The Pearl Greed

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The Pearl, a novella by John Steinbeck, follows the inhabitants of a small town after Kino, the main character, finds the “... greatest pearl in the world.” (25) Steinbeck chooses to highlight the terrible consequences of the characters’, and how they could have been avoided had the residents of La Paz, Mexico been less driven by greed and envy. The novella shows that excessive greed can lead to disastrous outcomes, and should therefore be avoided. In the beginning of the book, Kino and Juana, a young couple, are enjoying a relaxed, normal morning. That is, until Coyotito, their firstborn child, gets stung by a scorpion. The rich, greedy doctor refuses to help Kino and Juana, as they are too poor to pay for Coyotito’s treatment. In hopes …show more content…
The pearl buyers lie to Kino about the true value of the pearl, offering anywhere from five hundred to one thousand five hundred pesos. To a poor man, it might seem like a lot, and although Kino is indeed poor, he is not impressed with the amount of money offered. He refuses to sell the pearl to the pearl buyers. The villagers are shocked, and they wonder if Kino is starting to become corrupted, as they know newly rich people become. “Perhaps, some argued, perhaps it would have been better if Kino had taken the one thousand five hundred …show more content…
She urges Kino to destroy the pearl, to “... destroy it before it destroys us.” Kino refuses. This leads to Juana sneaking off to destroy the pearl in the early morning, only to be caught by Kino. He attacks her, kicking her sides and striking her in the face, and then leaves, taking the pearl with him. On the way back to their brush house, Kino is suddenly assaulted by a man, and in their struggle, Kino kills his attacker. “He heard the rush, got his knife out and lunged at one dark figure, and felt his knife go home, and then he was swept to his knees and swept again to the

The Pearl Greed

In the novella, The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, the main character deals with greed and jealousy from everyone. All of this jealousy is caused when he finds the “pearl of the world”. The moment he finds this pearl, people are trying to do anything in their will to get it going. Everyone in the town is after him to get the money for the pearl. One lesson to learn is the greed can cause people to resort to violence and trickery in order to get what they want. One of the first problems that Kino is…

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The Pearl Greed

great pearl that is going to change their lives forever. But, overtime the pearl changes the father and brings darkness into and around the family. Eventually the pearl changes everything, but not in the way they expected it to. In result, the pearl ends up being a symbol of darkness for the family in John Steinbeck’s novella The Pearl. The pearl functions as the main symbol of the novella and it changes through the novel in order to illustrate the theme of the destructive nature of greed and envy…

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The Pearl Greed Quotes

quote describes the character Kino in the book the Pearl by John Steinbeck. Kino is greedy about the pearl that he finds and it leads to him losing his son Coyotito. In The Pearl, Kino finds a huge pearl that is worth a lot of money. He plans on using some of the money to pay the doctor to treat his son for a scorpion sting. The theme in the book is that materialism and greed left unchecked, can lead to immoral behavior such as violence. In the pearl, Kino’s greediness almost ruins his relationship…

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The Pearl Human Greed

thinks of greed. We think it is more of a bad thing rather than a good thing for us; in addition we are not greedy at all. We all want are, whether you are rich or poor. Greed can exist in us all, but sometimes some people want more than others. In the dictionary greed is defined as a selfish desire to acquire more than one needs or deserves. Greed is something that just about everyone has, it is took place at the start of humanity, all the way to fictional characters. In the story The Pearl by John…

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The Pearl Greed Essay

In the novel The Pearl by Jon Steinbeck, the author tells a story on how greed and money can get in the way of happiness. The main characters are Kino, a pearl diver, Juana, Kino’s wife and Coyotito, their infant son. In the beginning of the story Kino and Juana live a happy humble quiet life. “Kino heard the little splash of the morning waves on the beach. It was very good- Kino closed his eyes again to listen to his music.” (Steinbeck 1-2). Everything seemed to go perfect for Kino and his family…

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Greed In John Steinbeck's The Pearl

The Pearl is a phenomenal novel that shows the dangers of greed. Through his strong writing, Steinbeck emphasizes the central theme of greed by writing about how people that are considered to be people of prestige and honor are filled with greed after learning about the pearl, and how the personality and actions and of the protagonist himself change. When nature gifts Kino, the protagonist, the “pearl of the world” he expects everyone to be happy for him. Yet, “Kino's pearl went into the dreams…

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The Pearl Greed Quotes Analysis

In the novel the “Pearl” by John Steinbeck I saw the theme that materialism and greed left unchecked, can lead to immoral behavior, such as violence. This novel is about a Mexican family who is very poor. They live in a hut on the coast next to the Ocean. The father’s name is Kino, the mother's name is Juana and the baby’s name is Coyotito. Coyotito got stung by a scorpion so they had to take him to the local doctor, but there was a problem. The doctor would not treat the baby because Kino didn't…

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Examples Of Greed In The Pearl By John Steinbeck

Greed is a state of mind which can never be satisfied; once you attain your heart’s desire, another desire takes it's place. Greed is self-serving and destructive. Neighbors are no longer friends, but rivals in a competition. Family members are no longer loved ones, but obstacles in the quest for the newest, brightest and best. In The Pearl, by John Steinbeck, we can learn that greed for materialistic possessions can cloud judgement and emotions. Greed turns a small, humble town into one thirsty…

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How Does Steinbeck Present Greed In The Pearl

directions. In The Pearl, a novel by John Steinbeck, the main character’s desire to sell the great pearl clouds his sense of obligation toward his family. Amidst desire comes greed and because of this, Kino’s real intentions had gone away from him, he began placing his family before the great pearl, and the future he had dreamt for them come out of reach. The desire to sell the great pearl has robbed Kino of his true intentions. After storming out of the shop of the pearl merchants, Kino becomes…

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Symbols In The Pearl Of The World

The pearl or as Kino and the rest of the villagers referred to it “The Pearl of the World” symbolized many things. These things include greed, evil and jealousy, and in a less negative way it symbolized hope. The pearl also seemed to change Kino’s personalities throughout the book as if it were magical. Even though the community never got a hold of it, they all had an opinion and the pearl seem to influence their ways just as much as they influenced Kino. Before finding the pearl Kino was just another…

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