IBM developerWorks: Running away with the plot — The story of Perl

“Larry Wall has compared the relationship between C and Perl to
that between a diamond and a pearl. The chemical structure of a
diamond is symmetrical; simple and beautiful, it integrates only
the most essential and necessary elements. “Pearls are much more
interesting,” Wall noted. “They’re produced by living oysters,
after all,” and they integrate a myriad of elements into their
organic structure. Much of Perl’s history, as well as its
still-growing popularity in the programming community, is owed
to the emergence and continued growth of the Perl Culture, which,
in turn, is rooted in the idiosyncrasies of the language’s creator,
Larry Wall. This is the story of one of the world’s most
popular scripting languages, and the man behind it.”

Complete
story.