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The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

In The Alchemist (1993), by Paulo Coelho, a young shepherd, Santiago, goes forth to seek his destiny and his fortune. His journey is directed by his need to interpret a dream about finding a treasure. He is helped on his journey by the people he runs into who offer advice and differing opinions about where he is going and what he is doing. In the end, Santiago's journey leads him right back to the same church where he had his initial dream. He finds his treasure right where it all began, but he wouldn't have recognized the treasure if he hadn't made the journey.

This story has been called a parable, or a symbolic tale to help people think about their own journeys, or personal legends, through life. While my own personal legend in discovering that I wanted to be an electrician was not as roundabout as Santiago's, I did have to go through several stages, just as he did, to get to the point where I understood that that's what I would want to do.

For example, in the beginning, Santiago is happy enough with his simple life. He's not even aware that there is a treasure out there for him to find. He herds his sheep, reads his book and daydreams about the merchant's daughter. This is his life (Coelho 3-4). Like Santiago, when I was younger I was happy enough at school and with my social life, more interested in dating than anything else. I was not aware that there might be something else out there to learn or strive for.

Then Santiago has his dream about finding a treasure. He's not sure what it means, so he stops in to consult a seer. She advises him to pay attention to that dream and go to Egypt, as the dream did. Santiago is disappointed in this interpretation because it seems so obvious he thinks he could have figured that out by himself. Besides, he doesn't know how he's going to get to Egypt since he doesn't have money. Something similar happened to me. I liked fixing things at home, especially things with wires and...

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The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 08:48, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/2000632.html