In The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, the protagonist, Santiago, becomes greatly influenced through a plethora of people throughout the process of achieving his Personal Legend. His ideas and mentality, the purpose of life itself, and how the Earth functions, develops his character entirely. Furthermore, under the guidance of several mentors, Santiago undergoes a gradual epiphany with a vast understanding of new knowledge. Three influential people who play a massive role on Santiago’s perspective include:
The Alchemist was written by Paulo Coelho and it was first published in 1988. It was originally written in Portuguese and has since been translated in 67 different languages. It has sold over 65 million copies worldwide and was awarded “Best Fiction Corine International Award” in 2002. It follows a story of a boy named Santiago who is following his personal legend. The Alchemist has many archetypal themes and symbols including wise old men, women, and the nature around him. Throughout this novel
The death of self is chosen as the subject of study in Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist for research purpose. The self to the characters in this novel is shadowed in the name of searching destiny and pursuing dream. The study of self is not an easy task. The self concept is discussed below on the basis of some references and the novel, The Alchemist. The question may be raised: is the self a fact in Coelho's The Alchemist? Coelho has used the individual or self of the characters as the umbra
which certain themes appear again and again over time, in literature, religion, mythology, and culture regardless of the geographic location, the economic status, and the time period. Perhaps it is the innate human need to explain and explore the known and unknown, but to have disparate cultures in time and location find ways of explaining certain principles in such similar manner leads one to believe that there is perhaps more to myth and ritual than simple repetition of archetypal themes. In a sense