams that it brings. Kino now imagines that he can give his son an education and Juana and him can get married again in a more elaborate way. But, the hope doesn’t last very long. Juana and Kino have trouble sleeping in the night because they worry about the pearl being stolen. Their fears are soon proved true. They catch two theives red handed. Kino decides to sell the pearl the very next day.
By the time Kino reaches the pearl dealers, the whole village is behind him. He expects almost 50, 000 pesos for the great pearl. However, the dealers have already decided on a price of 1, 000 pesos. They claim that no one would actually want to buy the large and clumsy novelty. It suddenly dawns on Kino that the pearl dealers could have been tricking the poor people for years by not giving them the fair amount for their pearls. He gets angry and decides to sell the pearl in the capital city.
This time however, Juana realizes the evilness of the pearl. She is about to throw the pearl back into the ocean, but Kino cathces her. He tears the pearl away from his wife’s hands and slaps her. On their way to the hut, Kino is attacked by someone. It doesn’t take long for him to realize that the theif is after the pearl. Kino stabs him with his dagger. He also finds that his home and boat are destroyed. Juana and Kino decide to run away before anyone finds out about the murder. Kino’s brother hides them for a night, and then they are on their way.
Nevertheless, they presently realize that they are being “hunted” by a group of professional trackers. They rest for the night, but the trackers are close behind. Kino deicides to kill one of the trackers becuase he has a rifle. Instead, the rifleman sees Kino and fires a shot into the air, which kills their baby, Coyotito.
Juana and Kino return to the village with their dead baby and the pearl. They have nothing left-no home nor a boat. The book when Kino throwing away the pearl back into the ocean and then “the music of the pearl drifted to a whisper and disappeared.”
This book is only 90 pages long and is very easy to read. Steinbeck’s style in simple too. It is in a folk story type format. The main theme of the book seem to be how much harm can come out of a materialistic possesion. The same pearl which gives Kino hope about saving his baby also ends up destroying him. This book can be read at two levels-the literal level, and then the symbolic level. As always, Steinbeck does a great job of keeping it simple, but conveying important messages to the reader.