The Importance Of Greed In John Steinbeck's The Pearl

The pearl became evil through all the greed in humanity; therefore, bringing bad luck to anyone who touches it. Throughout the course of the story, I felt annoyed at Kino’s greed and selfishness. After I read the book, I learned that too much greed can lead to suffering, violence, and one’s downfall. Before, I never really knew the consequences of excess greed, but after reading “The Pearl" by John Steinbeck, now I know that I should never let greed take control over me.

“He looked into his pearl to find his vision. ‘When we sell it at last, I will have a rifle,’ he said, and he looked into the shining surface for his rifle, but he saw only a huddled dark body on the ground with shining blood dripping from its throat.” (Steinbeck, 72). This shows that pearls can’t destroy people, but people can. Kino was using the pearl for his own benefit. He even killed for the pearl.

At the beginning of the story, Kino is a kind-hearted man who cares for his family. At the climax of the story, Kino is very greedy, selfish, violent, scared, and he doesn 't seem to care that much about his family. At the end of the story, he realizes his sins and wants to become a good man again. At first Kino hears “…a song now, clear and soft, and if he had been able to speak of it, he would have called it the Song of the Family.” (Steinbeck, 6). Then, he thinks of all the things he can buy with the pearl: “…and the music of the pearl rose like a chorus of trumpets in his ears.” (Steinbeck, 28). Furthermore, “In Kino’s ears the Song of the Family was as fierce as a cry. He was immune and terrible, and his song had become a battle cry.” (Steinbeck, 89). We can see that Kino is a dynamic character, meaning that he changes throughout the story. First, he cares a lot about his family and is a very kind-hearted man. He changes into a greedy, violent man, and at the end of the story changes back into a man who loves his