The Pearl Symbolism Essay

401 Words2 Pages
A symbol is something,someone, or event that means more than itself. There are contrasting symbols in the novella The Pearl by John Steinbeck. The Pearl is a story about a pearl-diver named Kino whose son Coyotito was stung by a scorpion. In order to save him, Kino finds a pearl and tries to sell it. Throughout the book, Kino is increasingly becoming more controlled by greed. Despite of this, Juana, as Kino’s wife, was immensely supportive and loyal of Kino. Kino had many problems selling the pearl; In the end Coyotito dies and Kino throws the pearl back into the sea. The Pearl is written with many literary terms, including symbols. This essay will inform you of two important symbols discussed in the novella. Juana, in Steinbeck’s novella is symbol of self-control. An example of this is when Kino discovered the pearl and Juana was calm compared to Kino. Kino was shouting and was heard from people far away. This is a demonstration of how Juana is capable of staying calm and maintaining her self-control. Postulating the evil of the pearl, Juana frantically throws it back into the sea. This leading to Kino’s action of beating Juana; She could have defended herself, but decided not to. She was controlling herself from being violent. This reveals that Steinbeck created Juana as a symbol of self-control.…show more content…
When it was first described. the Song of Evil was heard by Juana and Kino. This decisive piece of evidence shows the scorpion “held” or ‘carried” evil.” ”The Song of Evil, the music of the enemy, underneath, the Song of the Family cried.” is another example of proving the scorpion was a symbol of evil. The scorpion “carried” the Song of Evil which “buried” the Song of the Family. This is a demonstration on how the scorpion symbolizes
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