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The Alchemist Theme One of the main themes that the author, Paulo Coelho, is trying to emphasize is to follow one's dream and fulfill one's Personal Legend or ultimate goal in life no matter what one has to overcome including love and fear; because if one doesn't pursue their Personal Legend, then one will regret it its entire life. When one sets out to accomplish its goal, one will only find it where its heart is and all things in life will help one achieve that Personal Legend. Some quotes…

Alchemist Essay Trying to achieve your personal legend can become much more to a fulfilling life. Your personal legend is something you always wanted to accomplish in life. The Alchemist written by Paulo Coelho is about a young shepherd named Santiago, who seeks hidden treasure at the foot of the pyramids. It all started with an reoccurring dream of him finding the treasure. As he travels, meet new people, and learns new lessons on life. On his travels he meets a crystal merchant, who tells…

It is not about the treasure – it never was. In Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, Santiago completes a journey of self-discovery in search of treasure buried at the Pyramids (Coelho, 3-167), but that does not mean his core wish is a materialistic objective. In any story, the want is the goal a protagonist is pursuing, and this goal “gives the plot direction” (Cowgill, 39). However, a character’s need, which is not necessarily the same as his want, is “an unconscious, inner force that compels a…

The book The Alchemist, by Brazilian writer Paolo Coelho, tells the story about a boy named Santiago who changed a lot through his journey as he discovered that he was the Alchemist and became a spiritual leader. Similarly, the novel The Deportation of Wopper Barraza, by Chicano writer Maceo Montoya, introduces us to a character named Wopper who also changed as a result of his journey and was surprised to learn that he would become a political leader, a Municipal Representative. However, even…

The main symbol in Ben Johnson’s The Alchemist is the Philosopher’s Stone – the epitome of what alchemy stands for. The Oxford English Dictionary defines the Philosopher’s Stone as “a mythical solid substance, supposed to change any metal into gold or silver and (according to some) to cure all wounds and diseases and prolong life indefinitely” (“Philosoper's Stone”, deff. n. 1a). Johnson plays upon the use of the stone and the character’s inner desires, as a symbol of the greed and selfishness…

education. However, as education has changed throughout the years, so has the quality of the education. In “The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education, Paulo Freire uses the comparison of a bank to the current style of education in order to reveal several problems within the education system, suggesting that students are not being taught how to think critically. Paulo Freire uses similes to describe the current education system. In the system, he essentially compares knowledge to “gifts” or “money”,…

vital role. What students learn and how much they learn depend a lot on the way they are taught. In the excerpt "O Americano Outra Vez," by Richard Feynman and in the essay "The Banking Concept of Education," by Paulo Freire, two distinct methods of teaching are discussed. Although both Paulo Friere and Richard Feynman, believe that education should not be taught to memorize information, I…

education is to raise active members of society and that education can indeed change and improve our social system, I selected John Dewey and Paulo Freire as the two pillars of my teaching philosophy. From Dewey’s point of view, learning and real life are intrinsically related and the school should be an “embryonic society” that echoes the community itself; Paulo Freire recognized the school as a reflection of society as well and, as such,…

achieve their ultimate goals. People are scared to achieve these goals because of the fear of failure, love, fear of realizing the dream they have fought for all our lives, and from childhood people are told everything they want is impossible. In Paulo Coelho’s novel The Alchemist, a young boy named Santiago, who was a shepherd decides to follow his dreams in finding treasure at the pyramids in Egypt. Santiago is faced with many obstacles that test his ability to follow his personal legend.…

Paulo Reglus Neves Freire is a Brazilian educator whose revolutionary pedagogical theory influenced academic disciplines that include theology, sociology, anthropology, applied linguistics, pedagogy, and cultural studies. Freire’s revolutionary pedagogy starts from a deep love for, and humility before, poor and oppressed people and a respect for their “common sense”, which constitutes knowledge no less important than the scientific knowledge of the professional. The book is…