Who Is Santiago A Dynamic Character In The Alchemist

Throughout the interminable universe of literature, countless authors harness the usage of dynamic characters. In both fictional novels, The Pearl authored by John Steinbeck and The Alchemist written by Paulo Coelho, both authors exploit the uses and arts of dynamic characters. Firstly, The Pearl is an exquisite novel about how a man named Kino becomes incredibly desperate to fish a pearl in order to pay off his son’s medical treatment after a fatal scorpion attack. Momentarily, after Kino’s fortunate discovery of a massive, glorious pearl, he enters and emerges into an inescapable sphere of corruption, greed, and disillusion. Correspondingly, written by Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist displays a stunning plot of how a young boy of the name

of Santiago crusades to the awing Egyptian Pyramids of Giza to unravel his Personal Legend and a foreshadowed treasure. When Santiago does return to his Spanish homelands, he is transformed into a wise, prudent man who is deeply engaged in observing the globe though transcendentalist eyes. Evidently, Kino from The Pearl and Santiago from The Alchemist, without a doubt, are dynamic characters that convey an essential life lesson.
In John Steinbeck’s novel, The Alchemist, the starring character and protagonist, Kino, is a simple human who is greatly motivated by his family, beliefs, traditions, and his nuclear community, but shortly Kino will become a victim of a massive and revolutionizing change. Once Kino finds the Pearl of the World, he suddenly becomes a new man only inspired by greed, authority, and immense wealth and disregards the simple pleasures that once created joy in his life. Kino’s state of embitterment is evident when he declared to his brother Juan Tomás, “This pearl has become my soul,” … “If I shall give it up I shall lose my soul” (Steinbeck 67). Ultimately, Kino’s greed exceeds to a point where his relations with his family become more distant, his property resulted to be destroyed, and even caused him to kill a person. Soon, Kino organizes all his thoughts and begins to understand the series of unfortunate events that follow the possession of the pearl, and his actions described by Steinbeck are, “And Kino drew back his arm and flung the pearl with all his might” (Steinbeck 89-90). Eventually, Kino begins to fathom the evil and sinful substances and energies that are compressed into an individual pearl. All in all, the way Kino’s life dramatically turned one hundred-eighty degrees portrays the vital theme that wealth or material goods cannot purchase happiness and joy, but the addiction of wealth, greed, and authority can spoil and completely ruin any human.
Secondly, crafted by Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist, the main character and starring protagonist, Santiago, is a young, Spanish boy that displays a significant amount of curiosity, interest, and transcendentalist thought about the world, and will soon witness an exemplary change just because a reoccurring dream.

Santiago’s early behavior of transcendentalism are evident when he nullifies and rejects his parents’ longing for him to become priest, and instead decides to remain a shepherd of Andalusia and learn the indecipherable language of the world. When Santiago’s father tries to persuade Santiago that travelling with a herd of sheep does not impact and change a person, Santiago replies, “But I’d like to see the castles in the towns where they live,”… “Well, I’d like to see their lands, and see how they live” (Coelho 9). Santiago’s early rejections of becoming a priest and perusing his life as a shepherd clearly demonstrates that Santiago’s comprehension and understanding of life does not include the following a decided future, but exploring and discovering the world with own eyes. Furthermore, when Santiago decides to define his Personal Legend by voyaging to the Pyramids of Giza, he is faced and challenged with many hardships that will require critical thinking and extremely important verdicts. When, for example, held hostage by Moorish chieftains and given the daunting task to disintegrate the Moorish military camp by transforming into the wind, Santiago communicates with nature’s elements, “I learned the alchemist’s secrets in my travels. I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the same hand, and we have the same soul” (Coelho 146). Eventually, Santiago learns that all aspects of biotic and abiotic existence are controlled by a creator, and maintained by the Soul of the World. Manifestly, Santiago’s adventures revolutionized him into a prudent, wise man and reflect the

vital morals to never give up and that hard work always pays off.
Clearly, Kino’s and Santiago’s adventures and moral-relating journeys exponentially morphed them into different people and there everlasting outlook and view of life. In Kino’s journey, his discovery of the Pearl of the World significantly embittered him as a man and yielded him an unfortunate future filled with misery, regret, and remorse. Kino reminds us that fundamental fragments of life like family, love, and peace should be appreciated to the fullest extent, before riches and greed terminate them. On the contrary, Santiago’s journey to the Egyptian Pyramids and back unleashed a world of opportunity and a life of prosperity, knowledge, and fortune. Congruently, Santiago’s life encourages us to take risks in life and to never be petrified to follow dreams. Undoubtedly, both Steinbeck and Coelho in the novels The Alchemist and The Pearl understated the beauty of dynamic character, and therefore expanded and enriched the unrelenting universe of literature.