[IS.9 - For ELLs: Level 1]
Focus Question: How does the use of fable and allegory affect the form and function of a literary work? [IS.10 - ELL Students]
“Here is a form of literature that is very familiar. You have been reading fables for years. Take a moment and read the following fables and list the characteristics that they share: [IS.11 - Struggling Learners] [IS.12 - Struggling Learners]
- Aesop’s fable ‘The Fir Tree and the Bramble’
- Aesop’s fable ‘The Gnat and the Bull’
- an Indian fable, ‘The Lion and the Rabbit.’”
- Allow 5 to 10 minutes and then have one of the groups present its list (e.g., short, animal characters or other characters from nature, a sharp contrast between the characters, dialogue, presents an unstated lesson). Circle the room and take note of any groups or individuals who are having trouble.
Then instruct students to read “Belling the Cat” and arrange for students to watch the video version of Aesop’s fable “The Fisherman and the Little Fish.”
Have them repeat the process of creating a list of characteristics. Have one of the groups present its list (short; some animal characters; dialogue; the lesson, or moral, stated at the end). “Whether the moral is stated or not, the author’s purpose is clear: to teach a lesson.”
“An allegory is normally a longer work than a fable, and it has no stated lesson at the end. [IS.13 - Struggling Learners] Instead, the characters and events of the story represent more than themselves, offering a deeper moral. Allegory is an extended metaphor. In the movie Avatar, for example, the Pandora woods may be considered an allegory for the Amazon rainforest.”
Part 1
Read aloud the first page (before Chapter 1) of John Steinbeck’s The Pearl. “What does Steinbeck suggest?” (The story is more than just a story and that ‘perhaps readers take their own meaning from it and read their life into it.’) “In Steinbeck’s story, we see how the use of allegory shapes the characters and plot, as well as the manner in which the story is told.”
Ask students to read Chapter 1 in class and then to jot down anything they noticed in the chapter that suggests the possibility of an allegory. [IS.14 - Struggling Learners] Allow about 25–30 minutes and then discuss, telling them to add to their list as they listen to their classmates. (Examples include the ant caught in the sand trap that Kino “watched with the detachment of God”; Song of the Family, associated with Kino’s love for his wife Juana and their baby Coyotito, along with the security of their simple morning routine; the Song of Evil that is heard with the appearance of the scorpion that stings Coyotito and threatens the family; the Song of the Family becoming “steely” in Kino’s head when Juana insists that they do the unprecedented thing and take Coyotito to the doctor; the selfishness that characterizes the doctor’s attitude toward the family and its problem).
Have students read Chapter 2 and ask them to write down what they think the pearl represents to Kino and Juana. Collect papers and have a few students volunteer their response. Then discuss Chapter 2 and remind students to include additional ideas suggested by the class. Remind them to focus on elements from the story that make it an allegory (the description of the Gulf, focusing on the difficulty to distinguish between reality and illusion in the distance; the canoe that represents Kino’s ability to earn a living; the Song of the Pearl That Might Be that Kino hears as he dives and searches; the fact that the swelling of Coyotito’s bite is decreasing in size––because of Juana’s poultice).
Part 2
Have students read and discuss Chapter 3 (the description of the greed caused because of Kino’s pearl; the merging of the Song of the Pearl with the Song of the Family; the innocent happiness of Juana and Kino; Kino’s dreams for his family now that he has the Pearl––a church marriage, new clothes for the family, a harpoon, a rifle, an education for Coyotito that will help his family and his people; the unusual visits of the priest and the doctor; the song of evil that accompanies them, particularly the doctor, who pretends to help Coyotito; the school of small fishes attacked by the larger ones and the night mice being hunted by night hawks; the illness of Coyotito just as the doctor returns to check on him and Kino’s suspicion of him; the doctor’s feigned surprise at the news of Kino’s pearl; Kino’s transfer of the pearl to a different hiding place after the doctor’s departure; the music of evil that warns of an intruder and Kino’s struggle with him, stabbing him; Juana’s urgent demand that they get rid of the pearl because it is evil, and Kino’s refusal; then they both succumb to the promise of the pearl).
Also ask each group to make a prediction about the way the story will develop from this point, remembering that it is an allegory and therefore presenting a moral lesson or truth. Walk among the groups as they work and help where needed. Have each group present and, if time permits, discuss which prediction they think most likely to be accurate.
Part 3
Have students read Chapter 4 and ask them to write a sentence and identify what is most important in the chapter and explain why it is important, particularly to the allegory (the failure of the pearl buyers to offer Kino a fair price for the pearl because it forces him to make the dangerous decision to go to the capital; Juana’s desire to get rid of the pearl because she thinks it is dangerous because it makes Kino more determined to make the risky journey because he “is a man”). Then discuss students’ thoughts. Also ask if the new chapter has caused them to change their predictions at all. Ask students to discuss this in their groups and to make a list of evidence supporting their opinion. Also, discuss the lesson or truth they think the allegory will illustrate.
Have students read Chapters 5 and 6 and have the focus groups update their information, since they have now finished the book, and discuss whether they still think that their original assessment of the allegory is accurate or if they need to adjust it. Ask students to record the lesson or truth they think the allegory illustrates; then collect the papers. Allow about 10–15 minutes for discussion, and then have students share their updates. Last, ask students to consider whether they noticed any archetypes used in The Pearl (theme: the destructive power of greed; character: Kino becomes greedy, as Midas did, and, like Midas, he renounces it; Midas cleanses himself in a river; Kino throws the pearl into the sea; some might say that part of the story is a quest as Kino attempts to sell the pearl).
Have students work in groups to complete the Allegory Worksheet (L-L-4-3_Allegory Worksheet.doc). Ask them to fill in the chart with the information they may have about the role each character in The Pearl might play in the allegory (e.g., Kino: Everyman, who wants a better life for his family and struggles against forces he only dimly understands; Juana: the faithful wife and mother, who is brave in defense of her family; Coyotito: innocence, and his parents’ hope for the future; the doctor: greedy and predatory, willing to take advantage of others for his own gain; the Pearl: the hope for the future for Kino’s family and the focal point of greedy interest for others; the Song of the Family: a sign for the family, warm and comforting and whole as the story begins; the Song of Evil: the sign of danger for the family, heard when it is coming close, as it does with the doctor; Kino’s neighbors: those whose sympathies and opinions change with every wind that blows, sometimes for and sometimes against Kino and Juana; the people of the town: those who look down on Kino and who envy him for having the Pearl).
Part 4
The final assignment is brief, no more than a page in length. It should be accompanied by a paragraph assessment, explaining the purpose for the creation(s), identifying the form used, and identifying at least three effects of using that particular form for the creation instead of its original novel/allegory form. Tell students that the final assignment for their portfolio is to do one of the following:
- Choose one aspect of The Pearl (theme, character, situation) and transform it. That is, they will choose a different form for it, one that they have examined in this unit (e.g., free verse about a theme conveyed in the story, a pair of quatrains, a set of haiku tracing the change in the Pearl, a brief quest or odyssey tale, a character sketch of an archetypal character (one that reveals the impact/effects of character)).
- Choose a character from The Pearl and write a page with that character placed in a current time setting.
- Write ten questions you would like to ask a character from The Pearl and interview that character.
- Write an obituary of one of the characters of The Pearl.
- Draw a major event in The Pearl or write a “trip tik” of three major events.
Extension:
- Students who are ready to move beyond the standards might read George Orwell’s Animal Farm, “Secrets of the Wizard of Oz,” or another choice listed in Related Resources.
