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The Pearl Theme

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Published: Mar 14, 2024

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theme of the pearl essay

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  • The Pearl: Biography: John Steinbeck
  • The Pearl: Novel Summary: Chapter 1
  • The Pearl: Novel Summary: Chapter 2
  • The Pearl: Novel Summary: Chapter 3
  • The Pearl: Novel Summary: Chapter 4
  • The Pearl: Novel Summary: Chapter 5
  • The Pearl: Novel Summary: Chapter 6
  • The Pearl: Character Profiles
  • The Pearl: Metaphor Analysis

The Pearl: Theme Analysis

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  • The Pearl: Essay Q&A

Good versus Evil The most prominent theme in the parable of the pearl is that of the struggle between good and evil. As is the case with most parables the characters and events of the story are rendered more definitely aligned with good or evil than would be possible to appreciate amongst the degree of overlap inherent to the real world. Throughout the story the songs that Kino hears in his head reveals to him on an instinctual level of a person or thing's true nature. Thus, the song of evil accompanies the Priest who treats the indians like children and the doctor who regards them as animals. The song of the family, or the song of life, accompanies the life-sustaining morning activities as well as the family itself as they flee from their pursuers. In Kino's conception of good and evil anything that threatens the family is evil. Thus the song of evil can also accompany natural things like the scorpion which stings Coyotito. The pearl, also a product of nature, is never clearly defined as inherently good or evil. Rather its effect upon the family is shown to be evil once it has proven to be a treacherous repository of Kino's dreams. Poverty versus Wealth The pearl's immediate and lasting effect upon Kino is to cause him to dream of better things for himself and for his family. Although the pearl attracts attackers and pursuers, Kino is determined that it shall be the means by which his family rises above their station and, most importantly, his son achieves literacy. In this manner the story is a political one. The story delineates and draws moral conclusions about the differences between early nineteenth century Mexico's poor, characterized by the sympathetic characters such as Kino and Juana and the country's rich portrayed using unsympathetic characters like the doctor. Family Although Kino begins the story with the "song of the family" coursing through his being, he is soon sidetracked by the desires generated by the pearl. Though these desires are for things that Kino believes will make the family stronger - a rifle, a marriage, education - It is Juana who struggles to maintain the family as it once was. Significantly, it is Juana who first suggests destroying the peal between two stones and actually attempts to free her family of its influence by throwing it back into the sea. She realizes that the family would have no meaning without Kino and relents to his desire to sell the pearl in the city. Just as the family is what drives Kino's desires, so does the sense of family bind Juana to his side when she refuses to part with him during their flight into the mountains. Once Coyotito has been killed, however, the family has ceased to exist and Kino can see that the pearl, contrary to his initial belief, has brought nothing but bad fortune. Fortune The operations of chance and the effort to discern good luck from bad luck in an underlying theme in the story. The pearl itself is the byproduct of a chance grain of sand embedding in an oyster. Additionally, Kino's finding of the pearl is depicted as the lucky moment of collusion of being in the right place at the right time with the right need. The luck that that the pearl brings Kino's family, however, is revealed to be bad luck when his attempt to sell it at a fair price leads to the death of his only son.

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Themes and Analysis

By john steinbeck.

'The Pearl' by John Steinbeck is a short novel beautifully told in oratory style and laced with many lessons for readers and topics for critics.

About the Book

Israel Njoku

Written by Israel Njoku

Degree in M.C.M with focus on Literature from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

‘ The Pearl ‘ by John Steinbeck explores themes like greed and exploitation to give insight into ethical issues facing humanity in the context of ethnic and economic divisions. It also has symbols that further drive the themes of the story and is written with a lyrical flow that makes it a delight to readers .

Some of the themes in ‘ The Pearl ‘ by John Steinbeck are greed, exploitation, and fate. And these are discussed here.

The discovery of the pearl triggered greed in Kino. He used to be a contented family man, totally loving of his wife Juana and his son Coyotito and would do anything to protect and provide for them. But as he discovers the pearl, it rouses a desire in him for money and status. All of a sudden, everything becomes subverted to this new-found desire for money and status, including his family’s safety.

This driving greed almost magically transmutes him into a brute and a criminal, capable of manslaughter. As a result, he becomes a wanted man and is on the run for his life, dragging his family along, whose prior simple and quiet life he had upset by his implacable ambition and greed. It is also on account of the pearl that he has the course to abuse his wife for the first time. And all because his wife had seen the destructive potential of the pearl and attempted to get rid of it so that she could have her once peaceful and quiet life back.

In a way, it is not so much that the pearl is innately a destructive influence. Rather, it is Kino’s greed that perverts what might easily have been the natural salutary utility of the pearl, corrupting it into something ugly and malevolent. He had the opportunity to exchange the pearl for a modest price and continue his simple life with his wife, but his ambition was beyond what the buyers offered. In the upshot, he loses his only son and is constrained to get rid of the pearl as his wife had earlier suggested.

We also see greed in other characters , like the doctor and the priest, who suddenly begin to give Kino attention because of what they stand to gain from the acquisition of the pearl.

Another theme that runs through the novella is the working of fate in the affairs of humans. In the story, the human beings are seen to be initially taking charge of their own lives and destiny, and negotiating their daily survival and sustenance as best they can. But on the other hand, some other equally key aspects of their lives are not strictly within their power to control.

Take the sea, for example. The lowly pearl divers and fishermen depend solely on the sea to be able to eke out their daily living and be able to provide for their families. But what each passing day will bring and whether the sea will yield them anything worthwhile for all their striving and effort is entirely out of the purview of their power to control.

It may happen that after a long day of strenuous striving, the sea yields nothing, or it may yield something utterly not commensurate to the effort that one had invested. And even when fate seems to be favourable and yields a fortune, as in Kino’s finding a huge pearl, there is still no guarantee that this fortune will not be, in turn, fated to ruin the life of the character who has found it in other unforeseen ways.

Exploitation

The theme of oppression and exploitation is the other key theme in the story. This manifests in several ways, for example, in the career of the doctor. His relationship with Kino and his kind is purely exploitative and predatory. It is for this reason that he refuses to treat Coyotito even though he can see that the poor child is in danger of death from a scorpion’s venom. And all because Kino cannot afford to pay for the medical treatment the boy so urgently requires. But the moment Kino finds the pearl, the doctor quickly switches and declares the sick boy his patient, and visits Kino’s brush house himself to treat him.

However, his real interest is not really in treating the boy but in the possibility of getting a share of the money that Kino’s pearl promises to bring. The same thing applies to the priest as well as the pearl dealers and all the attackers who try to steal the pearl from Kino.

Analysis of Key Moments

  • Kino enjoys a peaceful morning with the monotonous routine of his family as his wife Juana prepares breakfast and his child Coyotito rocks in his crib. But the peaceful morning is disrupted as a spider stings Coyotito.
  • Juana tries to suck the venom from the scorpion sting as neighbours gather around them while Kino crushes the Scorpion in rage.
  • Juana decides that they must take Coyotito to the doctor, and all the neighbours and beggars in the town join them as they walk to the doctor’s house. But on getting there, the doctor refuses to treat Coyotito because Kino does not have any money to pay him.
  • Kino and his family return home, and as they take their boat out to hunt for pearls, Juana gets some medicinal seaweed and places it on Coyotito’s wound while she prays that Kino would find a pearl that would make them rich enough to afford the doctor’s services.
  • Kino’s venture yields a big beautiful pearl, and they are happy. The news of Kino’s pearl travel across town, neighbours troop in to visit him, and he shares his grand plans about what he will do with the fortune he makes from the pearl.
  • The doctor, who had hitherto refused to treat Coyotito, visits Kino’s home and offers his services without any prompting from Kino. Even the priest visits Kino and urges them to bring gifts of thanks to the church.
  • Kino’s home is attacked by a thief that night, but Kino, in his alertness, strikes the thief with his knife, and the thief flees.
  • The next morning, Kino goes to sell the pearl, but the pearl dealers offer him a price that is far less than what it is worth. Sensing that he is being cheated, Kino refuses to sell the pearl and returns home with it.
  • That night, Juana tries to throw the pearl back into the sea because she believes it will bring an evil that will destroy their family. But Kino gets to her before she completes the task and beats her viciously.
  • Another set of thieves attacked Kino’s home again. Kino kills one of them and tries to escape with his family, but they realize that their boat has been destroyed. The thieves set Kino’s home ablaze, and Kino hides with his family at his brother’s house.
  • At night, Kino flees with his family with hopes of getting to the capital, selling the pearl at a profitable rate, and beginning a new life.
  • But enemies follow Kino’s tracks and try to hunt him down. The trackers set up camp at some point, and Kino decides to attack them. But before Kino can strike, Coyotito cries in the distance, and the trackers shoot at him thinking it is a Coyote.
  • Kino kills the trackers but is left with his wailing wife and his dead child.
  • Defeated, Kino and Juana, return to their small town, and Kino casts the pearl back into the ocean.

Style, Tone, and Figurative Language            

John Steinbeck’s style of writing in ‘The Pearl’ is rather oratorical. That is to say that the general rhythm of the narrative makes it sound as if the story is being told orally. This is probably not surprising since, as has been observed, the story is modelled after an ancient Mexican parable, and a parable originally is a short didactic tale passed down by word of mouth from one generation to another. It is this oral feature that the novella imbibes. As a result, its style is conversational, the flow repetitious with a certain monotony of rhythm, giving the general aura of a tale being told around a campfire.

One way in which this writing style is observed is in the frequent occurrence of the conjunction ‘and’ in the course of the narration. For example: ‘Kino held the great pearl in his hand, and it was warm and alive . . .’ ‘Kino looked into his pearl, and Juana cast her eyelashes down…’ and so on. In this way, the author cuts down on the use of the gerund form, colons, and lengthy sentences in general, thereby retaining the ordinary repetitive style of a parable. Also, the relatively short length of the novella rebounds to the general oral bent of the narrative. But it is altogether a simple and unambiguous style.

The tone is moralistic as there is that overriding sense of a repudiation of greed and all the ills that come with it by the narrative voice. And by that same token, a reader is sucked into that same mood whereby he perceives the unfolding sequence from the narrator’s general point of view. The tone also gets despondent, particularly when it dawns on the characters that all the pearl can ever breed is evil, strife, envy, and avarice of murderous dimensions. It is probably in such a state of mind that Juana implores Kino to get rid of the pearl.

One of the dominant figurative languages in the novella includes personification. For example, the narrator uses the expression ‘the wind cried’ at one point, thereby infusing the wind, which is ordinarily a non-sentient entity with a capacity for feeling and emotiveness.

Imagery is another figurative language that features in the novella. This is seen, for example, in the manner in which the narrator captures Kino’s reaction when he is roused from sleep to discover that his wife Juana is sneaking out of their brush house with an end to going to the sea to get rid of the pearl since he has refused her plea to get rid of it. This is how it reads:

And rage surged in Kino. He rolled up to his feet and followed her as silently as she had gone, and he could hear her quick footsteps going toward the shore. Quietly he tracked her, and his brain was red with anger. Chapter V, pp 31

In the quote above , In one breath, the reader perceives Kino’s anger as a rage surging and a substance that gives a certain touch of redness to his brain.

Analysis of Symbols

The pearl itself is easily the single important symbol in the novella. It is difficult to delimit its meaning and significance to just one thing only. When it is first discovered by Kino, it is clearly considered to be a fortune. To that extent, therefore, it is a representation of divine providence in the life of Kino and his family. And going by the order of the incidents in the novella, it, in a way, also represents a divine compensation to Kino for the misfortune of the scorpion sting which had befallen his child, Coyotito, prior to the discovery of the pearl.

But on the other hand, the pearl becomes a corrupting influence, infecting the owner, as well as all the other people who hope to gain something out of it, with murderous greed. Thus, it is as much a symbol of good fortune as it is a symbol of a fall from a state of innocence to decadence.

The Scorpion

The scorpion in the story is a symbol of arbitrary misfortune and evil. Coyotito is a mere baby when the scorpion stings him, and it is significant that while the scorpion crawls up towards the child, he innocently giggles at it and reaches out to grab it. In other words, the child’s innocence and seeming gesture of cordiality towards the scorpion does not stop it from stinging him and leaving him poisoned with its lethal venom.

That is a veritable image of the relationship between good and evil. It evokes the old problem of what exactly might be the trigger or rationale of evil in the order of things in the first place. Evil seems to be an irruptive phenomenon, without any real reason or motivation, something commonly explored in the tragic sequence in art.

The boat in ‘ The Pearl ‘ symbolizes a cultural essence and a delicate heritage to be preserved. Kino’s boat was passed down from generation to generation until it got to him, and he cared for it with utmost care and pride. The destruction of the boat is seen as a worse evil than the killing of a man because a boat cannot protect itself, and a wounded boat cannot heal.

Why did Juana want to throw away the pearl?

Juana wanted to throw away the pearl because she believed that the pearl had an inherent evil that would upset the peaceful order of their family life and destroy them all.

What is the climax of ‘ The Pearl ‘?

A climax is the highest point of tension in a story. The climax of ‘ The Pearl’ by John Steinbeck is the shooting of Coyotito by the trackers and Kino’s subsequent attack on them.

What does the doctor symbolize in ‘ The Pearl ‘?

In John Steinbeck’s ‘ The Pearl,’ the doctor is both a character and a symbol. The doctor symbolizes, decadence, imperialism, greed, and wickedness. He is also a symbol of the exploitation of the colonialists.

What is the moral of the story of ‘The Pearl’ ?

One of the morals of the story is the dangers of greed. There are also lessons about injustice, luck, and exploitation. However, the author expressly states at the beginning of the narration that it is at the discretion of the reader to draw their own morals from the story.

What does the rifle symbolize in ‘The Pearl’ ?

The rifle symbolizes power in the story. The use of the rifle and the application of the power it symbolizes changes with whoever possesses it. For Kino’s neighbours and kinsmen, they perceive the rifle as a tool of oppression which the colonialists used to subdue them. For Kino, when he began to have grand designs for himself and his family, he began to perceive the rifle as a symbol of protection and luxury.

Israel Njoku

About Israel Njoku

Israel loves to delve into rigorous analysis of themes with broader implications. As a passionate book lover and reviewer, Israel aims to contribute meaningful insights into broader discussions.

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Discussion Questions

Consider the priest and the doctor as foil characters. How do their characteristics and roles overlap, and how do they differ?

The narrator says that The Pearl is a parable, which is a simple story that teaches a moral or lesson. What morals or lessons might Kino’s people derive from the story? Do those morals and lessons differ from the ones Steinbeck intends readers to take from it?

Consider dialogue within The Pearl . Though Kino and his people speak an unidentified “old language,” the dialogue is recorded in English. What tone and style does Steinbeck adopt for the dialogue, and how does it influence your perception of the characters and events?

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theme of the pearl essay

John Steinbeck

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The value and evaluation of material entities is a central theme in The Pearl . The value of the pearl , for example, requires reassessment throughout the novel: at the moment of its discovery, it seems to be worth Coyotito ’s life. That the pearl-dealers then so underestimate the price of the pearl reveals how distant the monetary worth of something can be from its perceived value, and how much value is determined by those in power. Moreover, the determination of the pearl’s value has little to do with anything inherent to the object itself. As the narrator describes, a pearl forms by a natural “accident”: “a grain of sand could lie in the folds of muscle and irritate the flesh until in self-protection the flesh coated the grain with a layer of smooth cement.”

Kino ’s canoe , on the other hand, is described as the “one thing of value he owned in the world.” Kino prizes his canoe not as a possession but as a “source of food,” a tool that allows him to fish and dive for pearls. It seems, therefore, that Kino values things that can help him provide him for his family. Unlike the pearl, whose sole function is to be possessed and looked at and whose value is assigned (arbitrarily) by people in power, the canoe is valuable because of its functionality and tradition, and its association with the dignity of work.

The Pearl reveals the slipperiness of value and evaluation: often, value is assessed by those who are already wealthy and powerful. What is valuable to one man (the canoe to Kino) may not seem valuable to another. Moreover, wealth in the novel is, in fact, not a source of well being, but of bad fortune or malicious greed. In the end, what remains of value to Kino and Juana is immaterial and has no price: love and the family.

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The Pearl PDF

Value and Wealth Quotes in The Pearl

“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…If this story is a parable, perhaps everyone takes his own meaning from it and reads his own life into it. In any case, they say in the town that…”

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She gathered some brown seaweed and made a flat damp poultice of it, and this she applied to the baby’s swollen shoulder, which was as good a remedy as any and probably better than the doctor could have done. But the remedy lacked his authority because it was simple and didn’t cost anything.

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In the surface of the great pearl he could see dream forms. He picked the pearl from the dying flesh and held it in his palm, and he turned it over and saw that its curve was perfect.

It was the rifle that broke down the barriers. This was an impossibility, and if he could think of having a rifle whole horizons were burst and he could rush on. For it is said that humans are never satisfied, that you give them one thing and they want something more.

But now, by saying what his future was going to be like, he had created it. A plan is a real thing, and things projected are experienced. A plan once made and visualized becomes a reality along with other realities—never to be destroyed but easily to be attacked…He knew that the gods take their revenge on a man if he be successful through his own efforts. Consequently Kino was afraid of plans, but having made one, he could never destroy it.

All of the neighbors hoped that sudden wealth would not turn Kino’s head, would not make a rich man of him, would not graft onto him the evil limbs of greed and hatred and coldness. For Kino was a well-liked man; it would be a shame if the pearl destroyed him.

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But there was no sign, no movement, the face did not change, but the secret hand behind the desk missed in its precision. The coin stumbled over a knuckle and slipped silently into the dealer’s lap.

The killing of a man was not so evil as the killing of a boat. For a boat does not have sons, and a boat cannot protect itself, and a wounded boat does not heal.

And the pearl settled into the lovely green water and dropped toward the bottom. The waving branches of the algae called to it and beckoned to it.

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Essay Samples on The Pearl

Imagery and character analysis in the pearl.

In the very beginning of the book, Kino watches as his son, Coyotio sleeps. While he is sleeping, Coyotito is stung by a scorpion despite Kino’s efforts to catch it and kill it. They go to the doctor to get Kino treated for the sting...

  • Character Analysis
  • Imagery in Literature

The Theme Of Group Behavior In The Pearl By John Steinbeck

The article is a study exploring the pattern of group activity in John The Pearl's novel. There's a major influence on other individuals from Stein show group behavior. We are the long-term basis of human life. Steinbeck's group-man theory is based on Darwinian interpretation of...

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Theme of Greed in John Steinbeck’s Novel The Pearl and Jack London's Story A Piece of Steak

In John Steinbeck’s realistic fiction novel, The Pearl, Kino drastically changes his life when he finds a pearl of great value. Local authors, Jack London and John Steinbeck, both use greed, murder, and poverty in different ways to express their themes. Greed is a theme...

John Steinbeck's The Pearl Through the Prism of New Formalism

Using the New Formalism as a lens to analyze Pearls, the reader can see that Steinbeck uses images, symbols and music to develop a theme according to which luck can lead people with good intentions to the path of evil and negative. In modern society,...

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John Steinbeck: Literary Works, Life and People Who Inspired Him

Recurring Ideas in Of Mice and Men, Travels With Charley, and The Pearl The Desire to Escape One recurring theme that is displayed in Of Mice and Men, Travels With Charley, and The Pearl is the desire to escape, which causes the characters to venture...

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Best topics on The Pearl

1. Imagery And Character Analysis In The Pearl

2. The Theme Of Group Behavior In The Pearl By John Steinbeck

3. Theme of Greed in John Steinbeck’s Novel The Pearl and Jack London’s Story A Piece of Steak

4. John Steinbeck’s The Pearl Through the Prism of New Formalism

5. John Steinbeck: Literary Works, Life and People Who Inspired Him

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theme of the pearl essay

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theme of the pearl essay

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IMAGES

  1. The Pearl Essay Sample

    theme of the pearl essay

  2. The Oyster and the Pearl Essay Example

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  3. "The Pearl" Creative Essay Assignments by Teach Simple

    theme of the pearl essay

  4. Theme of Greed in The Pearl by John Steinbeck Free Essay Sample on

    theme of the pearl essay

  5. The Pearl

    theme of the pearl essay

  6. 💐 The pearl by john steinbeck essay. The Pearl. 2019-01-24

    theme of the pearl essay

VIDEO

  1. The Terrifying Ordeal of Aging

  2. "Army Theme"/"Pearl Harbor Battle Outfit"?! TikTok Reaction#comedyshorts #skit #reaction

  3. Greatest Movie Soundtracks/Themes of all Time

  4. Pearl

  5. Pearl is Boring

  6. "Pearl Harbor Fantasia"

COMMENTS

  1. The Pearl Theme: [Essay Example], 669 words GradesFixer

    Get custom essay. In conclusion, John Steinbeck's novella, "The Pearl," effectively conveys the destructive power of greed through the character development of Kino, the use of symbolism, and the reactions of other characters. By examining how greed corrupts individuals and leads to tragic consequences, Steinbeck prompts readers to reflect on ...

  2. The Pearl: Themes

    The Pearl portrays two contrasting forces that shape human life and determine individual destiny. The novella depicts a world in which, for the most part, humans shape their own destinies. They provide for themselves, follow their own desires, and make their own plans. At the same time, forces beyond human control, such as chance, accident, and ...

  3. The Pearl Themes

    The value and evaluation of material entities is a central theme in The Pearl. The value of the pearl, for example, requires reassessment throughout the novel: at the moment of its discovery, it seems to be worth Coyotito 's life. That the pearl-dealers then so underestimate the price of the pearl reveals how distant the monetary worth of ...

  4. The Pearl: Mini Essays

    The role of fate looms large in Kino's undoing in two ways. First, Kino's downfall is incited by his accidental, divinely appointed discovery of the pearl. Second, Kino's status as an impoverished fisherman who lives under the burden of colonial oppression also creates the sense that his tragedy is decreed by fate.

  5. The Pearl Themes

    Discussion of themes and motifs in John Steinbeck's The Pearl. eNotes critical analyses help you gain a deeper understanding of The Pearl so you can excel on your essay or test.

  6. The Pearl: Theme Analysis

    The Pearl: Essay Q&A; Breadcrumb. Home; The Pearl; The Pearl: Theme Analysis. Good versus Evil The most prominent theme in the parable of the pearl is that of the struggle between good and evil. As is the case with most parables the characters and events of the story are rendered more definitely aligned with good or evil than would be possible ...

  7. What is the main theme in The Pearl by John Steinbeck?

    Share Cite. One major theme of the novel is the idea that evil cannot be defeated by one person alone. Juana and Kino represent the good and the members of the town, including the doctor and the ...

  8. The Pearl Themes and Analysis

    John Steinbeck. Written by Israel Njoku. Degree in M.C.M with focus on Literature from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. ' The Pearl ' by John Steinbeck explores themes like greed and exploitation to give insight into ethical issues facing humanity in the context of ethnic and economic divisions. It also has symbols that further drive the ...

  9. Themes from The Pearl

    The Pearl Themes/Main Ideas The Individual and the Community. In writing The Pearl, Steinbeck transformed the Mexican folk legend he had heard during his travels, changing the specifics of the protagonist and his community to address more universal themes. In Steinbeck's reworking of the tale, the protagonist is not a footloose teenage diver, but a more mature man with obligations to others.

  10. The Pearl Essay Topics

    Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of "The Pearl" by John Steinbeck. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

  11. Value and Wealth Theme in The Pearl

    The value and evaluation of material entities is a central theme in The Pearl.The value of the pearl, for example, requires reassessment throughout the novel: at the moment of its discovery, it seems to be worth Coyotito 's life. That the pearl-dealers then so underestimate the price of the pearl reveals how distant the monetary worth of something can be from its perceived value, and how ...

  12. What are the most important themes in John Steinbeck's The Pearl

    Share Cite. I think the most important theme in The Pearl is Obsession. In Chapter II, Kino dives for pearls in a desperate attempt to find one of value with which to pay the doctor to treat ...

  13. PDF The Pearl by John Steinbeck: Unit Overview

    Style: The Pearl is a short novel or novella which is told in the form of an allegory or PARABLE--a short, simple work with little dialogue illustrating a lesson or a larger truth often on the subject of good and evil. In a PARABLE, good and evil are clearly defined--everything is black and white, there are no shades of gray.

  14. The Pearl by John Steinbeck Essay Samples for Students on

    Imagery And Character Analysis In The Pearl. 2. The Theme Of Group Behavior In The Pearl By John Steinbeck. 3. Theme of Greed in John Steinbeck's Novel The Pearl and Jack London's Story A Piece of Steak. 4. John Steinbeck's The Pearl Through the Prism of New Formalism. 5. John Steinbeck: Literary Works, Life and People Who Inspired Him

  15. The Pearl: Study Guide

    The Pearl is a captivating novella by Nobel Prize winning author John Steinbeck that originally appeared in the magazine Woman's Home Companion in 1945 under the title "The Pearl of the World" and was then published as a book in 1947.The novella is set against the backdrop of the small Mexican village of La Paz. The story follows Kino, a humble pearl diver, and his wife, Juana.

  16. The Pearl Theme Essay

    The Attack on Pearl Harbor Essay. December 7, 1941, was one of the worst attacks on the United States in U.S. history. Of that day 2,403 soldiers were killed in action, 1,178 were wounded in action. Numerous U.S. armed forces personnel were misjudged, which allowed the Japanese to carry out this terrible attack.

  17. The Pearl Essay Examples

    Novella. 1947. The Pearl is a novella by the American author John Steinbeck. The story, first published in 1947, follows a pearl diver, Kino, and explores man's purpose as well as greed, defiance of societal norms, and evil. Steinbeck's inspiration was a Mexican folk tale from La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico, which he had heard in a visit ...

  18. Essay on the Pearl

    The Pearl. The Pearl is a novella by the author, John Steinbeck. The genre of this book is fiction parable. The theme is that greed can lead to a dark ending. The major conflicts in this story are man vs. man, man vs. nature, and man vs. society. The point of view is in third person.

  19. The Pearl: Suggested Essay Topics

    Suggested Essay Topics. 1. How does the novella's conclusion complete Steinbeck's moral argument? Could the novella have ended in any other way? Is it wise of Kino to throw the pearl back into the sea, or should he have searched for another option? 2. What role does family play in The Pearl?

  20. The Pearl Theme Essay

    The Pearl Theme Essay. The story Pearl by John Steinbeck takes place on the California Peninsula. Kino's kid Coyotito got stung by a scorpion and he needs a doctor but his parents Kino and Juana don't have the money. Kino then finds the great pearl of the world in the sea and he thinks of the things he could do with it and get.

  21. World Health Day 2024

    World Health Day 2024 is 'My health, my right'. This year's theme was chosen to champion the right of everyone, everywhere to have access to quality health services, education, and information, as well as safe drinking water, clean air, good nutrition, quality housing, decent working and environmental conditions, and freedom from discrimination.

  22. ACS Fall 2024

    Join us in Denver, Colorado from August 18-22 to get the latest research in chemistry, network, and attend career events. The theme of this meeting is Elevating Chemistry and will explore a variety of topics such as: Elevating chemistry performance Elevating chemistry for the public good Elevating safety for graduate students Elevating chemical education Chemistry in space Elevating the ...

  23. Sample A+ Essay: Is the Pearl a Novella or a Parable?

    The Pearl has some superficial aspects of a novella. Its length—eighty-seven pages—and its division into short chapters suggest that it is a novel in miniature, a piece of prose that concisely portrays one character's soul. Its moments of interior description, the sounds of "The Song of the Enemy" and "The Song of the Family ...