The Pearl Post 2

  Halfway through the book, Kino's rapid change to a greedy, paranoid character is really showing through his goodnatured side we saw in the beginning.  John Steinbeck really showed just how drastic the change was when he killed the man who was assumedly trying to take his pearl.  His paranoia seems almost too rapid since our original impression of him was an easygoing, family-loving, simple diver.  When he begins his journey to go to the capital, he almost appears to not even care about his family anymore and it is about him getting what he wants (money). Although money seems to be his main motivation, I also think that he is trying to prove himself to everyone and that HE was given the pearl and HE was blessed by the gods. I felt sorry for his wife especially since he starts treating her like nothing because he is so consumed with selling the pearl for a  price reasonable to him.
 
  The end really seals it for Kino.  His house is burned, his canoe broken, his reputation in shambles, what more could happen to make him worse off? One of the last things he has is taken away from him, his son. I think this is really the crowning moment that gets across Steinbeck's point. Greed like Kino's will only destroy you.  If only he had taken what the pearl buyers offered him, he would still have all those things mentioned earlier. I almost felt sorry for Kino.  At least in the end he finally comes to his senses and throws the pearl back from whence it came. Kino is humbled when he returns to town and realizes how greed will only lead to problems. He has found that he is not a god and should have given in to the ways he has always known.