Themesi

nJohnSt
einbeck'
sThePear
l

ThePr
iceofWi
sdom

Juanaunder standsf arsoonert hanKi nothedangeri npossessi ngthepearl.“I

twil
ldestroyus
all
,”shecr i
esoutt o him.“ Even ourson. ”AfterKi no and Juana’ swayofl if
ehasbeen
oblit
er ated—t heirhousebur nedandKi no’scanoesmashed—JuanTomásat tempt stosave
them f rom fur therdestruct
ion.“Ther eisadevi linthispear l,
”het el
lsKino.“Youshoul dhave
soldi tandpassedont hedevil
.Per hapsyoucanst illsellitandbuypeacef oryoursel
f.
”Kino
refuses, cli
ngi ngtot hepearlalt
houghheper cei
vesitdi f
ferentl
y:“Ihaveit…AndIwi l
lkeepit…
nowi tismymi sfort
uneandmyl i
feandIwi llkeepit.”WhenKi noiscaughtupi ndreamsoft he
future,hebeat sJuanaf orattemptingt othrowt hepear lintotheGul f
;attheconclusionofthe
story, i
tisKinowhor eturnsthepear ltothesea.Juanast andsbesi dehim,thebloodiedbodyof
theirdeadsonwr appedi nhershawl —at er
ri
bl epri
cetopayf orKino’sacquir
ingwisdom.

What,however
,isthewisdom ofThePearl
,ifi
ndeedi tisapar
able?Thequesti
onr
emai
ns
unanswer
edinthestor
y,butapassagef
rom t
hetextsuggest
sani
nterpr
etat
ion:

Foritissai
dthathumansareneversati
sfi
ed;thatyougi vethem onet hi
ngandt heywant
somethi
ngmore.Andthi
sissai
dindi
sparagement,whereasiti
soneoft hegreat
estt
alent
sthe
speci
eshasandonethathasmadei
tsuperi
ortoanimalsthataresat
isf
iedwithwhattheyhave.

Thel esson inher

entin Ki
no’spossessing “
thePearloftheWor l
d”maybef ound i
nthis
character
isti
cofhumannat ur
e:thedesiref
ormor e.Oneofman’
s“ gr
eatestt
alents,
”thest
ory
suggests,isalsoacur
sethatcreat
esdissat
isf
act
ionanddestr
oyscontent
ment.

Beforefi
ndingt hepear l,Ki
nol i
vesapeacef ulandsecur eexist
ence,inharmonywi ththenatural
world;hef i
ndshappi nessandf ul
fi
llmentint hesimpl erouti
nesofhi sli
fe—wakingupbesi de
Juana,li
steningt o“thel i
tt
lesplashofmor ningwavesont hebeach,”watchingCoyotit
osleepin
hiscradl
e,andst andingont hebeachbef oredawnt owatcht hesunr i
seoutoft heGulf.The
mor ni
ngbef oreKi nof i
ndst hepear lis“amor ni
ngl ikeothermor ni
ngsandyetper f
ectamong
mor ni
ngs.”Hel iveswi thi
n“ t
heSongoft heFami l
y”;i
tr i
sessomet i
mes“ t
oanachingchor dthat
caughtthethr oat,sayingthisissafety,t
hisiswarmt h,thi
sistheWhol e.
”

Whenthepearlcomesi
ntohispossessi
on,Kinofor
fei
tshi
sol
dli
fefornewdr eams;hegains
not
hingandlosesal
mosteveryt
hingofrealval
ue.WhenheandJuanar et
urntothei
rvil
lage
withCoyoti
to’
sbody,t heyhavebeent r
ansformedbygr i
efandseem “ r
emovedfrom human
experi
ence.
”Thepearl,oncel uminousandenchant i
ng,nowseemsugl yandgraytoKi no,“l
ike
amal i
gnantgrowt
h.”St andingatthewater’
sedge,hef l
ingsitint
ot hesea“ wit
hallhismi ght.
”
Readersfi
ndmanymeani ngsinThePear l
,asSt ei
nbeckintended,butt hepri
marytruthoft he
stor
yseemst obeawar ningasmuchasal esson—tobeawar eoft hehumandr i
vet owant
morethanwehaveandt oappreciat
eandpr otectwhatistrul
yvaluablei nourli
vesbeforeitis
l
ost.

Beforethenarrat
ivebegins,ani nt
roduct or
yparagr aphidentif
iesthest or
yofKinoandt hegreat
pearlashavingbeent oldint hetownsomanyt imesi nt hepastt hatithasbecomeapar tof
everyman’ sheartandmi nd.I nthest oryar e“
onl ygoodandbadt hi
ngsandbl ackandwhi te
thi
ngsandgoodandevi lt
hingsandnoi nbetweenanywher e.”Thust hestor
yisamor ali
tytal
e,
a parable perhaps from whi ch reader s deri
ve per sonalmeani ng.Inr egardtol it
erary
themes, The Pearlof
fers many t hemes f orr eaderst o consider;each theme develops
organicall
yfr
om t hesetti
ngandr aisesuni ver
salquest ionsabouthumannat ur
eandhuman
experi
ence.Thatsaid,however ,It
hinkt hemosti mportantonei sthis:

Gr
eedandCor
rupt
ion

Ast hewordspr eadst hatKinohasf oundahugepear l,t

henewsofhi sdiscover
y“ sti
rr
edup
somet hi
nginfi
nitelybl
ackandevi li
nt hetown”;greedi
sa“ bl
ackdist
il
late”comparabletothe
poisonofascor pion.I
tinfectsri
chandpooral i
ke.Thebeggarsinthestr
eet,t
hemer chants,
the
pearlbuyer
s,thedoct or,andt helocalpri
est—allt
hinkofthepear
lintermsofhowt heymight
profi
tf r
om Kino’spossessi ngit.Greeddr i
vessomepeopl eint hetownt ocommi tactsof
vi
olenceagainstKi noi
nat tempti
ngt ostealt
hepear l
.Bl
oodisshed.

Cor r
uptionfueledbygr eedisevidenti ni ndivi
duallivesandi nsociet
yatl arge.Thedoct ori s
corruptedbyhi sloveofmoneyandf i
nepossessi ons;i nasi l
krobe,hesi tsinhi sbeaut iful
house,si ppi
ngchocol atefr
om achi nacup,whi l
eher efusest oaidCoyot i
to,whohasbeen
stungbyascor pion.Thebabyi sonl yanI ndi
an,afterall,andt hedoctor,hei nsists,isnota
“veteri
nary”;mor eover,Coyoti
to’sfather ,Kino,hasnot hingofval uetogi vetot hedoct ori n
returnforhistreatingthesickchild.Lat er,t
hedoct oruseshi sknowledgeofmedi cinet omake
ar ecoveringCoyot itoil
linordert o“ save”hi m andgai naccesst oKino’spear l.Int hecol d,
calculatedperversionofhisprofession, thedoct orexhibit
shi smoralcorrupti
onasaphysi cian
andasahumanbei ng.

Thedoct
or’
sat
ti
tudet
owar
dthenat
iveI
ndi
anpopul
ati
oni
sroot
edi
ncent
uri
esofcol
oni
al
conquestandsubj ugat
ion.Hei s“ofaracewhi chfornear lyfourhundredyearshadbeat enand
star
vedandr obbedanddespi sedKi no’
srace,andf r
ight enedittoo….”Theconsequenceoft his
hist
oryi sacor ruptsocietydeterminedtokeepKi no’ speopleimpr i
sonedbypover tyand
i
gnorance.Fr om thepear lbuyersinLaPaz( secr
etr epresentati
vesofasi ngl
ebuyer )who
conspi
ret opayt heIndiansasl i
ttl
easpossi blefort heirpearlstothepr i
estwhoseser mons
admonisht heIndianst
oacceptt heirst
ati
oninl if
e,t
hei nstit
utionsinsoci
etywor kinconcertto
denyfreedom andj ust
icet oeverymemberofKi no’sr ace.Indoingso,t hoseinpowerenr ich
themselvesattheexpenseoft hepoorandt hepower less.

Obsessi
on

InChapterII,Ki
nodi vesforpearl
sinadesper ateattemptt ofi
ndoneofval uewithwhichtopay
thedoct ortot r
eatCoyot it
of orthescor pi
onst ingt hatcouldki l
lhim.I nst
ead,Coyoti
to’s
conditi
oni mproves,theresultofJuana’st r
eati
nghi swoundwi t
han“ oldremedy,”andKi no
fi
ndsnotj ustaval uablepearlbut“thePear loftheWor ld.”Withtheset woevents,Kino’
sl if
e
changesdr amaticall
y.Inthemagni fi
cenceoft hehuge,per f
ectpearl
,Ki noenvisi
onsaf uture
unlikeanyhehadeverdar edt oi
magi ne;lookingintot heglowingsurfaceoft hepearl
,hesees
“dreamsf orm”—newcl othesforhisfami l
y,hi sandJuana’ sweddi ngint hechurch,aharpoon
andar if
leforhimsel f
,andmostofal l
,aneducat i
onf orCoyotit
o.Kino’scont ent
mentwi t
ht he
“Songoft heFami l
y”isnowl osti
n“themusi cofthepear l
”thatsingswi t
h“ tr
iumph”inhim.

Becomi ngar i
chmanchangesKi no’sli
feimmediatel
yi nwayshedoesnotant icipateas
“shadowyfigures”att
emptt ost
ealthepearl.Hei
sattacked,hishomeisi
nvaded,andheki l
lsa
mani nself-defensewhenhei sattackedasecondt i
me.WhenJuanat r
iestothr
ow thepear l
backi ntot
hesea,bel ievi
ngthatitisevilandwil
ldest r
oyt hem,Ki
nobeatsherwi thanimal
savageryandt henissickenedbywhathehasdonet oher.ForKino,
possessi
ngthepear lwit
h
allit
spr omiseshasbecomeanobsessi on;hepur suesitunt i
lhi
sandJuana’ soldl if
eis
destr
oyedandt hei
rbabyisdead.

Despitethei ni
tialdeathanddest ruct iont hepear lbr i
ngsintohisandJuana’ slif
e,Kinowi l
lnot
giveitup.Rat hert hansel li
ttothecor ruptpear lbuyer sforessential
lynothi
ng,hechoosest o
defythesyst em andsel litinthecapi talforaf ai
rpr ice;aft
erhishousehasbeenbur nedandhi s
canoedest royed,hest i
llref
usest osel lthepear linLaPaz.“ Thi
spear lhasbecomemysoul ,
”
Kinosays.“ IfIgivei tupIshal llosemysoul .”Leavi ngtheoldl i
febehind,hetakesJuanaand
Coyotitoonaj ourneyt othecapi tal,leavi ngt hetrailandf l
eeingint
ot hemount ai
nswhent hey
aretrackedbyt hreemenwhowi llkillthem f orthepear l.Kinoprevail
soverthet r
ackers,ki
ll
ing
them all,buthi sobsessi onwi tht hepear lendsonl ywhenher eali
zesCoyotitohasdi ed,the
i
nnocentvi ctim ofar i
fl
eshot .Ret urningt othevi l
lagewi thJuanabyhi sside,Kinothrowst he
pearlintothesea.
Nat
ureofPower
.

Powervs.power l
essnessi sat hemet hatr unst hr
oughoutThePear l.Kino’sracehasbeen
subjugatedforcent ur
iesbyEur opeancol oniali
sm.Theoyst erbedwher eKi nofindst hegreat
pearlisthesamebed“ thathadr ai
sedt heKi ngofSpai nt obeagr eatpoweri nEuropei npast
years,hadhel pedt opayf orhiswar s,andhaddecor atedthechur chesf orhi ssoul’ssake.”
Kino’sconquer edpeopl ehaver emai nedpower lessforfourhundr edyear s,“sincef i
rstthe
strangers came wi th argument s and aut hori
ty and gunpowdert o back up bot h.”Once
establi
shed,thesubj ugationoft heIndi anshasbeenper petuat
edbysoci ety’
sensur ingthat
theyremainpoorandi gnor ant.Anydesi retheymi ghthaveforabetterlifeissuppr essedbyt he
church;thepriestinLaPazt eachest hateachper sonmust“ remainfaithful
”t ohisstati
oni nl
ife,
assignedbyGod, i
nor dertopr otecttheuni versefrom “t
heassaultsofHel l
.”

Kinoiswel lawar eofhowpower l

esshei sinli
fe.Afterfi
ndingthepear l
, hi
sdr eamsoft hefuture
i
ncludebuyi ngar i
fl
e,aweapont hatgivesamanpower .Mor esignif
icantl
y,however ,he
dreamsofaneducat ionf orhisson.IfCoyotit
ocoul dr ead,“theboywoul dknow whatt hings
werei nt hebooksand whatt hingswer enot .
”Ki no understandst hatr ealpowerl i
esi n
knowledge:“ Mysonwi l
lreadandopent hebooks, andmysonwi llwri
teandknowwr i
ti
ng.And
mysonwi l
lmakenumber s,andtheset hi
ngswi l
lmakeusf reebecausehewi llknow—hewi l
l
knowandt hr oughhim wewi l
lknow. ”Thepear lmeansmor et hanweal t
ht oKi no;itoff
ersan
endtobei ngt rappedbyi gnorance.“Thisi
souronechance, ”het el
lsJuana.“ Oursonmustgo
toschool.Hemustbr eakoutoft hepott hathol dsusi n.”Indef yi
ngt hepear lbuyersand
chall
engingt hesystem t heyrepresent,Ki
noi ni
tiatesapowerst ruggl
et hatul t
imatelyendsi n
Coyoti
to’
sdeat h.

Pr
ide

Kino’ssubjugati
onbysoci et
yhasnotdest r
oyedhi sprideorsel f
-respect
.Onlyf orfearof
Coyotit
o’sdyingdoesheask,hati nhand,forthedoctor’
sassi stance.Whenhei sturnedaway
withanobvi ousliebyt
hedoct or’
sservant,Ki
nofeelssodeepl yhumi l
iat
edhei sovercomeby
rage.Hest andsatthegat
et ot hedoctor
’shousef or“alongt ime,”putshis“suppli
anthaton
hishead,”andt henst
ri
kest hegatewi th“ acrushingbl ow.”Hewi llnotconsentt obeing
mar gi
nali
zed;hispri
dewil
lnotal l
owhimt oendurepassivelythedoct or’
sinsul
t.

Kino’
spridei
smani f
estedagai
ninhisconf r
ontat
ionwit
hthepearlbuyersi
nLaPaz.Knowi ng
thatheisbei
ngcheated,Kinor
efusestosellhi
spearlt
othem;indeclar
ingthathewillsel
lthe
pearli
nthecapit
al,Ki
noassertshisindependenceandref
usestobehumi li
atedagain.Later
,
whenKino’shouseisburnedandhiscanoedest r
oyed,
thel
ossismor ethanmateri
al.ToJuan
TomásKinosays,“[
a]ni
nsulthasbeenputonmet hati
sdeeperthanmyl if
e.”Ki
no’
spride,as
muchashi sdesir
et osecuremoneyf orCoyoti
to’sfut
ure,demandst hathechall
enget he
syst
em t
hathol
dshim down.Hehasnochoice,forashetell
sJuana,“Iam aman.”

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