The Pearl Character Analysis

In order to sell his pearl for the highest price possible, Kino was forced to go to the capital. This was due to being cheated by the local pearl buyers. “I have been cheated,” Kino cried fiercely. “My pearl is not for sale here. I will go perhaps even to the capital.” By doing so, Kino wasn’t only risking a long journey, but also putting his family in harm’s

Before Kino found the pearl, he wasn’t exposed to great hardship or struggle. When he found the pearl, Kino became very greedy and he experienced immense pain and loss. Furthermore, the pearl also caused Kino to lose his innocence. When Kino allowed evil and pain to take over his perspective of life he became angry. The first time Kino killed someone was when a man broke into Kino’s house in attempt to steal the pearl. Later in the book, Kino and his family we being shadowed by trackers in pursuit to kill him and his family and steal the pearl. After the trackers fired upon Kino’s child, Kino became filled with rage and the pearl grew gray and he let evil take him over: "And in the surface of the pearl he saw Coyotito lying in the little cave with the top of his head shot away. And the pearl was ugly; it was gray, like a malignant growth. And Kino heard the music of the pearl, distorted and insane” (pg. 89). Kino then killed those who were in pursuit of him and shot at

As soon as everyone found out, he found a huge pearl, the doctor came hoping to get it or get payed (Steinbeck 702). Kino was anger he had never felt that kinda anger before; after everything that happened to his son now he is willing to help because they will be rich. The doctor some how convinced Kino to let him help by; getting him sick again to then heal him (Steinbeck 701). Later one once Kino goes to the capital to trade his pearl once he left, after turning down there offers, a man tried to jump him and steal the pearl. Kino then stabbed a man out of rage and self defence (Steinbeck 704). This was just the beginning of Kino’s anger and and bad luck. Then his wife Juana tried to take the pearl away from him and drop it into the ocean, but Kino pushed her to the ground and beat her. Kino had all the anger and rage in the world right now, and he took it out on his wife that he loved (Steinbeck 708). Once the family arrived home; they realized there house was on fire and they had to hide hoping to get away from everyone that wants the pearl. They hide once the people new where they were they ran and so did

When Kino is first introduced in the beginning, he is thrilled with the joy of the simple things in life. “And this was part of the family song too. It was all part. Sometimes it rose to an aching chord that caught his throat, saying this is safety, this is warmth, this is Whole. Kino was young and strong and his black hair hung over his brown forehead. His eyes were warm and fierce and bright and his mustache was thin and coarse.”(4). As described in the passage Kino is seen as a warm, cordial person in the beginning of the novella when he had not yet encountered the pearl. He shines bright with hope and love, feeling safe. With the song of the family beating loudly at heart, his only goal is to be with them. However, being caught in awe wondering if all of this is true, Kino starts to think maybe it was all too good to be true however he decides to forget his worries. Unfortunately his decision to forget his worries proves not to be a good choice when his luck of fate starts to change. “He hissed at her like a snake, and Juana stared at him with wide unfrightened eyes, like a sheep before the butcher. She knew there was murder in him, and it was all right; she had accepted it, and she would not

From the very beginning, finding the pearl causes Kino to become a greedy man and bad things start to happen to him and his family. Kino’s main goal is to help his son, Coyotito. However, when the doctor asks Kino for the pearl to treat his baby, he

John Steinbeck’s, The Pearl, describes a man and his family’s journey through financial setbacks, racism and the discovery of a pearl that changed their lives. The pearl, is the cause directly and indirectly of every troublesome event that occurs throughout the novel. There are three key events that clearly illustrate that the pearl is the cause of all misfortune. At first, Kino proclaims his visions derived from the pearl’s illusory value and his words backfire and result in great loss in the end. This is followed by Kino refusing the pearl buyers’ offer, sparking a chain reaction of unfortunate events. In addition to this, the hunters seeking for the pearl, whilst acting out of greed, end up destroying Kino’s family.

Kino’s motivation is his desire for success. He wishes to be respected by others, to have everything he ever dreamed of, and to have enough money for all his family’s needs.

In literature, a tragic hero is a character of noble birth with heroic qualities. This character is usually fated by some supernatural force to great suffering, destruction, and even doom. Often, the hero struggles mightily against this fate and in the process, wins the admiration of the reader. The character of Kino in John Steinbeck’s novella, The Pearl, while not of “noble birth,” is indeed a tragic hero. He suffers from the tragic flaw of greed after he finds a pearl of great value. Steinbeck, through the use of an omniscient narrator, reveals the human weakness of Kino’s actions in order to teach a moral lesson. At the same time, however, the narrator often shows a certain respect and admiration for the fact that Kino strives to realize his ambitions. He will stop at nothing to make sure he gets a fair price for

One way greed’s consequences are depicted in this story is through characterization. The novel begins with Kino being described as a poor man who was happy. He was very satisfied with his life and his family. After finding what is described as “the pearl of the world” this once quiet man, begins to take on a completely different personality and perspective. At one point in the novel, Kino is asked by his wife, Juana to get rid of the pearl, seeing its true evil; Kino responds to this by expressing his deep attachment to the pearl by stating, “This pearl has become my soul” (Steinbeck 65). As the book nears its end, the changed Kino murders

Lets start when Kino stabs someone for trying to steal his pearl. There were two times in this book when Kino caught a someone trying to steal his pearl. The first time, Kino was sleeping when he heard the scuffling noise of someone digging, he quietly got his knife and stabbed the man who supposedly got away. However, the second time that he caught someone stealing his pearl after he had dropped it, he instinctively stabbed the man and killed him.

A person’s personality, life, and people they care about can all be corrupted and hurt by greed. Kino’s personality was altered in a horrible way by greed. If you compare his loving, content personality and then his personality after he found the pearl there is quite a difference. Throughout the story you can see that his entire personality was corrupted by the evil of the pearl. In the beginning of the book he was really in tune with nature and all about his family.

After fighting battles with himself, Kino began to lose his ability to control himself because he was set on his plan for his family that he once saw in the pearl. “He struck her in the face with his clenched fist and she fell among the boulders and he kicked her in the side.” (Steinbeck 59). Multiple instances have occured since Kino first got the pearl, including two attacks to steal it during the night, as well as thousands of eyes that have stared through him and looked into his soul full of secrets, making him feel scared throughout the day and night, worried that those eyes would turn into attacks on his pearl, which holds the future for his family. After Juana, Kino’s wife had enough jealous stares and greedy attacks, she took the pearl and boldly planned to throw it into the water, for it to drown with the wealth and the struggles attached to it. But, as Kino was constantly aware of everything occurring with the pearl, he didn't care whether it was his wife or a stranger, because he knew he had to attack and prevent the loss of the pearl, especially since he has such a close connection to it. “The pearl has become my soul. If I give it up, I shall lose my soul.” (Steinbeck 67). Kino cannot live without the pearl and as everyday goes by, his connection with the pearl grows stronger, and his

However, two vibrant changes occur as the story progresses —Coyotito, his son, getting stung by a scorpion and Kino’s discovery of the pearl—broaden Kino’s horizons and outlook on the world. As Kino begins to strive for wealth and education for his son, the simplicity of his life becomes increasingly complicated by greed, conflict, and violence. Kino’s character then falls through a gradual decline from a state of innocence to a state of corruption and disillusionment. The factors promoting this decline are ambition and greed. Thus, when going got tough for Kinoo and he had to escape town he faced a lot of hardships, since he had to go into hiding and the only immediate help he had was from his brother. This had an adverse effect on his personality as he became increasingly negative, given the way he hit his wife shows how the pearl preoccupied his mind to such a great extent that he grew indifferent to everything else as evil and restlessness eloped him. In addition to these social changes, Kinoo, after attaining the pearl was on the move to gain economic sustenance, but not being able to find the right price to sell his pearl got him feeling even more uncertain and disappointed but he continued to strive and was reluctant to give up because he wanted everything in his reach for his son, who he consequently ended up losing in the

Kino’s neighbors state that, “Luck, you see, brings bitter friends”. This shows that the neighbors of Kino knew that the pearl was evil, but Kino was not listening, and he started the downfall of his family. Since Kino did not listen, the pearl unleashed its evil upon Kino and his family. Juana also stated that, “This pearl is like a sin! It will destroy us.” Kino acts like he is a man, shows no respect to his wife, and tells his wife that everything is alright when it is truly not. Kino does not care about the evil that will hurt his family, he just wants the money. Kino shows a lot of ignorance, which proves the fact that Kino is the true villain of this story.

“He who is greedy is always in want.” this quote by Horace shows that greed leads to despicable behaviors. These behaviors will make a person push others away until finally he or she has no one left. In John Steinbeck’s novella, The Pearl, Kino is about to lose sight of what is important by pushing others away. Kino finds a great pearl that, hopefully, should bring happiness to his family, but instead the pearl brings the destruction of all he loves. Steinbeck shows the theme that materialism and greed can lead to immoral behavior through the characters of the priest, the doctor, and Kino.