The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho Book Analysis

The Novel “The Alchemist” written by Paul Coelho, is about a boy who is in pursuit of following his dream and personal legend. On Santiago's journey, three people helped him. There was the king, the merchant, and the alchemist. The king helped him understand what a personal legend is and he also told him where his hidden treasure was. The merchant helped Santiago make money to help his journey across the desert in Africa. He also taught him many things like how to speak to the wind, sun, and the hand that wrote everything. The alchemist helped him realize that not pursuing his legend would be a bad idea. There are many important lessons learned that Coelho points out in Santiago’s journeys. The main lesson that I noticed was to never let anything get in the way of pursuing your dream. This story focuses on the narrative of Shepherd's journey through Africa to find his treasure. This lesson changes Shepherd's perspective on himself and the world. 

At the beginning of the book, Santiago’s sheep are a big part of his life. As a shepherd, because it is a single-person job, sheep are important. They give him company and companionship. Even though he sold his sheep to travel the Pyramids in Egypt, Santiago reminisces those lessons he learned and uses them in his travels. A quote from the text states,” 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 30). His sheep symbolize the things that people are attached to but have a hard time letting go of. They also symbolize people not wanting to learn and grow. If Santiago never sold his sheep, he would still be in the same place he was before, just a Shepherd. Letting go of his sheep was the first big step he had to take to pursue his real dream.

An additional step that Santiago had to take was letting go of Urim and Thummim stones. These stones were given to him by Melchizedek to help with the decision-making process. These stones also have “Magical properties” and would be used to help Santiago’s mind to keep from clouding with his quest to find his legend. Santiago trusts them to be a reminder of the lessons he was taught throughout his journey. Letting go of these stones was another big step Santiago had to take. Those stones helped him realize it was like leaving the Crystal Merchant behind. The stones falling out of Santiago’s pockets happened to remind him that he should not return and go back to being a Shepherd but that he should continue and move forward. In the text, it states, “ He didn’t consider mending the hole-the stones could fall out any time they wanted. He had learned that there were certain things one shouldn’t ask about, so as not to flee from one’s destiny, “I promised that I would make my own decisions”, he said to himself.” (Coelho 44). Letting go of those stones was showing how they did their job and he no longer needs them. Although they helped him continue to pursue his dream, he didn’t let them get in the way

In search of the Alchemist, Santiago is overcome with a woman entering his life named Fatima. Just being in her presence for the first time stunned him and he believed that she was his true love. He is convinced that the universal language of the world is “love” and that everybody is capable of it. He believes that he loved her before he even knew her. Later on, in the text, Santiago said, "I'm coming Fatima." (Coelho 171). This shows that he cared for her as much as finding his legend. It was expected that Santiago would forget about Fatima just as he did with the merchant's daughter. Instead, he remembered her and thought about her after finding his Personal Legend. Going back to my thesis, this shows that although he had fallen in love with her, he still went to pursue his dream without letting her get in the way of that.