The journey or the destination? The JOURNEY. or, the DESTINATION? The Alchemist, a novel by Paulo Coelho, tells the story of a young man seeking treasure, and the lessons he learns along the way. Santiago, the young man, learns of a treasure he must seek and find in order to fulfill his personal legend, encounters trials and mishaps along the way, and even finds love in an unlikely place. The Alchemist is a story that strives to teach the importance of the journey as well as the destination through the help of mentors, both human and otherwise. Not all lessons are taught verbally, passed on from one person to the next. There are some things a person must learn through experience: pain, joy, contentment, the highest of highs, and the lowest …show more content…
Throughout his journey, Santiago faces many challenges capable of undermining his whole voyage if he lets them, but before he leaves for Egypt, Melchizedek imparts on him some advice. He tells him not to forget that “ ‘everything [he] deal[s] with is only one thing and nothing else’ ” (Coelho 33). When life throws hard things at a person, they have to get up and keep going. At the end of the day, they survived and they will get up and try again in the morning. The lessons Melchizedek was trying to teach Santiago were that it’s okay to fall down, as long as you get back up, and that there would be things that he would have to deal with, but as long as he persevered and kept his dream in sight, he would be just fine. When people come across absolute truths, a statement that is true at all times and in all places, they tend to stick with people. This is true for some of the folks Santiago encounters on his way to the pyramids, the Englishman for instance was searching for his own treasure and happened upon a truth that he shares with …show more content…
It has come to his realization that fear can be a good thing, that one can never learn anything if everything is just handed to them, and if everyone only did easy things then no one would ever be good at anything. Another absolute truth that is shared with Santiago comes from the Camel Driver, in a time of uncertainty Santiago remembers his words and can find calmness with the idea that “ ‘to die tomorrow was no worse than dying on any other day’ ” (Coelho 112). He's found peace knowing that it’s all in God's hands and that he's already accomplished so much. He is able to come to terms with death, a feat that is not accomplished by many at such a young age. When faced with trials that could easily break most people, Santiago is able to lean on the absolute truths that he picked up from teacher’s in his life. The novel comes to its conclusion in the same place it started, back at the dilapidated church with the tree growing out of it. At the beginning of the story the tree bore little to no importance, but by the end it was where Santiago would fulfill his personal legend. The thing is though, the tree didn’t change at all, Santiago
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.
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 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
Primarily, Santiago listens to the omens of the desert and changes the oasis's fate, as well as his, by believing in himself and disclosing his vision to the chief. Throughout the novel, “In his pursuit of the dream, he was being constantly subjected to tests of his persistence and courage. So he could not be hasty, nor impatient. If he pushed forward impulsively, he would fail to see the signs and omens left by God along his path” (Coelho, 93). One of the many advices his "teachers" give is to listen to omens. Clearly, Santiago does that by disclosing the omen and vision he received from watching the hawks fight. Though what is most crucial is the fact that Santiago had the courage to explain his vision. Of course without his courage, Santiago would not have been able to communicate his vision to the chief, thus leaving the oasis and his Personal Legend in shambles. However, Santiago indicates his fate by showing courage and sharing his vision. Santiago and his mindset prove that "What we as adults fail to realize is that everything is possible until the moment we believe it is impossible. “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it” (). This saying comes to life when Santiago has to turn himself into the wind. Santiago faces many confrontations against society, yet this confrontation is different. Santiago must achieve the
"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.
To begin with, the fear of losing beloved things or people presents people with dilemmas that influence the continuation of their journey and they can only bypass these dilemmas by getting rid of the fear altogether. To begin, Santiago’s fear of losing everything he already earned makes him second guess his plans and therefore discourages him to continue his journey. Santiago expresses his doubts by stating that his “‘heart is a traitor…it does [not] want [him] to go on.’ ‘That makes sense,’ the alchemist answered. ‘Naturally it [is] afraid that, in pursuing [a] dream, [a person] might lose everything [they] [have] won’” (Coelho 145). Throughout the novel, Santiago learns to always listen to his heart, but in this situation if he did, it would result in abandoning his journey. The alchemist encourages Santiago to move on from this fear by stating that it is normal to feel scared, but not normal to give up on a dream because of a feeling. Santiago’s best solution in this situation is to conquer his fear of loss altogether and erase the doubts in his mind for a smoother journey. Next, the fear of losing life in the midst of the journey makes Santiago wonder if it is appropriate to risk his life to pursue a dream. Santiago learns how to handle this situation as “the camel driver had [once] said, to die tomorrow [is] no worse than dying on any other ...
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 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
The Alchemist In the Alchemist, Santiago has numerous experiences revolving around omens and dreams. The omens and dreams portray the main theme of the story, that when you pursue you dreams, you will realize your personal legend and find your treasure. These omens and dreams keep reappearing in the story as Santiago continues his journey. They help Santiago to realize and understand his personal legend.
“Follow your heart and make it your decision”(Hamm). The Alchemist is about a shepherd named Santiago who goes on a journey to find his Personal Legend. He goes through different trials that puts him to the test and makes him consider not taking his journey, but he pays attention to the omens and his heart. He learns that by letting his heart lead him it will help him find his personal legend. This story expresses its theme through three different literary elements. These three elements are conflict, dynamic character, and Irony. The theme of this piece of literature is, to find yourself; you must follow your heart.
Likely, to what he learned from the sun, Santiago was content with himself making everyone around him comfortable. In addition to learning from nature, Santiago learns, from the Alchemist, that even as a shepherd it is important to know the questions of life. Santiago had many questions for the Alchemist about his life, and the Alchemist tells him that if he is following his heart and his personal legend, then “he knows everything he needs to know” (Coelho 146). Santiago realizes that since he has been following his personal legend, he already has learned what he desires. Then, the Alchemist informs him that he will not achieve his goals if he has “the fear of failure” (Coelho 146).
Throughout the whole book, his teachings guide Santiago and keep him on route; especially his story about a boy--much like Santiago--asking what the key to happiness is from an old God who tells the boy “ ‘see all the marvels of the world, and never.forget the. oil on the spoon’ “ (Coelho 35). What the God means is, to not get too caught up in his goal that he is missing all the beautiful and magnificent things in the world, but also to not get too distracted by his environment that he forgets about his mission and loses all the oil in his spoon. He is spending so much time and effort trying to realize his legend while also not missing out on the world around him that he gets caught up and loses the one thing important to him, his dream. But not everyone wants to realize their dreams like Santiago and the boy does, like the Crystal Merchant Santiago works for to pay for his voyage who shows Santiago the wisdom that “not everyone can see [their] dreams come true in the same way” (Coelho 57).
Love is an integral part of life and the human experience, which shapes one’s perspective of the world. Love is not just romantic, but can also be seen as love for a craft or a passion and motivation to complete a goal. In the Alchemist, love is often referred to as “the language of the world”. Love is a motivator for many people to follow their dreams. But for many, this language of love can often be ignored, which leads people to have less faith in themselves and give up on their dreams.