Women as a Voice of Reason in John Steinbeck’s “The Pearl” Anonymous 12th Grade

John Steinbeck’s The Pearl is set in a largely patriarchal society, that is rather gorged and brimming with irrational and impulsive people, it is ambrosial to have individuals who embody impeccable judgments and propose practical answers, particularly in the event of adversity. John Steinbeck does a magnificent job at painting the character Juana—Kino’s wife as a practical, studious, and ruminative woman than her husband. Steinbeck uses Juana to bring into perception how women can rise to the occasion against the asphyxiating scourge posed by male ethnocentricity to come to light as sturdy and tenacious societal and family pillars. In this paper, an intensive analysis of women (Juana) as a voice of reason is carried out with illustrations from John Steinbeck’s The Pearl.

Steinbeck portrays Juana as a woman whose swift sense of judgment saves the day. Juana’s swiftness is seen firsthand after Coyotito, her son, is stung by the scorpion. While Kino is preoccupied with dealing with the scorpion that stung Coyotito, “But Kino beat and stamped the enemy until it was only a fragment and a moist place in the dirt (23),” Juana holds the baby into her arms and sucks the poison. It is written, “she put her lips down over the puncture...