Symbolism in "The Pearl"

Essay Question: The Pearl by John Steinbeck Irene Zhou ‘The Pearl of the World’ , as the villagers called it, full of enticing beauty and lustrous value, came to prove the old proverbial quote “Greed is the root of all evil” (from: I Timothy 6:10), as Kino and his family pay not only the price, but a tremendous amount more, for the seemingly virtuous discovery of the pearl. When the scorpion stung Coyotito, the baby, unleashed was a ravage of hopes, prayers, worries, and fate. The scorpion symbolizes an arbitrary evil which would plunder the hopes of Kino’s family. Biblically, the scorpion represents the destruction of innocence, so Coyotito being a baby also adds onto the destructive symbolism. As the story winds on, Kino finds a great pearl the size of a seagull’s egg. The discovery seems to fulfill the ancient prophecy of “The Pearl that Might Be”, and so fills Kino and the townspeople with a sense of greed, hidden behind a facade of neutrality, but always inexplicably there. The neighbors call it “The Pearl of the World”, and while the title seems to refer to the pearl’s size and beauty, it also brings out the fact that the world’s harmful influence is being brought into Kino’s simple existence. The optimism starts cascading downward when the dealers start understating Kino’s magnificent pearl. Kino begins to focus on the pearl’s sale with determined, materialistic ambition. The pearl loses its fortuitous and cultural value, and becomes more associated with materialistic values and desires. As the pearl elicits more and more greed onto Kino, the price he and his family must pay later builds up higher and higher. Kino devotes all of his energy and possessions into protecting the pearl. Thus, the great pearl comes to symbolize the destructive nature of materialism. As quoted in the book, “The poison sacs of the town began to manufacture venom, and the town swelled and puffed with the pressure of it.” Though the doctor does not figure largely in the novelette, he is one of the most important characters. He represents the arrogance, greed, and condescension that the Europeans display toward the natives, like the natives are animals or little children just playing around. Many of the acknowledged townspeople came to Kino for his money that they knew Kino would surely use in turn for their useless services. For example, it was clear that the doctor had poison in the bottle of white powders instead of medicine to treat the sting. Also, it was obvious that the priest took advantage of Kino’s illiteracy when the priest said “Thou art named after a great man and a Great Father of the church”, or when he said “It is in the books.” It simply wouldn’t make sense that a native name would be in the holy books of Christianity. Greed and lust for the pearl spread like an epidemic. Within a few days, the pearl had been on the verge of being stolen three times, and Kino had killed a man. Kino’s original plans of going to the capital to sell the pearl were destroyed, his house was burnt to the ground, and his canoe had been punched through in its center. Therefore, the only way to escape was to flee into the center of the island. The broken canoe symbolizes Kino’s devastating decision to break with his cultural heritage because he wished for material gain. Because Kino claimed that the pearl was his soul and he couldn’t part with it, he, Juana, and Coyotito fled into the mountains. As night fell, the trackers had discovered Kino’s refuge, and shot his baby before Kino could kill the lead tracker. Finally, as he walked with Juana back to his home, he decides to pitch the pearl and rid them of their troubles and misfortunes. The way the pearl is depicted throughout the course of the novella directly mirrors the change that Kino goes through. At first, the pearl is a beautiful element of nature. Once it becomes entangled with material wealth, however, it draws out the evil inherent in every citizen living in La Paz. The story ends with Kino tragically paying back the price he had unconsciously set up for himself, further multiplied by his careless greed for materialistic wealth.