The Fear Of Fear In Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity” (Coelho, web). In Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, the main character Santiago is constantly thrown into situations where he must overcome fear and make choices, some of which will lead him forward towards his destiny. Santiago is faced with two main categories of fears; fears of people, and fears regarding his situation and destiny. Each time Santiago encounters a fear, he must choose to be strong and overcome that fear, follow his dream, and reap the rewards. Santiago’s fear of people can be broken into three broad classifications: the fear presented in personal relationships, the fear of strangers, and the fear of successful people (standardwisdom.com). Throughout the story Santiago constantly battled with his fears of other people’s reactions towards him. Santiago was anxious in telling his father about his desire to become a shepherd and travel the country because he was anxious his father would not approve of his choice. “One afternoon, on a visit to his family,

Afterwards, he trusts the caravan leaders to get him through the desert. When he is confronted by the Alchemist, who was disguised as an intimidating swordsman, he shows no fear of losing his life. Another instance where he shows he has overcome his fear of becoming a bitter person is when he begins to work with the crystal merchant in (Coelho, web). His presence and ideas boost the crystal merchant’s sales and the merchant becomes very successful (cliffnotes.com). Instead of being bitter of the merchant’s newly founded success, he is pleased. Santiago continuously strives to see the best in people and not fear