Representation of the Consequences of the Evil Effects of Private Property in John Steinbeck’s The Pearl

Abstract

This study concerns John Steinbeck’s The Pearl which apparently presents the poverty-stricken life of Kino, a fisherman of La Paz, Mexico, which is situated at the Baja Peninsula. The theoretical model it applies is Marxism, particularly the ideas of Karl Marx expressed in The Communist Manifesto. It finds that the novel reveals Kino’s struggle for survival, his acquisition of a great pearl from the sea, his dreams of educating his child, marrying in the church and, working for his own and his tribe’s freedom. But his situation does not improve even after he fishes out the precious pearl. He faces many troubles in course of the efforts to sell it. Dacoits follow and attack him. It is too difficult for him to sell or hide the gem. In the struggle with the dacoits, he is compelled to kill four of them and he loses his only son who is killed by the dacoits. Finally, he realizes the evils of private property and throws it back to the sea. Thus, Kino is disillusioned with private property and denounces it. This study reveals that the main message of the novel is the abolition of private property, as Marxism suggests, in order to get rid of struggle for survival and bring about peace and happiness in society.