Favorite Section Letters March 26, 2009

The Pearl by John Steinbeck
Dear Book Club,
I just finished reading a ninety page book titled The Pearl, a novel by John Steinbeck. The book takes place in Spain many years ago. Kino is a poor fisherman that lives in a small hut with his wife Juana, and his newborn son Coyotito. Kino lives a changeless life. He Dives and gathers pearls and then sells them to the pearl salesman. Most of the time Kino will be taking advantage of by the white salesman because kino and his tribe are Indians. In till one day when Kinoʼs infant son got stung by a scorpion, he would die if he didn't get medical help right away. However, when Kino and juana took him to the doctor, they got turned away because they didn't have enough money. That day when Kino was diving he found a master oyster, which inside he found a pearl the size of a seagulls egg. After that, life would never be the same for Kino and his tribe.
My favorite section was when Kino goes diving for pearls like heʼs done a thousand times before, but this time is unlike any other time he has ever gone. This time is significantly different because Kino and his wife believe that their sonʼs survival may very well depend on what they find.

Excerpt from The Pearl
Kino had two ropes, one tied to a heavy stone and one tied to a basket. He stripped off his shirt and trousers and laid his hat in the bottom of the canoe. The water was oily smooth. He took his rock in one had and his basket in the other, and he slipped feet first over the side and the rock carried him to the bottom. The bubbles rose behind him until the water cleared and he could see. Above, the surface of the water was an undulating mirror of brightness, and he could see the bottom of the canoe sticking through it. Kino moved cautiously so that the water could not be obscured with mud or sand. He hooked his foot in the loop on the rock and his hands worked quickly, tearing the oysters loose, some singly, others in clusters. He laid them in his basket. In some places the oysters clung to one another so they came freely in lumps. Now Kinoʼs people had sung of everything that happened or had existed...there was a secret little inner song, hardly perceptible but always there, sweet and secret and clinging, almost hiding in the counter melody and this was the Song Of The Pearl That Might Be, for every shell thrown in the basket might contain a pearl. Chance was against it, but luck and the gods might be for it....
Kino in his pride and youth and strength, could remain down over two minutes without strain, so that he worked deliberately, selecting the largest shells. Because they were disturbed, the oyster shells were tightly closed. A little to his right a hammock of rubbly rock stuck up, covered with young oysters not ready to take. Kino moved next to the hammock and then beside it, under a little overhang, he saw a very large oyster laying by itself, not covered with itʼs clinging brothers. The shell was partly open, for the overhang protected this ancient oyster, and in the lip-like muscle Kino saw a ghostly gleam, and then the shell closed down. His heart beat out a heavy rhythm and the melody of the maybe pearl shrilled in his ears. Slowly he forced the oyster loose and held it tightly against his breast. He kicked his foot free from the rock loop, and his body rose to the surface and his black hair gleamed in the sunlight. He reached over the side
of the canoe and laid the oysters in the bottom....Kino opened his short strong knife. He looked speculatively at the basket. Perhaps it would be better to open the oyster last. He took a small oyster from the basket, cut the muscle, searched the folds of the flesh, and threw it into the water....Now Kino was reluctant to open it. What he had seen, he knew, might be a reflection, a piece of flat shell accidently drifted in or a complete illusion....Kino deftly slipped his knife into the edge of the shell. Through the knife he could feel the muscle tightening hard. He worked the blade lever-wise and the closing muscle parted and the shell fell apart. The lip-like flesh withered up and then subsided. Kino lifted the flesh and there is lay, the great pearl, perfect as the moon. It captured the light and refined it and gave it back in the silver incandescence. It was as large as a seagullʼs egg. It was the greatest pearl in the world.

This section is significant to the plot because it contains the pivotal transition from Kinoʼs old life to his new life. Before he finds the pearl, he is poor and lacks material objects yet he lives a rich life spiritually. After he finds the pearl, he and the town become greedy and the true dark side of the book comes out. Throughout the book, there is a theme of dishonesty that leads to Kino always being scammed out of what is rightfully his. Surprisingly, despite his “rags to riches” evolution, this aspect remains unchanged through the story, making it almost appear to be a tragic flaw. This was a Great book and I recommend it to all.

Zane Christenson (9th grade)