There’s an evil aura consuming the main characters of this story. Greed, anger, death, disappointment, mystery, is all we see while we read this interesting story about Kino and his family: Juanita, his wife, and Coyotito, their little baby.
In the beginning, desperation comes when Coyotito is bitten by a scorpion, and they can’t get the treatment for him because of their poor condition. When he finds a pearl in the sea, which appears to be so valuable and precious, people start treating him different, and he himself starts feeling different. The long odyssey starts here.
When the tragedies arrive, you can’t help wondering if all what he did was actually worth it. ¿Did Kino’s family lose more than they achieved when he found the pearl? Even though he is blinded by greed and selfishness, his wife never leaves his side, and she insists that the nature of the pearl is evil, and they should return it back where it belongs. Here’s when we can see the two different perspectives of these characters.
Juanita seems to be happy with what they have, even though it is not too much. She does not have the need to possess the pearl because her spirit is strong enough not to want to risk everything she has just for one possibility. Kino, on the other hand, seems to be hungry for a new life. The vision of a different life and future for his family intoxicates him to the point where he does not see the bad side of the coin.
It is not that one was weak and the other strong, but that they had different views about life and what really mattered to them. They were happy in their own way before finding a pearl so precious but so dangerous that it put everyone’s lives and the safety of the city at risk. However, it must be recognized that you must have a strong will not to let yourself be carried away by the bad side of your ambitions, and Juanita managed to feel the danger that Kino didn’t see.
Although Kino cannot be judged for the decisions he made, his actions cost him his son’s life, the security they lived in, and the happiness they had before it was taken away from them. When the worst happens, they both return defeated to the town where they feel safe, and despite the great tragedy that accompanies them, together they decide to throw the pearl back into the sea.
They did not get carried away by the pain, and together they tried to cope with the situation. Although it is not known if they succeeded in the future, one can see their strength after having lost what they loved the most. Both characters are strong, Juanita with her iron will, and Kino with his tireless efforts to possess the pearl. They were just strong for different things, and their purposes were also extremely diverse. And since happiness is not the same for everyone, it is valid that both had shown what was worthwhile for them.
Steinbeck, J. (2000). The Pearl. Penguin Classics.
