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ALLEGORY IN JOHN STEINBECK'S THE PEARL

The timeless 1947 classic still mirrors the modern society in the social economic and political aspects of life.

Def: Allegory is an expressive style that uses fictional characters and events to describe some subject by suggestive resemblances; an extended metaphor (Sage dictionary)
Allegory has been used by many writers to question the common truths that the majority believes in. Among the most common allegories is Plato’s Allegory of the Cave in the book The Republic. The allegory explains the difficulties one experiences in an attempt to correct the already perceived and believed truths.
In The Pearl, Steinbeck explores the story of colonialism and its effects on the society. According to their (colonialists) version of the story, the colonialists came to civilize the primitive society ‘Go get the doctor,’ ‘A wonderful thing, a memorable thing to want the doctor.’ (pg 23) However, instead of civilization, it was exploitation, ‘…..the best and the happiest pearl buyer was he who bought for the lowest prices.” (Pg 64) In as much as The Pearl pokes a hole in the intentions of the colonizers, its implications are broader, especially, where the author places every individual in their rightful place. Steinbeck positions every man and every woman in a position where, if they try to rebel, they are brought back to their rightful place.
Although Africa is reputed to be home to many natural resources, the continent still remains a home to many poor communities with extreme poverty and wanton destruction due to war and natural calamities. The Pearl of Africa, punctuated by gold, diamonds, Oil and wonderful beaches, green forests, fresh and magnificent rivers is priced by pearl buyers called the West.
Countries like Libya who like Kino tried to look for a better price for their pearl, ended up into war and destruction that left them devastated as the Pearl buyer, masquerading as missionaries of democracy went away with the pearl. South Sudan, on the other hand, has never known peace since she repossessed her pearls from the North. Her pearls have become a brewing pot of evil as the music of evil continually engulfs the country into perennial bloodshed.
Countries that have taken a submissive stand against the pearl buyers like Nigeria and Kenya have continued to wallow in poverty and inhuman treatment. Though Nigeria- an oil producing country- has made significant progress ahead of other African countries her economy cannot measure up to her peers’ in the Middle East. Up to this day, Nigerians still complain of high fuel prices like non-oil producing countries. It is noteworthy to mention, the brutal San Abacha regime that saw Nguni leaders killed including acclaimed author Ken Saro Wiwa for protesting against pollution in the Niger Delta.
In Kenya, critics are worried about the mixed fortunes of the recently discovered Oil, which, having been launched a month ago has seen the countries fuel prices skyrocket sending noise among the countries elites.
There are many examples of situations comparable to the fate of Kino and his people in Africa and the world over. The ones above highlight the issues on an international level, but nationally, depending on one’s country, various issues play out to allude to the story within The Pearl.
Such issues maybe economical; eg the plight of coffee farmers whose coffee is stolen by greedy powerful exporters and maize farmers being slapped low prices by the National Cereals and Produce Board in Kenya. Or social where security is guaranteed for everyone but only a few feel the luxury of being safe.
It is imperative to establish the parallels between the story and the real life to see how similar the situations are. For instance, in a 2011 article about Steinbeck’s The Pearl as an allegory for the Obama Administration, Patricia McCarthy argues that, though Americans perceived Obama as a fresh pearl from the sea, he turned out to be more trouble with inflation skyrocketing as the national debt went above the roof. At the time, she suggested, like Kino, Obama should have been tossed into the ocean. 

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