Miranda Hamm Bergdale ENG (11-world literature-period 1) 14 September 2015 Literary Analysis Paulo Coelho’s novel, The Alchemist, is an extraordinary story about a young boy chasing his dreams. When the main character, Santiago, was sleeping by a sycamore tree in an old run down church, he had a dream of a child telling him to travel to the Egyptian pyramids and find the hidden treasure. Santiago was confused and didn’t know what to think of the dream. He decided to go talk to a gypsy woman in town and get a second opinion. Surprisingly, the woman said to go to the pyramids. Santiago then sets off on his journey and meets many new people and learns many new lessons along the way. Although there are many themes presented throughout the Alchemist, …show more content…
The only dreams he ever had were to travel with his flock of sheep or marry the merchant's daughter. When he had that dream about finding the treasure, it was all new to him. He was unsure how to even go about going to the pyramids and wasn't sure that that dream was really what he wanted to do. After talking to the gypsy woman, Santiago ran into a man named Melchizedek who was the King of Salem. Melchizedek also said that Santiago should follow his dreams and go to the Pyramids. He taught him about his personal legend as well. "It's what you have always wanted to accomplish. Everyone, when they are young, knows what their Personal Legend is." (Coelho 23) Santiago had never heard of a Personal Legend before. He didn't understand that everyone had a purpose in life, and had certain dreams to chase. Melchizedek was trying to get him on the right track and make sure he looked at life in a new perspective. Santiago questioned Melchizedek why he was telling him all of this. Melchizedek replied saying, "Because you are trying to realize your personal Legend. And you are at the point where you're about to give it all up." (Coelho 25) At that point, Santiago had made up his mind. He was going to set out on a journey to find the pyramids. Melchizedek had taught him many important lessons and it changed the way Santiago thought about his life. He knew he had to …show more content…
The day after he had talked to Melchizedek, they met up again and he gave him one tenth of his flock of sheep. He wasn't sure that it was the best idea but he knew he had to have faith in the king. Melchizedek then gave him a lesson about finding the treasure and said, “ In order to find the treasure, you will have to follow the omens. God has prepared a path for everyone to follow.” (Coelho 31) He also told him that the treasure was at the pyramids. Santiago was surprised to hear this because the gypsy woman had told him the same thing. This gave him a lot more confidence and hope for the rest of his journey. He knew that if he followed the path that God had paved for him, he would be in good
“The Alchemist” is a novel written by Paulo Coelho in 1988. Regarded as Coelho’s best novel, it captures the elixir of life through the view of a sanguine Spanish Shepard. Set in a forsaken church in Spain at night; the young Shepard Santiago tastes the exquisite sensation of a compelling dream. He dreams that a young lad tells him about a hidden treasure nigh the Egyptian pyramids. After the dream relapses more than once, Santiago opts to confer an old man and an old woman who tell him that his dream is oracular and that he must abide by its directions. Santiago then decides to pursue his vision and sets off on the venture of a lifetime with a set purpose of locating the fortune hidden near the Egyptian pyramids. In the course of his quest, he meets several people who act as figures that succor him and elevate his experience. As well, he comes into contact with the diversity of human emotions, as he experiences sorrow, pain, elation, agitation and love. In addition, he learns about the mechanism of the universe and the earth’s way of sending
To begin his long journey, Santiago meets a wise old king name King Melchizedek. He is in a local market when the king walks up and asks Santiago what he is reading. The king continues to say that the book he is reading is important but irritating because it describes the characters inability to choose their own Personal Legend. When Santiago asks where this mysterious stranger is from, King Melchizedek replies with “I am from many places, but I was born in Salem as I am the king there” (Coelho 64). Accepting his statement as true, Santiago continues the conversation allowing them to eventually talk about his dream of the Pyramids. The king wants to help Santiago, but for a price of six sheep. Before leaving with Santiago’s sheep he shares, “’The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon’” (Coelho 32). His message to Santiago reminds him that by following his dream he will witness beautiful sights and people, but that he should always remember the purpose of his travels. Leaving it at that, the king pointed Santiago in the direction to follow his dream.
At the beginning of the novel, Santiago is launched on a quest for his “treasure” through his encounter with an old man named Melchizedek. In the story he says, “that he only appears at critical moments when a person might be giving up on pursuing their Personal Legend.” Melchizedek tells Santiago that all people know what their Personal Legend is when they’re young, but the more they age, the more they forget because they are blinded and blocked by fear and anxiety. Another person who helps Santiago in realizing the theme is The Englishman, whom is a British man who has come to North Africa in search of the alchemist. He has studied the art of alchemy from books, but he wishes to complete the Master Work because he feels that he’ll be able to learn these things from the alchemist.
The women he uses are the gypsy woman, his mother, and his soul mate, Fatima. The first woman he comes across is his own mother. His mother is much like his father, who wants him to just to grow up and become a priest. Regardless of that however, she is very supportive and wishes him the best when Santiago tells his parents he wants to be a shepherd. The next woman he encounters is the gypsy woman. Santiago went to visit a gypsy to see if she had could figure out anything about the dream he kept on having. She tells him that he should follow these dreams to the pyramids, but once he finds this treasure, he must give her one tenth of it. ‘“And this is my interpretation: you must go to the Pyramids in Egypt. I have never heard of them, but, if it was a child who showed them to you, they exist. There you will find a treasure that will make you a rich man’” (Coelho 14). The final woman he meets is his soul mate, Fatima. When he first meets Fatima he falls straight in love with her. He had wanted to stay behind and leave his Personal Legend, but it was Fatima and the Alchemist who had told him not to abandon it. Fatima told him to come back for her
While yes, Santiago did face many obstacles and challenges on his way to find the treasure, the main conflict of the story is not an external one, but an internal one. Santiago’s inner turmoil between choosing either to make sacrifices and take risks in order to complete his Personal Legend or settling for the comforts and treasures he already had was the key problem in the story. This also validated Santiago not only as the protagonist, but also as his own antagonist. There were many instances in which the story could have been cut short if Santiago had not taken a leap of faith. From the very beginning, upon meeting Melchizedek, he had been reluctant to make the decision between what he was accustomed to, his flock, and what he wanted, the
In the Alchemist, Santiago’s growth and development is significant to the story. Santiago is contemplated and thoughtful, characteristics that always stay with him. He thinks about his options and what he feels compelled to do, as well as what is will cost him When he encounters Melchizedek, he absorbs the king's words about what he knows he must do: “whoever you are, or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something, it's because that desire originated in the soul of the universe. It's your mission on earth." (Coehlo 22). Santiago absorbs the king's words and it helps to fuel his own understanding of what he must do, discover his Personal Legend. Throughout his journey not only does Santiago find his Personal Legend and
The Gypsy women tell Santiago to follow his dream and go to Egypt. Santiago, still not confident about going to Egypt, meets a man claiming to be the king of Salam. This man echoes the dream interpreter’s opinion and tells Santiago that it is his personal legend to journey to the pyramids and that he should sell his flock of sheep and set off to Tangier. This man said, “…people are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.” (23) This shows that you just have to have confidence and you can do what you dream of. Santiago takes the man’s advice and sells his flock of sheep and goes to Tangier.
Soon after, Santiago is forced to work for a crystal merchant in the hopes of replacing his lost money and continuing on his quest. He works for the merchant for eleven months and during this time, continues to think less and less of his Personal Legend. He becomes skilled in this practice and begins to work towards instead, replacing his flock of sheep and returning to his past lifestyle. During this time, Santiago perceived reaching the pyramids as an impossible feat claiming “Egypt was now just a distant dream for him” and that, like a mirage, it would always be just out of his reach (56). In this way, Coelho shows that Santiago’s morale is lessening. The more that he stays at the crystal shop, the more he sees his treasure as a mirage instead of a physical object.
After traveling for some time, Santiago settles down at a crystal merchant’s shop in Tangier for a year. The crystal merchant is an important friend to Santiago, but he also teaches him about the dangers of not pursuing your Personal Legend. The merchant’s dream is to make a pilgrimage to Mecca, but he does not want to make the journey, fearing change. He thinks that if he made the journey, he would have nothing left to live for after. By observing the crystal merchant, Santiago realizes it would be foolish to not try to pursue your Personal Legend. From the crystal merchant, Santiago learns that you should never give up and settle when you can always improve and do better.
While stopping at the oasis, he falls in love with a woman named Fatima. He wishes to leave to pursue his Personal Legend, but at the same time he does not want to leave her. Fatima supports him continuing his trek to the pyramids. Later in the story, Santiago thanks God for “above all having met a woman of the desert who had told him that love would never keep a man from his Personal Legend” (Coelho 91). He learns from her that he should never hold back from his dreams, and he decides that he should not stay in the
A personal legend is a roadmap to a person’s inner most desires and feeling. A personal legend can develop a journey that only the world can conspire. It is a blessing that can not be taken for granted. In the novel “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coehlo a shepherd boy, Santiago, is on a journey to fulfill his destiny; along the way he encounters many people and omens that help point him in the direction of his personal legend. Along his journey Santiago first runs into a very mysterious gypsy woman ,and asks her to tell him his future.
The book tells a story of a shepherd boy, who owns a herd of sheep. His name is Santiago. In his sleep, he has dreamt a dream at two occasions that he needs to go to the pyramids of Egypt to find treasures.
When Santiago encountered the thieves, he told them the truth, and they didn’t believe him, which saved his life. This quote from earlier in the book was mentioned, about how people become more skeptical when they are older:
Santiago is confused on what he wants to do because his heart is telling him that he wants to stay with Fatima( the girl from the desert) but he knows that he has to follow the dreams he had and find the treasure at the great pyramids. The alchemist is just trying to advise santiago on what he thinks he should be doing he also gave him a scenario of what would
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.