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Bryanna Hopson
English (Honors)
29 July 2014
Summer Reading: The Pearl

I. THE BEGINNING A. The Pearl was written by John Steinbeck in 1945, the author has went on to write other
successful novels and has also won a Nobel prize.
B. The story is narrated in third person point of view told by the many generations who have
passed the story down.
C. The setting of the novel is placed in La Paz and Baja California also where the author John
Steinbeck formally resided.
D. The main character is Kino who faces a numerous amount of challenges throughout the story;
Kino is a fisherman where he and his family reside in the brushes of La Paz.
E. Other important characters in the story include Juana (Kinos wife), Coyotito (Juana and
Kinos first born son) and Juan Thomas who is Kinos brother.
F. Before the novel begins the story sets off in a time where the Indian people are mistreated,
Indians were seen as animals and treated as if they were beneath the rest of the population.
G. In The Pearl the first serious conflict occurs when Kinos first born son Coyotito is stung by a
scorpion when Juana begins to fluster with fear her baby might face death from the poison of the
sting she sends villagers to find the doctor, shortly after sending them away the villagers return
with bad news stating the doctor will not come. Kino and Juana know exactly why the doctor
wont come with the harsh reality that the doctor will not be bothered by them whom have no
money. Juana wont give up knowing that if her baby does not receive help soon the poison will
react against the baby and will eventually end in death. When Juana and Kino arrive at the
doctors house begging for him to help them his servant comes to the door after hearing the plea
for help the doctor responds by saying Have I have nothing better to do than cure insect bites
for little Indians I am a doctor not a veterinarian Juana and Kino return home upset after the
doctor is suddenly out of office.
II. THE MIDDLE

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A. As the novel continues on this family has already faced much trouble throughout just the
beginning of the story after hearing bad news from the doctor the baby continues to be sickened
from the poison of the scorpion. Juana struggles to heal the baby with home remedies and prayer
after everything seems to be going wrong a sudden plot twist occurs.
B. After dealing with the possible death that can occur if their first born son Coyotito is not
helped or cured Kino and Juana set off in their canoe that has been passed down generations
from Kinos grandfather then his dad and now him, Kino faces a sudden luck while out fishing
where he manages to find The Great Pearl. After finding the pearl word travels fast about the
great riches Kino will endure now that he has found this amazing jewel word even manages to
travel to the money greedy doctor who denied treated to Coyotito earlier in the novel. The doctor
manages to appear at Kino and Juana home apologizing for being out and not being able to help
them earlier then ask to see the baby. Kino hesitant to allow the doctor to see the baby finally
gives in and allows Juana to pass the baby along, the doctor then claims the poison has taken
over the baby and will strike soon. Kino reluctant to believe the doctor watches as the doctor
gives the baby a white gel powder saying it will cure him, leaving the reader wondering if the
powder is really a cure.
C. One of the main messages and themes that emerged in the story is the power of wealth and
material things, which symbolizes how ugly it can turn someone. While Kino has the pearl in his
possession bad things seemingly continue to happen and as his wife Juana continues to warn him
that the pearl is bad news Kino continues to insist that its not and his son Coyotito must have a
future and be educated. When Kino is asked what he will do now since he has this great fortune
Kino begins to tell all of his neighbors what he has in his plans one of the request is that he will
buy himself a rifle, Kino shows the first of his materialistic side when he mentions the rifle.
Juana begins to see the change in Kinos behavior and is more and more fearful about the person
he is changing into especially when he strikes her in the face for trying to throw away the pearl.
D. Other themes mentioned in the story include the fact that you cant trust everyone. This theme
is presented when the author leaves the reader to a suspicion that the doctor has purposely
poisoned the child. The doctor does this so that he can be seen as a hero and then later receives
payment for his unethical curing of the poison in Coyotito. Juana is convinced that the heroic
doctor has treated her baby but truth is revealed when the doctor later returns and stares into
Kinos eyes hoping to see where he has placed the pearl.
E. Important characters that were later revealed in the story include the doctor, the night time
attackers and then trackers. Each of these characters played a role in revealing how much evil the
pearl eventually ended up bringing. After having the pearl Kino and his wife began to realize that
evil traveled within the pearl after failing to receive several obvious warnings Kino finally
learned his lesson at the end when the pearl was tossed out.
III. THE END

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A. The climax of the novel occurs when Kino first finds the pearl; he then goes through a series
of disasters following his new found wealth. Juana immediately realizes that the pearl is not
worth all the evil and trouble it has brought along, she has many efforts to inform Kino of the
dangers but Kino continues to persuade her on the fact that the pearl is not evil and that it will
being good for their son. During the night in the book the author describes an attack on Kino in
the book for the pearl. He is struck by men in the night and responds by striking one of the men
and killing him. Once Kino informs Juana of what he has done he immediately tells her they
must pack up and leave for there will be people after them. Kino, Juana and Coyotito hurry to
pack up for fear they will be spotted, on the way to the canoe Kino realizes that someone has
placed an attack against his boat leaving a hole in the boat for which cannot be fixed. Kino and
Juana then turn around to see that their home is being burned the people have placed another
attack against them and Kino and Juana then run to Juan Thomass house begging for him to hide
them until they are further able to seek shelter.
B. The main conflicts in the story are finally resolved by the releasing of the pearl into the water.
Kino is finally free of the negative and evil energy presented by this horrible demon. When Kino
looks into the reflection of the pearl he sees the evil it withholds but he forces himself to ignore it
from all the good he thinks he can obtain from it.
C. The main moral I received from this novel was to never let material things change who you
are as a person. In the novel we see how Kino turned from this admirable character to someone
who was money greedy, violent and irrational. In life we cannot let these material things change
how we interact with others and who we are as a people.