A Brief Note On The City Of California

“I want to stay at the oasis,” the boy answered. “I’ve found Fatima and as far as I am concerned, she’s worth more than treasure.” Everyone knows what they want to do, but they are afraid of hurting those around them by abandoning everything in order to pursue our dream. Some do not realize that love is something to impel us, not something that will prevent us to go further. Those that genuinely wish us well want us to be happy and are prepared to accompany us on that journey. After hearing the Alchemist’s predictions and Fatima saying that he should go, Santiago decided to accompany the Alchemist and pursue his personal legend. Santiago overcame his problem when his father told him he can not travel, and he also perused his personal legend and did not hurt Fatima.

“… Dreams are the language of God. When he speaks our language, I can interpret what he has said. But if he speaks in the language of the soul, it is only you who can understand,” wrote Paulo Coelho. Omens are events that hold great prophetic power, and in the case of Santiago, can change one’s life. Fatima, Santiago’s sheep, and Urim and Thummim are symbols that project the story of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho forward by shaping a theme of “some risks are worth taking”.

Santiago made a reasonable sum of money working for the crystal merchant, and decided it was time to abandon his job to continue his search for his treasure. Along the way, he was halted by a tribal war in the desert and forced to stay in an oasis. During his visit he met a young woman named Fatima. After only a few interactions, Santiago decides he wants to marry this woman, “‘I came to tell you just one thing,’ the boy said. ‘I want you to be my wife. I love you’(Coelho, 95). What once was negative became positive. Santiago’s journey had been paused multiple times, and he was stuck in an oasis instead of venturing to the

During his journey, Santiago faces the obstacle of overcoming his fear of defeat. This challenge of his fear of defeat is what is significant to Santiago’s growth. As Santiago arrives in Morocco, he was robbed by a stranger and left with nothing in a strange place. Yet, over time Santiago found a job with a Crystal merchant and, “…he had been working incessantly, thinking only

Along the way to the Pyramid, Santiago meets Fatima and instantly falls in love with her. He spends days with her and confesses his love by saying “ I want you to be my wife” (95). Entranced by Fatima’s beauty, Santiago conveys his willingness to adjust his plan and settle with his love in a small oasis in the Sahara. He says “I want to stay at the oasis… I’ve found Fatima, and, as far as I’m concerned, she’s worth more than treasure” (118). Despite Santiago’s unconditional love and its ability to change his mindset, Coelho implies that love acts as a distraction that interferes one’s journey and that one must sacrifice such fascinations to become entirely fulfilled in the future. For instance, the alchemist suggests Santiago that he “must understand that love never keeps a man from pursuing his destiny. If he abandons that pursuit, it’s because it wasn’t true love” (120). Moreover, Santiago learns to accept the idea that the omens will help him reunite with Fatima after he finds the treasure if she is “a part of his dream” (97). Accordingly, Santiago sacrifices his time his love in order to stay on the path for his Personal

Some may refer to The Alchemist as a best-selling novel written by Paulo Coelho which explains the ideas of having a dream, or Personal Legend, and going through obstacles to conquer it. The book starts off like any other, introducing and describing the main characters, in this case Santiago is the first to share the interest of peers reading the story. He is said to be a small town shepherd boy who will do anything for his flock of sheep. In the opening scene of the story, Santiago takes his flock to an abandoned church and lies down under a sycamore tree hoping to get some rest. He is soon woken up from a disturbing dream which foreshadows further into the story of his own Personal Legend. Later in the book, Santiago is faced with multiple tests to be successful in finding his treasure. “Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure” (Coelho 15). Paulo continues to add characters in the book that help Santiago throughout his journey.

The perseverance Santiago has allows him to find his true love, Fatima. He came across Fatima on his journey to purse his personal legend. On page 92, Santiago sees Fatima for the first time, "At that moment, it seemed to him that time stood still... when he looked into her dark eyes... it was love." Santiago instantly fell in love with Fatima. She also feels the same way towards him. Santiago told her about his journey and she

Throughout the entire novel Santiago is faced with seemingly impossible task. The only way he ever accomplished them is by trying his best. When Santiago is first robbed in Tangier he is forced to work in a crystal shop to earn back enough money. When he first begins working the shop isn't doing so well and enough money isn't coming in. He tries his best to pitch ideas to the owner and does as much as he can to earn back what he's lost. After over a year of working hard he finally turned back more than enough. As Santiago travels through the desert to get to the pyramids he runs into an enemy tribe and is held captive. The chief tells Santiago that in order to escape he must turn himself into the wind. Although it seems impossible Santiago receives help from the desert, the wind, and the sun. He tried his best to turn himself into the wind and he succeeded, after everything was taken from him he tried his best to gain it all back and in return he gained more.

Santiago the poor adventurer boy, seeks the treasure in his dreams. Despite having a family that wanted him to become a priest. But as Santiago made way towards his journey, he was faced with the unlucky fate of being robbed of all he had. While he had nothing, he could only go up. He learned to find omens which that will lead him towards a better future. As a result he managed to land a job within a crystal merchant’s shop. Another instance is when Santiago is confronted by the love of his life. He wanted to stay with her forever, however doing so would force him to abandon his journey. Fatima,

Santiago knew his Personal Legend was to find the hidden treasure at the pyramids. On his quest, he crossed the desert during a war, left Fatima (his love) and turned himself into the wind. When the boy did not know how to turn himself into the wind the Alchemist said “Then you’ll die in the midst of trying to realize your Personal Legend. That’s a lot better than dying like millions of other people, who never even knew what their Personal Legends were.” (Coelho 146) Santiago had now conquered many struggles to work toward completing his Personal

Santiago is a shepherd boy who finds enough courage in himself to follow his heart and his long awaiting dream. Santiago is conflicted between either to follow is heart or his mind. He acknowledges that if he follows his mind and becomes a shepherd boy for the rest of this life the agonizing pain of “What if...” would haunt him for the rest of his existence. However if he follows his heart then the question of “What if….’ would be answered and he would realize the fate of his future. The Alchemist "The fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself... no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams. 134 Santiago is torn between taking risks or staying safe, he is frightened that if he takes a risk than he will suffer.

There are many industries being affected in the state of California due to its exceptional drought. It seems that every industry is being affected by the drought in one way or another. On one hand, industries like agriculture are being forced to cut down on their necessary water usage; On the other hand, industries like oil are being looked over while they waste massive amounts of water and only make the drought worse. How can they do this? How can they take away water from another industry in an attempt to save their oil? How can they watch fields of fruits and vegetables be destroyed in a massive agricultural genocide? This is an outrage, cracking down on some while others get an exemption. It is unfair and unjust for California to allow

The Theme of “The Alchemist,” by Paulo Coelho is, always follow your dreams and listen to your heart. At the start of the novel Santiago does not know what he should do when he is confronted by his dream. But by the end of the novel Santiago completely trusts his heart to guide him though life. Santiago’s story shows him learning and living out the theme of the novel.

The Alchemist is a novel written by the Brazilian author Paulo Coelho, originally written in Portuguese in 1988 and later translated to English in 1993, which follows the journey of Santiago on his quest to not only follow his Personal Legend, but also to discover a world full of changes and transformations. Looking at this story at first glance might give you the feel that it will be about a boy on a quest filled with the expected trials that test his heart, strength, and character. Elements like this are present, however, the story makes the reader think deeply about the motif dealing with following the signs the universe gives. This is due to various symbols and motifs, one having to do with omens, that Santiago and many characters

“I also have Fatima. She is a treasure greater than anything else I have won. She wasn’t found at the pyramids, either.” (Coelho 119) An important lesson that Santiago learns on his journey is that things that occur en route to the end destination can’t be ignored, as they can end up being more important than the destination. Had Santiago just rushed through his journey, and only focused on getting to the pyramids, he would have missed a great treasure. Santiago was patient with his journey, and he remained in the oasis for a substantial amount of time, rather than rushing through. In staying at the oasis, he meets Fatima, the love of his life. In the end, Fatima