Discuss the close sence of family and the community in the story. When is it first apparent?

Family is idealized in The Pearl – it is "warmth […], safety […], the Whole." Main character Kino protects his family above all else, even the self, and he does so with an almost animalistic fervor. Family is closely tied to gender roles in this text, since the duties of mother and father, husband and wife are an important part of identity.

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The theme of family is first apparent in paragraph 3

The songs remained; Kino knew them, but no new songs were added. That does not mean that there were no personal songs. In Kino's head there was a song now, clear and soft, and if he had been able to speak of it, he would have called it the Song of the Family. (1.3)

This is the one constant and undying song in the course of The Pearl, suggesting that family is the one element in Kino’s life that perseveres.

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