“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”(Paulo Coelho). This is what was said to the main character, Santiago, in the book, The Alchemist, when the old king told him his personal legend. A Personal Legend is your life's spiritual purpose. He said Santiago’s personal legend was to find the treasure in the Egyptian Pyramids. Santiago must learn the lessons of perseverance, belief in oneself, and sacrifice in order to achieve his personal legend, to find the treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. Santiago learns many things during his journey, but one main lesson was perseverance. He learned perseverance when things got tough for him and he didn’t give up. An example of him learning this, is when he used all of his money, sold his sheep, and didn’t go to the merchant to marry his daughter. He didn’t give up though. He found a job to make enough money to go to the Egyptian Pyramids and helped out the owner of the shop to get more customers."The charming tale …show more content…
He learns sacrifice when he had to give some of his sheep to the old king, for telling him information about his personal legend. “The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.”(Paulo Coelho). This quote helps the reader get a better understanding of just how much Santiago sacrificed in his lifetime. He lost almost everything until he got his head together and got a job, to get enough money, to go to the Egyptian Pyramids. “People are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.”(Paulo Coelho). The meaning of this quote is people can do whatever they want, whenever they want. There are always excuses or something “holding” them back, but in reality they can do or go anywhere they want. There are just sacrifices that would have to be made to pursue their dreams. Santiago did exactly what this quote means. He left his town and his family to go and fulfill his dreams, to
Santiago’s sheep taught him survival. He would sell the sheep’s wool so that he would have money. Santiago was a shepherd who loved to travel. His sheep survived all the traveling with Santiago, so that taught him about how to survive.
For example, after Santiago travels back to Andalusia and digs inside the abandoned church, he finds a chest full of treasure. He thinks about how he was able to reach his treasure and achieve his Personal Legend; “It's true; life really is generous to those who pursue their Personal Legend, the boy thought" (170). Santiago decided to follow his dream and never gave up, even when he was robbed in Tangier. As a result, he met many people, including Fatima, the love of his life, and learned many important lessons from them. Finally, he found his treasure.
These hurdles did not stop him from continuing his mission; on the contrary, they were all, for Santiago, life lessons and experiences. Along his journey, Santiago meets many mentors, teachers and helpers. Each emerges into his life for a cause, whether it is
Santiago’s last step to completing his personal legend was walking through the desert, to find his treasure and completing it. Thus, showing the symbols and meanings behind these little puzzle pieces in the journey and being rewarded with love and treasure helping to support my thesis, through seeing and understanding symbols behind the world people can learn about their own personal legend and live life to the
The Importance of Perseverance At many times in people’s lives, they consider giving up. This is also true for Santiago, the protagonist in Paulo Coelho's fantasy novel The Alchemist. Santiago is on a journey to find a hidden treasure he saw in a dream. Along this journey he continues to contemplate whether he should just give up, or continue his adventure.
In Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, Santiago's sheep are big part of him that shows how much he wanted to achieve his personal legend by giving them up. This in turn shows the theme of achieving one’s goals by giving up the only things he owned just to go on a journey that he saw in his dreams. He had thoughts on his decision, but realized that it was too late to turn back. His decision of giving up his sheep shows how much he was willing to give up to gain something, or anything at all. Santiago has been having dreams or dream the he keeps seeing.
The decision was difficult as both options don’t provide him a steady choice. As being a shepherd does not promise him to be with the merchant daughter and for finding a treasure he need to give up his well settled life. But at the end he chose to find treasure as it allows him to purse his personal legend or dram of travelling throughout the world. He always considers his choice before taking a decision this can be seen through this conversation of Santiago with himself, “Here, I am between my flock and my treasure, the boy thought. He had to choose between something he had become accustomed to and something he wanted to have.
(Coelho 45 5, Coelho 46 4 9) When santiago losses his money he does not give up he learns and finds a man to help in exchange for food and in the end gets a job that he can do while learning the language of the locals, finding a way to egypt and developing his identity. This job allows him to make money and the strength to carry on in his journey. Later on in his journey he is faced even greater adversity and the same thing happens he is dejected and lost but picks himself up and preservers. “ “he is going to transform himself into the wind, just to demonstrate his powers. If he cant we humbly offer our lives for the honor of the tribe.”
During his journey, Santiago receives knowledge that he treasures and uses on his behalf when he hopes to achieve his personal legend. During his time with the Crystal merchant Santiago learned the five sacred obligations of all Muslims, and he learned that the Pyramids were not nearly as close as he thought when he arrived in Africa. During his time with the Alchemist he learned how to find life in the desert, and how to
This is illuminated when the Alchemist says, “‘There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure’” (141). This particular moment shows that even though Santiago has both the ability and the knowledge to achieve his dream, it is impossible to attain it if he fears even attempting to reach it. Consequently, this fear acts as his enemy and a barrier that stands in the way of the meaningful and happy life he is destined to accomplish. Furthermore, another one of his fears is the fear of losing what he believes he has already earned. ” He reminded himself that he had been a shepherd and that he could be a shepherd again.
Santiago has an epiphany when he realizes that if you never change and take risks you will never move forward. He wants to find his “personal legend,” or true desire, and to obtain this he needs to change his own nature. He must be willing to give up whatever is necessary to achieve this goal, including freedom. On Santiago’s journey he becomes employed by a crystal merchant that never achieved his personal legend. The merchant resisted change and never accomplished his dreams.
Even Though there was three different people who helped santiago find his personal legend, he had to go find it to fill complete. The king helped him first by explaining what a personal legend is. He tells Santiago about good and bad omens and says that it is the shepherd boy's duty to pursue his Personal Legend. Melchizedek then gives Santiago two stones, Urim and Thummim, with which to
Before finding his treasure, he must be courageous and clever to survive the desert and the danger that he encounters. This courage enables him to reach the treasure and fulfill his Personal Legend. The determination Santiago exhibits is what allows him to earn his fortune and decide his
For instance, within "The Alchemist", Santiago, who had always been a shepherd all his life, was approached by a king who promised Santiago that he'd "help him find the hidden treasure by the Pyramids of Egypt" if he traveled to the Pyramids of Egypt. Santiago was reluctant to accept this journey because not only did it sound dangerous, but is also meant a change in his daily lifestyle that would open his heart to the unknowns of the world
In life, many occurrences are meant to connect with our fate. A simple decision to either follow an instinct or ignore it symbolizes an individual’s life and destiny. In the novel, “The Alchemist”, by Paulo Coelho, the story is narrated to leave behind symbols of life. Throughout the journey lived by Santiago, his encounters left principles to consider. “God created the world so that, through its visible objects, men could understand his spiritual teachings and marvels of his wisdom(131).”