Kino and Juana are married couple in a small, rural fishing and pearl diving community, and they have a small child named Coyotito. Kino is the man of the house, and he can be described as …show more content…
gallant but domineering. Kino has the inclination, as many men did at this time period, to control his family and household in all facets. Kino repeats multiple times throughout the story, "I am a man." Even with Kino's overbearance of his wife, he still finds ways to be in awe of her; "She could stand fatigue and hunger almost better than Kino himself. in the canoe she was like a strong man(Steinbeck 7)." Females at this point in time were supposed to be weak and fragile in comparison to their husbands, but many women had much more endurance and physical capabilities than men realized or wanted to admit. Almost all women who were housewives had the ability have very little sleep or nutrition, but still care for her family to the greatest extent.
Juana is the epitome of a an obedient, calm housewife. She listens and complies with whatever Kino says, cooks and cleans for him at his disposal, and cares for Coyotito essentially on her own, all without a single complaint. Juana rarely did anything that Kino did not say or approve of, and when she did, she paid the price for it. Juana saw the evil that the massive pearl was bringing into Kino, her home, and her community, and she intended dispose of it in the middle of the night. Kino awoke and followed Juana and discovered her plot. Kino then proceeded to punch Juana in the face and kick her in stomach. Juana "knew there was murder in him, and it was all right; she had accepted it, and she would not resist or even protest(Steinbeck 59)." Juana knew that is was against Kino's will to be rid of the pearl, and she was prepared to die in order to rid her family of the evil that the pearl brought. The selflessness and courage showed by Juana in such a dire situation was part of the traditional role that women played; they are generally the calm and steady hand in stressful situations.
Kino is an obsessive and dominating husband, and that is especially shown in the moments after he attacks Juana.
Kino repeats, "'I am a man,' and that meant certain things to Juana. It meant he was half insane and half god(Steinbeck 59)." Juana knows that a man will fight against mountains and seas, but he will never win. And Juana, as a woman and wife, knows that Kino will never win, but won't tell him because the fight is what makes him a man. To question him would be taking away his masculinity. Juana does not understand the differences between men and women, but will not question them. Tradition told Juana that she cannot survive without a man, even though her caution, reason, and preservation could save them, so she followed Kino out of loyalty and …show more content…
love.
Later in the story, Kino is slowly and quietly climbing on a rock face to kill the trackers that are following his family.
As Kino is climbing, he hears "the Song of the Family[…] become as fierce and sharp and feline as the snarl of a female puma(Steinbeck 84)." Kino compares the Song of the Family to a female because subconsciously he knows that women have just as much ferocity as men do, when it comes to protecting their family. Females are also, arguably, more instrumental to the continued function of a family than a man. Men were often labeled the head of the family, but the only thing they really led was income and economics. The women were the ones caring for the children, cooking, cleaning, shopping, and doing everything necessary to keep a household running. Women are extremely protective in regards to their family and keeping them
safe.
After Kino tragically shot Coyotito, the entire dynamic of Kino's and Juana's relationship changed. Usually when Kino and Juana walked through town, Juana walked behind Kino out of respect and his leadership as a man. But after Coyotito died, Juana and Kino returned walking side by side. Kino lost his dominance and oppression after he killed his own son, and that is shown in the way they go back into town. It is also shown when Kino goes to the sea to return the pearl. Kino holds out his hand to give the pearl for Juana to throw back, but she responds with, "No, you(Steinbeck 89)." This is Juana putting the responsibility of the pearl and Coyotito's death into Kino's hands, and forcing him to realize it rather than hand his despair back to Juana. Juana's refusal to throw the pearl was the most subtle she can directly defy Kino, even though his reaction to her defiance would not have been the same at this stage in the story. The pearl returning to the ocean was symbolic of the change in the roles of Kino and Juana.
One may argue that The Pearl is more about greed and the flaws of man more than the role of women and the exploration of gender equality. But without women, the main conflicts in this story would not have happened. Even though Juana rarely went against Kino's wishes, it had considerable effects when she did. Women had the role of being the calm, steady hand and the voice of reason in this story. Without women, one does not know what would have happened in this story