Paulo Coelho's novel, "The Alchemist ", narrates the tale of Santiago, a shepherd boy who sets off on a quest after dreaming of riches hidden among the Egyptian pyramids. Santiago is inspired to follow his heart and achieve his destiny by dreams and omens that seem to guide him along the way of his journey. He soon gains the ability to decipher the clues along the way that lead him in a direction of self-awareness as well as a sense of direction. An omen predicting a hidden wealth close to the Egyptian pyramids is the first dream that Santiago had when starting his expedition. This starts his mission to discover his "Personal Legend." Dreams lead him, foreshadowing important events with their hidden meanings. He embraces the realm of spirit linked with the physical world by listening to the universe's signs, which vary from an elder's counsel to the actions of animals. His personal development is shaped by the revealing omens as he discovers how to live out his destiny. Being aware of the subtle guidance given by dreams facilitates self-discovery. His contemplative journeys encourage following his ambitions and deeper callings in life. …show more content…
Along the way, Santiago meets the mysterious King Melchizedek, who shares a timeless truth about the significance of dreams and omens. King Melchizedek says, "When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it." Coelho, pg. 78, pg. 78. 24) This quote describes the core belief in the relationship between one's desires and the guidance offered by the universe. Throughout the novel, Santiago's experiences support this idea as he overcomes obstacles with persistence and faith, depending on the coincidence of dreams and omens to guide him in the path of his
Curious, courageous, young, adventurous: these are all words to describe Santiago, the protagonist in the novel The Alchemist. In this novel, Paulo Coelho develops Santiago’s character as a young boy who goes on an adventure to find his life’s purpose. Through the hero’s journey, Paulo Coelho insists that both internal and external struggles often cannot stop people from achieving their goals, ultimately encouraging people to fulfill self discovery and understand who they truly are.
In The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho an Andalusian boy named Santiago leaves Spain to travel to Egypt in order to achieve his Personal Legend. During his journey he meets four people, a Gypsy, a King named Melchizedek, an Englishman and an Alchemist, all of whom help Santiago along his journey towards his Personal Legend. However, only the King and the Alchemist teach Santiago lessons that he can learn from and use along his journey. The King teaches Santiago two lessons, to follow omens and that it is not always about the destination but that it is also about the journey. The Alchemist teaches Santiago to listen to his heart for guidance, what the Language of the World is and what the Soul of the World is. He eventually arrives in Egypt after
are characters that can be defined by their traits as certain archetypes. All novels and films contain archetypes that allow their audience to understand and relate more to
"A hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles”(Christopher Reeves) continuing to strive forward. This statement particularly adheres to Santiago, the protagonist, in the novel The Alchemist a novel written by Paulo Coelho. The primary basis of the plot line centers around Santiago, a mundane shepherd, whom obtains visions of the great pyramids of Giza venturing off in hopes of discovering a tangible treasure. The aspects of this unprecedented journey would be: his call to adventure, refusal of the call, answering of the call, supernatural aid, and finally the road of trials. With every step, Santiago follows the footsteps of every hero before him.
Armed with a proper understanding of omens and their interpretations, one can be very successful. Santiago arrives in Tangier only to be robbed of all his money. He calls upon stones Urim and Thummim, that he received from Melchizedek, these stones are to guide him reading the omens. He asks them, “Am I going to find my treasure?” As he reached in to find one of the stones, they both fell to the ground, he saw this as his omen (Coelho 44). In this case, Santiago was at a crossroads, having just lost everything he had, he could have easily abandoned his search for his “Personal Legend” (26). When Santiago had been working with the crystal merchant he had become “accustomed to recognizing the omens” (58). He had begun to train himself to look out for signs that would guide him along his journey toward his “Personal Legend” (26) and the more he did so, the results were fruitful. When Santiago travels to the oasis, he is able to discern the meaning of the flight of hawks into a vision warning of an attack on the oasis itself. At first, Santiago is hesitant to share his vision with anyone but then he remembers what the old king told him, “Always heed the omens” (102-116). Santiago is learning not only to place more faith in the omens, he is beginning to see himself as person of strength and with the qualities of a leader. His character is developing more as he becomes more confident
"Often in literature a character has a decision of which "path" to choose. Explain how a character in the book your read deals with this type of decision/conflict."
Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist is a story about a young shepherd who goes on a journey to the Great pyramids in Egypt in search of treasure to fulfil his personal legend. The boy meets people along the way who either help or hinder his ability to achieve his dreams. Through the contrasting views of The Crystal Merchant and the Englishman Santiago learns that many people pursue their personal legends only in their minds and that they all influenced Santiago’s personal legend; as a result of the characters’ outlook on life, Coelho conveys that everyone pursues their dreams either in life, or in their imagination, or through books.
“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. Santiago clearly demonstrates all these stages throughout the entire novel.
Paulo Coelho’s novel, The Alchemist follows the ventures of Santiago, a young shepherd from an Andalusian town in Spain. He disobeyed his father’s wish to enroll at a seminary to become a Catholic priest; instead he became a shepherd in order to fulfill his dream to travel throughout the country, in fact the world. Throughout the novel, his character changes while he is on a journey to find his Personal Legend and to find his treasure that would make him rich. In the novel, he changes constantly and he somewhat represents mankind.
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.
"You can not make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen"(Michelle Obama); those who fear not being successful in their decisions are restrained in achieving total happiness. This is essentially true for Santiago, the protagonist in Paulo Coelho's adventure novel, The Alchemist. In this book, Santiago goes on a quest to the Pyramids of Egypt to fulfill his Personal Legend. Along the way, he meets many individuals who teach him various influential lessons about life; he must learn to trust himself instead of relying on the omens he receives and what others tell him. In the novel, it is revealed that many people choose not to pursue their dreams because of the fear of failure; fear limits individuals from making decisions that will ultimately help them get closer to their Personal Legends.
In the book the Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, Santiago’s call to adventure was to travel the world , experience life, and find his hidden treasure. This meant he would stop at nothing until he achieved so. This troublesome stage is a period where santiago is tested to grab his dream before it leaves without him.“I’m not going to charge anything now, but I want one tenth of the treasure if you find it.”This stage was very confusing for Santiago because he didn’t know why or how foreign people knew about his personal legend. Santiago chooses to pursue his legend due to a fortune-seer’s knowledge. This significance of this stage so prominently prone to santiago’s view from the inside, he finally chose to go because he knows that everything happens
Penny Chamberlain Mr. Sackett World literature 04/11/24 Mentors Everybody learns from teachers and mentors that push them towards their end goal. In the novel The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho describes the story of Santiago finding his personal legend and using the lessons he learns from the mentors he meets. The mentors teach him in different ways, even when he does not notice them: past lessons that he learns in the beginning, help him in the end. King Melchizedek and the Englishman; the animals; Fatima and the alchemist; teach and push Santiago on his journey to discover his personal legend. King Melchizedek and the Englishman both teach Santiago the importance of looking at the world in balance.
Santiago’s choices and actions are indeed pivotal in determining the course of his journey, but they are ultimately still influenced by the omens and messages sent by Fate. For example, the text states ““Where is the treasure?” he asked. “It’s in Egypt, near the Pyramids.” The boy was startled.