Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Alchemy in the alchemist essay
The alchemist essay alchemy
The alchemist symbolisms
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Alchemy in the alchemist essay
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. Santiago learned to understand and interpret the omens and dreams. As Santiago discovered his personal legend, it became very important for him to interpret and understand the various omens throughout the story. Another important theme in the story is that the world will help you accomplish your dreams and discover your personal legend. The …show more content…
When the stones Urim and Thummim fall out of Santiago’s pocket, he is reminded of the King and his personal legend. He decides to continue pursuing his personal legend. When Santiago decides to head to Egypt, he joins a caravan in order to cross the desert. He meets an Englishman who was seeking an Alchemist. As the characters interact and become friends, the relationship largely impacts Santiago. Both he and the Englishman have similar mind sets. This leads to discussions about omens and the language of the world. The Englishman tells Santiago that omens are not merely for following in order to achieve one’s personal legend, but they can also help a person understand the language of the world. As the story progresses and Santiago learns more about omens, alchemy, and his personal legend, he reaches a conflict. After Santiago splits up from the Alchemist he finally reaches the pyramids. Earlier in his journey his heart had told him to, "Be aware of the place where you are brought to tears. That's where I am, and that's where your treasure is." So, Santiago begins to dig, yet he doesn’t find anything. Some thieves come across Santiago and think he is hiding something. After they find the gold bar that the Alchemist had given Santiago they tell him to continue digging in hopes of finding more
The first two obstacles that Santiago faces are that his father tells him he can not do something that he wants to do and that he wants to pursue his personal legend, but he does not want to hurt those that he loves. For example, Santiago’s father said, “The people who come here have a lot of money to spend, so they can afford to travel. Amongst us the only ones who can travel are shepherds.” Everyone is told by their parents and friends that everything we want to do is impossible. Since Santiago did not have money to spend to travel his only choice was then to become a shepherd to fulfill his desire. T...
In the beginning of the book, Santiago travels to visit a Gypsy who is said to be able interpret his recurring dream. As a child he had always heard stories about Gypsies capturing children, taking them to their camps and making them their slaves. These stories translated into one of his largest fears for Santiago as a child and that fear returned when he visited the Gypsy, “As a child, the boy had always been frightened to death that he would be captured by Gypsies, and this childhood fear returned when the old woman took his hand” (17). The Gypsy eventually tells Santiago that there is treasure located at the Egyptian Pyramids. Without being able to overcome his fears of Gypsies, Santiago may have never went on a journey to Egypt in order to achieve his personal legend. Another example in the book that shows Santiago overcoming his fears is while Santiago and the Alchemist are travelling towards the Pyramids. They are suddenly captured by a desert tribe at war, who mistakes them for spies. In order to save his life Santiago has to turn himself into the wind. Coelho states, “But the boy was too frightened to listen to words of wisdom. He had no idea how he was going to transform himself into the wind” (83). Two days later Santiago is standing in front of the tribal chieftains trying to turn himself into the wind. He is able to stay calm while his life is on the line and
In The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho continuously shows how Santiago conquers fear and is greatly rewarded for it. In order to get his treasure and achieve his personal legend he must first travel through the well-known dangers of the desert. It is an extremely expensive trip that many do...
In the beginning of the story, Santiago is robbed in the plaza in Tangier by a boy whom he thought would lead him to a place to buy a camel. This event greatly discourages him and makes him very apprehensive about continuing his journey, considering he has no money, no sheep, and is in an unfamiliar town. When Santiago meets the alchemist later on in the story, he learns many valuable lessons from him; the most important one being to never lose faith. Through the tough challenges that Santiago faces, the alchemist teaches him that "there is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve" and that is "the fear of failure" (Coelho 146). Santiago must trust his decisions and he learns how to do so as the story
Santiago is a young boy who fits into the flawed hero archetype. His story tells of his journey to find his Personal Legend and the many new people and experiences he encounters. Santiago is flawed in the way that he does not have enough confidence in himself to complete the task set out in front of him. He is constantly putting himself off track and avoiding what he has to do. In the beginning of his journey, he faces a setback and his money gets stolen. While finding a solution and a job, he gets distracted loses sight of his dreams. A couple months into the job, he thinks, “...Egypt was now just as distant a dream as was Mecca for the merchant…” (Coelho 58) and he glorifies his new plan to “disembark at Tarifa as a winner” (Coelho 58) with his improved flock of sheep. However, he continues his journey two years later, despite his break in confidence. When Santiago reaches the Oasis during his journey across the desert, he gets sidetracked once more by a woman. This woman’s name is Fatima. The second time they meet Santiago speaks without thinking and says, “‘I came to tell you just one thing...I want you to be my wife. I love you.’” (Coelho 98). This alone demonstrates his rash actions of an inexperienced hero who causes his dreams to be postponed. However, Santiago is also a successful hero despite his flaws. He still continues his journey, no matter what, and eventually reaches his goal. Even through
Through Coelho’s life experiences, journey, and obtained knowledge from experience, he has allowed himself to understand that it is very important to follow ones own dreams. Evidently in him becoming self-fulfilled, over coming the obstacle of being robbed, and finding his Personal Legend. For him to share this and give off this message to his readers, Paulo Coelho creates The Alchemist and uses the story of Santiago to bring his own experiences to life again.
The Alchemist conveyed the up-most truthful meaning of santiago’s personal legend by teaching him the soul of the earth. This stage helped santiago and the Alchemist are talking doing what your personal legend is and also doing exactly what your personal legend desires are when they speak in terms of listening to one’s heart. “Whenever your heart is, that is where you’ll find your treasure. Santiago takes initiative on his dreams and pursue them regardless of love affairs and the hurt that comes along with it. The stage encouraged and also motivated santiago to find his treasure and make a better life for fatima and
Santiago replies that he was meant to save the oasis. The man then tests Santiago’s courage and tell him that if Santiago manages to stay alive till sunset the next day, then he should come find him. Santiago asks him where he could be found and the man points towards the south. Santiago realizes that the man in the alchemist. The next morning, although the oasis is attacked, all but one of the intruders were killed, thanks to Santiago’s predictions and prompt action. In payment, Santiago receives fifty gold pieces and is asked to be the counselor for the oasis.
Santiago had been rewarded with the treasure earned when completing his journey, “In my dream there was a sycamore growing out the ruin of the sacristy… there were precious stones, gold masks adorned with red and white feathers.” (Coelho 170). Santiago was able to accomplish his personal legend, which he had to go through many stages in the journey that got him closer to completing his goal. In this final stage of his journey was a good thing to accomplish, because he’s gone through all of the stages that had been placed there to challenge and see if he actually wants to accomplish it, so he did not give up and gained trust in himself to keep going. This is an important part of the journey because this had taught him to not give up and trust in his heart to accomplish his personal legend, such as when others believe that it is hard to accomplish what they want to complete and do in their life.
There were around two hundred people that join the caravan including the Santiago and the Englishman. The Englishman says ‘there’s no such thing as coincidence’. Santiago realizes the closer one gets to realize his Personal Legends, the more that Personal Legends becomes his true reasons for beings. While crossing the deserts, he was thinking about the past and the future by learning the universal language. His mother’s referred this knowledge as hunches and also the word maktub means it is written. He realizes that he had learns more by observing his camel and the caravan, and he throw away his books. Santiago having a conversation with the camel driver at night, he told Santiago about his life before and how he became a camel driver. He learned
In the beginning Santiago and the Englishman didn’t speak a lot because the Englishman was always with his books; later on they had respect toward each other and they were friends even though they had their own
They then find themselves in a war torn area. They somehow make their way out, and the alchemist tells that the rest of the trip of the trip he will have to be by himself. Santiago starts listening to the voice of the desert and the sun guiding him to the treasure hidden in the pyramids as he had already known what the Soul of the World was. He starts digging as he reached his destination,but he couldn´t find any treasure there. Shortly after, thieves appear and proceed to beat the kid up for his money.
Santiago learns lesson form the merchant and teaches him to take risks. Santiago gets the money he needs within a year and cashes it in and continue his Personal Legend. He then meets an Englishman and he tells him the alchemy that turns metal into gold is on a stone called Emerald Tablet. While traveling they have to stop in Al-Fayoum where Santiago falls in love with Fatima. Santiago has a vision about an attack the alchemist hears about it and ask him to join him on a trip, then he teaches Santiago to pursue his heart and leave Fatima.
I could partially understand the intention of the book. Finally now, I am 14 years old and read this book again. I could understand about human’s destiny and the language of everything on earth. ‘The Alchemist’ is a story about a boy named Santiago who lived his life as a shepherd somewhere near the north of Africa. One day,
I enjoyed watching Santiago grow and learn from the experiences he gained through his journey to find treasure in Egypt. I found I couldn’t stop reading “The Alchemist” soon after I began. I had to keep reading about Santiago’s journey and his adventures.