The book “The Alchemist” is a story about a young boy named Santiago, he has a recurring dream about him finding treasure, the story is about his journey to find it. Along the way his character grows, and it develops into a character that you root for in his struggles. At the end of the story you are left with a character that has both positive and negative traits. Traits such as him being too trustworthy, and him proposing to a girl he only saw for a brief moment the day before.…
There are many phrases used throughout 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho; one that impacts the plot of the book greatly is 'Personal Legend.' This phrase is first mentioned when Santiago, our main character, and a King by the name of Melchizedek first meet. Melchizedek explains that Santiago had 'finally succeeded in discovering [his] Personal Legend' (page 21). A person's Personal Legend is 'what [a person] ha[s] always wanted to accomplish,' (page 21); more specifically, it is 'one's destiny' (page 22). Although 'everyone, when they are young, knows what their Personal Legend is... as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them it will be impossible for them to realize their Personal Legend' (page 22).…
We experience phases, traumas, struggles, that persist in our lives. These phases and traumas can happen due to certain people, but have the most impact on our very lives. In ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho, and ‘Life of Pi’ directed by Ang Lee, both protagonists became conscious of the things (beliefs and animals) that impact them and their own spiritual journeys that changed their views. As well as in Life of Pi, The Alchemists protagonist Santiago begins to understand the significance of his existence by trying to attaining his destiny. By fulfilling his Personal Legend, he will not be remorseful later on in his life, and instead be satisfied and contempt.…
Due to the complexity of his goal, Santiago creates barriers of fear that cause him to underestimate his ability to accomplish his goal. After having his dreams interpreted, Santiago is upset and claims that, "he would never again believe in dreams" (Coelho, 15). In the depths of his…
You shouldn’t take shortcuts. In doing this, you will receive your treasure. If not, you will go home always empty-handed. Therefore, the Alchemist shows a story of a boy named Santiago who learns many things and meets many significant people on his road to his personal legend.…
Paulo Coelho has portrayed great adventure and self righteousness in the novel “ The Alchemist” a story about a young boy filled with curiosity to seek his treasure, what is the treasure is the real question. Santiago is a young shepherd focused and dedicated to completing his very own personal legend. Santiago’s father has is a kind family man who had always hoped his son would become a priest but loved him anyway when he became a shepherd. There are many other characters that are going to be introduced a Gypsy, Merchant, Kings, Englishmen, but their time will come later. Santiago faces many challenges when he sets off on an adventure to Egypt with not much but his will to strive and succeed.…
Kelvin Almonte English 12 ms.Velez 12/15/17 Have someone ever fight so hard to accomplish a dream or find a hidden treasure that could change your whole life. And you almost lost everything you had to get it and then realized that you already had the treasure near you, but you just didn’t notice . Well in the novel “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho , Santiago the main character portrays the common hero and his journey to complete his date with destiny he lost many thing, crossed continents just to realize he had the treasure in his hometown.…
After all of this are you interested in hockey just a little bit? I think that hockey is a facinating sport and I think that it always will be a cool sport I also think that more people should like hockey. A lot of people go to collage for hockey and make it to the NHL and it is a very well payed job just to do what you love. Great collages for hockey are BU,…
In works of literature and Magical Realism, the hero is often the main protagonist. In many novels, the protagonist is oblivious to the fact that they are a hero; they often believe that they are ordinary people in an ordinary world. In “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho, Santiago is oblivious to the fact that he is a hero because he doesn’t fit the ‘Hero Criteria’, he isn’t idolize by the community or hasn’t made any drastic change in his life - he is a shepherd with no aspirations or dreams for change. However, this all changes when Santiago is faced with a recurring dream, he has no choice, but to pursue his Personal Legend. Santiago shows the characteristics of being a Hero, because he has a dream and he can easily connect with the reader,…
All living beings on this planet revolve around the idea of thinking. There are endless possiblities to what we can think. It is only plausible that one day, we will ask ourselves- "what is a personal legend?," as well as "What is my personal legend?" In the captivating novel, "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho,a shepher boy named Santiago, succeeds in taking his journey to self- discovery by pursuing and living his prsonal legend.…
Passion and responsibility are nearly always mutually exclusive, and the balance between them often creates dangerous conflicts. Paul Coelho explores this relationship in The Alchemist, where the main character, Santiago, is repeatedly faced with decisions between passion and responsibility. Santiago is forced to make the choice between passion and responsibility when he abandons wealth after leaving the crystal merchant, personal tradition when selling his sheeps, and romance when he leaves Fatima, all of which help Santiago overcome fear and achieve his Personal Legend, reinforcing Coelho’s message that one’s Personal Legend is the most important journey that an individual can experience. For many, capitalistic greed can consume one’s life,…
The novel, The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, is known for one of the top ten best books in the twentieth century. It is known as the top ten best book because of the lessons that happen throughout the novel. There are many times where many people go through journeys/obstacles and learn many things out of them, such as life lessons. The novel,The Alchemist, is about a young boy named Santiago that lives in Spain.…
Heroes come in all shapes, sizes, cultures, ethnicities, genders and backgrounds. While some heroes slay dragons, die in battle, or pull a sword from a stone, others fight cancer, protest for civil rights or being a single parent. All heroes go through the same phase whether in life or in a well written novel. They face challenges, gain a mentor, falter, overcome opposition and return back home. This cycle is called the Hero’s Journey, an eleven step outline to become a hero of any story.…
Books are like a time machine and can take you past the stars and beyond. One such book is The Alchemist. The Alchemist is about a young man named Santiago and how he goes on an adventure looking for his destiny. The book has many quotes and some of them I can relate to. The main idea throughout The Alchemist is to enjoy the journey and not just want the treasure in the end.…
According to Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a College Professor, “Every trip is a quest” and every quest is composed of 5 things: a quester, a destination, a stated reason to go, challenges, and the actual reason behind the quest. The actual reason helps make a “quest” or a journey much more meaningful to any literary work as a whole. In The Alchemist, Santiago’s long journey for treasure ends up giving him wisdom and self-knowledge worth more than any gold or treasure. Every quest needs, a “quester”, who is simply just the person who goes on a quest.…