The Pearl

Kino, a young Native Mexican man, wakes up early one morning in his brush house near La Paz, Mexico, where he lives with his wife, Juana, and their infant son, Coyotito. Juana is already awake. She rises and checks on Coyotito, who sleeps in a crib that hangs from the ceiling, before tending to the fire and making breakfast. Kino goes outside and watches the sun rise. Hearing the sounds of Juana and Coyotito inside the house, Kino thinks of those sounds as part of “the Song of the Family” (6), which signifies “this is safety, this is warmth, this is the Whole” (7).

Returning inside, Kino eats a corncake. Suddenly, he and Juana spot a scorpion moving down one of the ropes holding up Coyotito’s crib. Kino now hears “the Song of Evil,” which emanates from “any foe of the family” (8). As Juana mutters charms and prayers to protect the baby, Kino approaches the crib, trying not to startle the scorpion. When Coyotito laughs and shakes the rope, the scorpion falls and stings Coyotito before Kino kills it.

Coyotito screams as Juana sucks poison out of his wound. Hearing the noise, several neighbors appear, including Kino’s brother (Juan Tomás), his wife (Apolonia), and their children. To Kino’s surprise, Juana asks for someone to get the doctor who lives in town. The people point out that the doctor never visits the people who live in the brush houses, instead spending his time with the town’s rich residents. Juana decides to take Coyotito to the doctor. Kino accompanies her, and their neighbors follow them into the town. As they pass the church, a group of beggars joins them, curious to see how the doctor will respond.

Arriving at the gate of the doctor’s house, Kino hesitates, thinking of the way European settlers, including the doctor, have long oppressed his people. He feels fear and anger as he knocks at the gate.

The doctor’s servant, who is of the same race as Kino, appears and listens to Kino’s request, though he refuses to speak “the old language” that Kino uses (15). The servant relays Kino’s message to the doctor, who is eating biscuits and drinking chocolate in bed; the doctor refuses to help Kino and Juana unless they have money. The servant returns to the gate, where Kino, who is a pearl diver by trade, offers a few lackluster pearls as payment. After going inside one more time, the servant returns the pearls to Kino and announces that the doctor is away on an urgent case.

The crowd disperses. Angry, Kino punches the gate; his fist bleeds.

Kino and Juana go to the beach. Juana puts seaweed on Coyotito’s swollen wound. Together, they set off in Kino’s canoe, which was passed down from his grandfather. Juana prays that they will find a pearl valuable enough to hire the doctor to cure Coyotito. Once they are over the oyster beds, Kino dives into the water and gathers oysters into a bucket. As he works, Kino hears a different song, “The Song of the Pearl That Might Be” (22), which hints at the possibility of finding a magnificent pearl. Kino finds one particularly large oyster and brings it to the surface with the others.

Kino plans to open the large oyster last, but after opening one of the smaller ones, he is drawn to the large one. At Juana’s urging, he opens it with his knife, revealing a large, perfect pearl—“the greatest pearl in the world” (26). Looking at the pearl, Kino’s imagination takes flight. When Juana shows him that Coyotito’s swelling is decreasing, Kino’s emotions peak and he howls, attracting the attention of the other pearl divers.