Take Your First Step Chaeyeon Song I recently read a book ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho. My father recommended this books from few years ago and until now, so that I have read this book several times. When I first read this book, I was only 12 years old. I couldn’t understand at all what the book is talking about as I was too young and had immature thinking skills. When I read this book again, I was 13 years old. I could partially understand the intention of the book. Finally now, I am 14 years old and read this book again. I could understand about human’s destiny and the language of everything on earth. ‘The Alchemist’ is a story about a boy named Santiago who lived his life as a shepherd somewhere near the north of Africa. One day, he …show more content…
This book instructs a single person about existence and helps an individual look into life by showing significant lessons. Many people believe that they lose control over their lives and themselves. In the "Alchemist", the boy asked the old man what is the world's greatest lie, the old man answered; "It's this: that at a certain point in our lives, we lost control of what's happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate. That's the world's greatest lie." (Paulo, 20). This is important because most of the people in today's society believe that at some point in their lives they hit a brick wall and are not able to move forwards with their lives so they decide to let fate take over. That's where the mistake is made, the only reason some individuals believe that they lose control is because their will power isn't as strong as needed or that they don't believe in themselves enough to see that they are capable of doing anything that they put their minds to. In addition, ‘The Alchemist’ taught me to trust and follow my intuition. I was raised to think that so long as you make lots of money, you will be happy regardless of what job you are performing. This book opened my eyes to the notion that you should not do something because it is what others, like your parents, deem successful. You should really follow your intuition and trust your gut on what you truly feel is right. With …show more content…
I can confidently say that it was the most influential book I have ever read. Now I understand why my father recommended this book to me. Santiago’s human’s destiny and wish was Fatima as he decided to go back to Fatima after he found the treasures. I’m curious what my human’s destiny is. At this point, I am only concentrating on education so I could have missed lots of signs. However, I anticipate tomorrow and my future as I know that new signs will be hanging with me until I achieve my goal, destiny. I cannot tell you what your destiny is, I don’t even know what my own destiny is. I do believe that when you live your life to the fullest, be the best person you can be and work hard, that your destiny will reveal itself. My definition of destiny is that one thing that feels like you were put on this earth to do it or to complete it. Whether you believe in destiny and fate or not, you have one life and it is yours to live and enjoy. Make the most of your life and become the best person you can be. Do not let your fear or other people’s opinions hold you back from living the way you want to live. Follow your heart and follow your dreams and do not be afraid to have to forge your own path in order to get to where you want to be. Remember, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Take that first step of your thousand mile journey today, and take it one step at a
In The Alchemist Paulo Coelho presents a character, Santiago, torn between following tradition and his Personal Legend. Santiago tries to live true to his Personal Legend, which is a path pursued by those who strive to fulfill their purpose in life. Yet throughout the novel tradition, a motif, presents itself as a roadblock holding Santiago back from reaching his dreams. Coelho juxtaposes tradition against Personal Legend to illustrate its purely individual nature and the necessity of the acceptance of change to reach one’s dreams and goals.
“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.
The heart of a child is one free of fear. It is brave and courageous; uncontaminated by any sources of doubt. Therefore, during the tender age of childhood, one is able to form ideas that those older are unable to even entertain. It is only when one comes of age, that he faces predicaments which cause him to question whether his dream should be pursued. In such circumstances, the individual either comes to consider his dreams too impractical to achieve and chooses to submit to that uncertainty, or chooses to overcome his fears and pursue his dream. Such is apparent in various events throughout Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist. In several circumstances, individuals are faced with the option of conformity as it is depicted as the result of fearing
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
The most significant journeys are always the ones that transform us, from which we emerge changed in some way. In Paulo Coelho’s modern classic novel The Alchemist, and Robert Frost’s poem The Road Not Taken, the journey that is undertaken by the central exponents leaves both with enlightening knowledge that alters their lives irrevocably. In stark contradiction to this, Ivan Lalic’s poem Of Eurydice , delves into the disruptive and negative force of knowledge, in contrast to The Alchemist which details an antithesis of this point relative to knowledge. In all journeys, the eventuality of knowledge is a transformative one.
Santiago is a young boy who fits into the flawed hero archetype. His story tells of his journey to find his Personal Legend and the many new people and experiences he encounters. Santiago is flawed in the way that he does not have enough confidence in himself to complete the task set out in front of him. He is constantly putting himself off track and avoiding what he has to do. In the beginning of his journey, he faces a setback and his money gets stolen. While finding a solution and a job, he gets distracted loses sight of his dreams. A couple months into the job, he thinks, “...Egypt was now just as distant a dream as was Mecca for the merchant…” (Coelho 58) and he glorifies his new plan to “disembark at Tarifa as a winner” (Coelho 58) with his improved flock of sheep. However, he continues his journey two years later, despite his break in confidence. When Santiago reaches the Oasis during his journey across the desert, he gets sidetracked once more by a woman. This woman’s name is Fatima. The second time they meet Santiago speaks without thinking and says, “‘I came to tell you just one thing...I want you to be my wife. I love you.’” (Coelho 98). This alone demonstrates his rash actions of an inexperienced hero who causes his dreams to be postponed. However, Santiago is also a successful hero despite his flaws. He still continues his journey, no matter what, and eventually reaches his goal. Even through
"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.
Have you ever encountered problems while trying to fulfill a goal in your life? In the book The Alchemist, written by Paulo Coelho, a shepherd boy named Santiago overcomes obstacles to reach his personal legend. Throughout the book Santiago encounters many friends to help him fulfill his destiny. Santiago encounters many problems throughout the story. He overcomes them with the help of his friends and his wife-to-be. These problems shape Santiago into a dignified man of many traits.
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.
There are many obstacles in everyday life, but none as detrimental to ones future as fear. Fear can cause people to not only avoid achieving their goals in life but it also forces them to think about it throughout every day. Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist shows that those who wallow in fear will never achieve their personal legend, and those who conquer fear will achieve anything they strive for. Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist is a commonly analyzed and criticized piece of literature. One of these articles is Rejendra Kumar Dash’s “Alchemy of the Soul: A Comparative Study of Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha and Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist”. Dash’s article is a literary criticism of the different parts of the character’s journey in The Alchemist. He talks about, in his article, how the theme in The Alchemist is found through analyzing the different parts of Santiago’s journey and what those parts mean. Another one of these articles is Lily Hasanah’s “Decision Making in Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist”. Hasanah’s article is a literary criticism of the main character in The Alchemist, Santiago. She searches for the theme in The Alchemist through analyzing the decisions, and the outcomes of those decisions, made by Santiago. Paulo Coelho provides access to his theme, for the most part, though the actions and adventures of the main character, Santiago. Although this is the method of delivery he had in mind, Dash and Hasanah view the delivery of his theme differently.
In the novel, "The Alchemist", by Paulo Coelho appears to me as a really inspiring, and encouraging adventure that happens to the main character. The main character, Santiago has to experience through many different difficulties, which include Gypsy woman, King of Salem, Soul of the World, and the alchemist. Santiago was trying to find his treasure following his personal n, however, he encountered many obstacles on his way. He has to sacrifice everything to find his treasure,however he deserve what he wants. Santiago meets many challenges, we believe that he can do it because "... when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it." (Pg 22)
How do literary devices make the book The Alchemist more engaging? The definition of engaging according to Merriam-Webster dictionary is... very attractive or pleasing in a way that holds your attention. In other words, engaging is when something holds someone's attention and makes that person interested. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; August 24 1947, Paulo Coelho is a lyricist and novelist (Mrs. Lechman Class Notes). The Alchemist is the most famous novel written by Coelho in 1998. Originally written in Portuguese, The Alchemist is translated into sixty-seven languages and has sold more than sixty five million copies worldwide. Paulo Coelho allegory titled The Alchemist has an engaging storyline due to the literary devices of juxtaposition,
The novel “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho is a story about a young shepherd named Santiago, who had to take a hero’s journey to realize his personal legend. First he was called to adventure when he had the same recurring dream. This call to adventure brought him to meet many new people that were either helpful or a set back. An old king was the first mentor that gave him knowledge and the courage to follow his dream. The young shepherd crosses the the threshold when he sells his sheep and goes to africa. He faced many trials and temptations through this hero's journey. There was also a point in which he was thinking of giving it all up a returning home. He overcame this and transformed into a better person. In the end he finally realises his
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.
In a book by Samuel Richardson many themes went against social norms, the book it itself didn't conform to social norms and reshaped society to show power in hard work and not social class. On Page Eleven in the Alchemist, Santiago’s father tells him, “Amongst us, the only ones who travel are the shepherds.” Santiago replies, “Well then I'll be a shepherd!”In these quotes Santiago’s father is trying to persuade him to stay at his home town, because his father proclaims that his town has the prettiest women, and that Santiago will regret his decision of leaving. Santiago breaks the social norms of staying in his hometown to follow his dreams and seek out his personal legend. Many people have had their parents not respect the decisions they make to follow their dreams.