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An essay about destiny
Societal and interpersonal influences
Destiny is a matter of choice
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Looking back at your life and how things turned out makes you wonder what lies ahead. Every step you take has multiple variables to it and the tinniest choice can make the biggest impact on your future and who you are. In The Alchemist, the main character sets off on a journey into the unknown to discover himself. Of course the obvious would say, “Oh, he is Santiago from Andalusia; but some would interpret discovering oneself as finding their personal legend. In other words, trying to create your own story by accomplishing feats and goals you set for yourself, not others. Not only has this novel swayed my thoughts on humanity and society, but it also opened up a whole new way of analyzing how society works and what can change it. I for one love this novel; it is one of the most intriguing pieces of literacy and it holds a much deeper level of thinking than what is actually written. For instance, when Santiago, the main character, sets out to find is personal legend, …show more content…
Destiny as everyone calls it is something people tend to degrade; they see at as a waste of time or they don’t care. Who doesn’t care about their destiny? Well as a matter of fact, destiny exists; you may not be able to see it or realize it is present, but it is there. The Alchemist shows destiny in a very unique way that someone reading the novel wouldn’t understand at the beginning. It shows how the things you accomplish in life can leave an imprint on who you are today. Let’s say you walk into a bar and meet a very appealing, smart and confident person and you date for a while and you fell in love and got married. Some would say that is destiny; yes they are right. But what if you didn’t go into that bar that day and you met someone else and got married? Some would say that is destiny. Again, they are right. Destiny isn’t how the universe sets you up, it is the choices and risks you take that define your personal legend and
Well there is always the fate aspect in everything that occurs in our lives but majority of the outcomes created from the individuals own decisions. It is up to the individual to determine what can occur, if they do one thing then something will be the outcome. A side from that, there is always the possibility of being at the wrong place at the wrong time which can have an affect of on the outcomes of life.
“Only time will tell”. This common phrase states that the truth and true essence of everything will be revealed as time endures. Written in 700 B.C.E, Homer’s nostalgic epic poem, The Odyssey, has inspired many writers to follow. Nearly 30 centuries later, this classic indirectly influenced Paulo Coelho's writing of The Alchemist. Despite the myriad differences on the surface, The Odyssey and The Alchemist have many connecting parallels. The protagonist in each of the examples of the hero’s journey learned countless lessons along the way that can be taught to everyone. The most prominent of which are the dangers of fear, the importance of perseverance, and the seriousness of pursuing what you love.
Does destiny exist? If it does, does it be applicable to everyone? Destiny and fortune might exist. However, these beliefs do belong to all African American people before the Civil Right. “King of the Bingo Game” - Ralph Ellison emphasizes a similar case in his story. In this story, an anonymous African American man believes in "fate and free will". He is determined to win a bingo game. But fate would not let him have his way. Fate appears to take the course from the beginning, as he is breaking. Faced with a predicament of brokenness and a sick spouse, he decides to try his luck at playing a bingo game. No matter what how lucky he is in the bingo game, the fact that he is a black man playing a white’s game automatically makes him become a loser.
When wanting to accomplish something in life, there will be a decision that will affect the outcome of leading to the right path. It will either help in achieving the goal that was made or take it further away from being able to accomplish it. In the novel “The Alchemist” written by Paulo Coelho, is about a young boy named Santiago. He is a shepherd wanting to travel with his sheep all around in doing so he goes through the experience called "The Hero’s Journey”. The Hero’s Journey are stages taken to accomplish your Personal Legend which is a goal you want to get accomplish in life. He also goes through stages in the journey that help him overcome any challenges he faces. They also bring him closer to the end of completing
In William Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar, the character Cassius is quoted famously for the line, “Men at some time are masters of their fates: the fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.” (Act I Scene II). Paulo Coelho’s novel The Alchemist adheres to this reference as one follows the story of a young man pursuing his Personal Legend. We find through this story that Coelho is emphasizing the message Cassius uses to manipulate Brutus, that there is a need for each of us to break away from settling and finally determine our own fates.
"If someone isn’t what others want them to be, the others become angry. Everyone seems to have a clear ideals of how other people should lead their lives, but none about their own.” That is one of many deep quotes that makes the reader truly think about life in The Alchemist, written by Paulo Coelho. The book is about a young boy named Santiago, who loves travel and adventure, but he does not have the money to do so. He was raised to be a priest, but decides that he would rather be a shepherd, so that he can travel. Santiago’s father gives him two spanish coins, and tells him that he will learn one day that no place is as beautiful as the one he lives in. It seems like Santiago’s father believes in him, but not the way Santiago wants him to.
"The Alchemist" is a novel written by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho in 1988. It tells the story of an Andalusian shepherd known as Santiago and his journey of fulfilling his "dream" which he names his "Personal Legend". Throughout his voyage, he met many different people and was forced under many different circumstances, and we are able to experience his emotional states throughout every part of his journey. He undergoes many revelations, and we could argue he becomes wiser and more aware of the spiritual value which everything in the world possesses. He ends up finding his "Personal Legend", but despite actualizing his "dream", he was a victim to the negative emotions that come with being human, and therefore we could argue that the main conflict in "The Alchemist" is within Santiago himself.
“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it” (Coelho 23), these are the words an old king spoke to Santiago. This phrase constantly runs through Santiago’s mind while on his search for his treasure. Santiago, the novel’s protagonist, begins as a quiet sheep herder who has a recurring dream about being transported to the pyramids in Egypt by a child. Once Santiago met the old king, he decides to pursue his dream, find his treasure, and realize his destiny. Throughout The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, Santiago embodies curiosity, determination, and a naive nature through events that occur while on his search for his treasure.
There are countless heroes throughout literature. Their stories are all timeless and meaningful. The Alchemist, written by Paulo Coelho, is home to one of these heroes with an incredible quest. Interestingly, it is quite common to see quests and journeys throughout all literature. In the Alchemist, the protagonist, Santiago, goes through many stages of being a hero such as, call to adventure, refusal of the call, supernatural aid, crossing the threshold, and road of trials.
In the novel The Alchemist it tells a story of a boy who is in search of his Personal Legend. A Personal Legend is the means in which a person can live a satisfying life, in other words ones destiny in life. As the novel states the only way to achieve perfection is if all natural things continuously undergo a cycle of achieving their Personal Legend, evolving into a higher being with a new Personal Legend, and then pursuing that new goal. This concept, that the individualistic pursuit of a Personal Legend exists as life’s dominant—perhaps only—spiritual demand, lies at the center of the unique theology of The Alchemist. As we see when Santiago must give up his flock, material success and even love pose obstacles to Santiago achieving his Personal
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.
Destiny or fate is a controversially talked about subject that has arised for many years. ‘Destiny is referred to as a predetermined course of events.’ Many people, especially in Shakespearean times, believe that God has a life plan for every individual. A sense of destiny in its oldest human sense is the soldier’s fatalistic image of the ‘bullet that has your name on it’ or the moment when ‘your number comes up’ or a romance that was ‘meant to be.’ Many Greek legends and tales teach the futility or trying to outmanoeuvre an inexorable fate that has been correctly predicted. Today we have people that can ‘predict out future’ whether we nowadays still have the belief in the stars and the ability to read them is another controversial matter. Elizabethan astrology fascinated many prominent Elizabethans. The subject is mentioned in every single one of Shakespeare’s plays. At the time the play Romeo and Juliet was published Robert Burton was the astrologer of the era. In Shakespeare’s plays astrology was often critical to the plots when the actions and events surrounding characters are said to be ‘favoured’ or ‘hindered’ by the stars. In the tempest the main character is said to be based on John Dee, who was a famous astrologer and scholar in the Elizabethan era. Destiny is the idea of necessity ‘everything in the world is conditioned and takes place according to necessity.’ ‘Fatalism is based on the assumption that everything in the world and in peoples lives is predetermined by natural or super natural forces, that God set everything out.’ Destiny also mans ‘dragged by force.’ If Romeo would have stayed in his, not gone to the Capulet’s party, left the party when Capulet saw him would all this of happened? That is the idea of destiny...
In the world of The Alchemist the self is a permanent construct that relies on, and cannot escape, the role-defining power of the social world. Johnson's troubling morality negates the self-defining power of the individual. Implicit in this treatment is the idea that the only way to gain definitive power over the self is to change one's material circumstances. Upward social mobility is restricted to those who have the means to change their social world robbing all but the elite of the power to dictate the terms of their own social identities.
The Alchemist conveyed the up-most truthful meaning of santiago’s personal legend by teaching him the soul of the earth. This stage helped santiago and the Alchemist are talking doing what your personal legend is and also doing exactly what your personal legend desires are when they speak in terms of listening to one’s heart. “Whenever your heart is, that is where you’ll find your treasure. Santiago takes initiative on his dreams and pursue them regardless of love affairs and the hurt that comes along with it. The stage encouraged and also motivated santiago to find his treasure and make a better life for fatima and
Destiny, also known as fate, is said to control the outcome of one's life. However, does destiny really determine what occurs in people’s lives on a daily basis or is it just a made up word to be used as an excuse when things don’t go as planned? The Truman Show is a 1998 film directed by Peter Weir that shows us that the decisions we make define our destiny rather than our destiny defining our decisions. Without knowing, Truman Burbank has been the star of a reality tv show since birth. Having no control of the events that happen in his life, Truman decides to get out of the town that seems to keep him hostage. Truman could have decided to let Christof, the creator of his world, keep him in Seahaven for