The Alchemist - A Quick Summary
Author:Paulo Coelho
Author Biography:
Paulo Coelho who is a Brazilian Lyricist and Novelist was born in Rio in August 1947.His renowned works include:The Fifth Mountain, Veronika Decides to Die, The Zahir, Eleven Minutes,The Winner Stands Alone, The Devil and Miss Prym,Brida,Manual of the warrior of Light. The Alchemist and The Pilgrimage appeared on bestseller list.
Characters:
•Santiago- A young shepherd and a traveler(protagonist)
•Gypsy woman-Fortune teller who interprets Santiago’s dream
•Melchizedek - King of Salem who wants Santiago to pursue his dream
•Crystal Merchant - A resident of Tangier who hires Santiago •Englishman- The one who travels to Al-Fayoum to seek the Alchemist
•Fatima-Arab girl who lives in the oasis and is the love of Santiago
•Alchemist-The one with Philosopher’s stone and Elixir Of Life who can turn any metal into gold
Story Summary:
The Alchemist is a fictional novel by Paul Coelho.This story revolves around young boy named Santiago who travels in search of a hidden treasure at Egyptian Pyramids to pursue his dream. On his journey to Egypt,he discovers the hidden secrets and mysteries of life.When you want something,all of the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. The entire book focuses on this central theme.
Santiago’s father wanted him to be a priest but he was passionate for travelling.So he chose to be a shepherd.He has a recurring dream and meets a Gypsy woman in order to interpret his dream. Along his way,he meets Melchizedek,an old man who calls himself a king. Melchizedek convinces Santiago to sell his flock and set off to Tangier.He gives him two precious stones called Urim and Thummim which will help him to read omens. As Santiago arrives at Tagier,he is robbed by a thief and loses all the money he received on selling his flock.So he finds a job at a local crystal shop. The kind merchant teaches Santiago several lessons. After working at the crystal shop for almost a year,he learns more about life and his personal traditions.He earns enough money to buy a new flock of sheep and to return to his homeplace.He remembers the words of the Oldman and somehow he manages to board a caravan to Egypt.In the caravan,Santiago meets an Englishman who has come all the way to seek the alchemist.He learns a lot from the Englishman during the journey. The Englishman is traveling with the caravan to the Saharan oasis of Al-Fayoum, where a powerful, 200-year-old alchemist resides. During their course of travel through the desert, the Englishman tells Santiago about the secrets of alchemy.Santiago finds the Englishman’s ideas to be very similar to Melchizedek’s. They both speak of a Soul of the World to which we are all connected and of the necessity of following our heart’s true desires or our Personal Legend.Santiago begins listening to the desert and discovering the Soul Of the World. On reaching the oasis, Santiago falls in love with Fatima.He discovers that love, like the Personal Legend, comes directly from the Soul of the World.The caravan leader assembles the travelers together and tells them that the tribal war prevents them from continuing their journey.Santiago then meets the Alchemist dressed in black, riding a white horse and kicking up a cloud of dust so large that it obscures the moon. While the alchemist and Santiago continue through the desert, the Alchemist shares much of his wisdom about the soul of the world. He learns how to follow his heart by believing in himself and his intuition. He also understands that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. The Alchemist convinces Santiago to continue in the direction of the Pyramids and to pay heeds to the omen. Once, Santiago senses a clear sign of danger. A lot of tribesmen dressed in blue, with black rings surrounding their turbans were seen everywhere in the dunes. A few tribesmen approach towards alchemist and Santiago and capture them. They take them to a nearby military camp.They were misjudged as spies but the Alchemist says that they were travelers.The alchemist hands over all of Santiago’s savings to the tribe in exchange for his life and the life of Santiago.He tells the tribesmen that Santiago is a powerful alchemist who understands nature and the world and can destroy the camp by turning himself into the wind. The Chief is impressed and will spare their lives if Santiago can do it.Santiago has no idea on what is going on. He is clueless how he is going to transform himself into the wind.
Santiago gets three days to turn himself into the wind. On the third day, he seeks the help of the desert,the wind and the sun. He finally reaches the Soul of the World, and it is a part of the Soul of God. He finds that the Soul of God is his own soul. And that,he, a boy, can perform miracles. He immediately turns himself into wind and the chief, awed by the ability of Santiago, let him and the alchemist go free. The alchemist accompanies Santiago to the Coptic Monastery where he demonstrates his ability to turn lead into gold. He gives gold to Santiago and bids him goodbye.Santiago finally reaches the Egyptian Pyramids.He starts digging the ground in search of his treasure. Two men accost him, beat him, grab the gold present in his bag and then they leave the place.He continues digging. Half an hour later, his shovel hits something solid. And an hour later, he has before him a chest of Spanish gold coins. There were also precious stones, gold masks adorned with red and white feathers,and stone statues embedded with jewels.He understands that life is generous to those who pursue their destiny.
What I loved the most about this book:
This book can be read by a person of any age group.This book is for you, me, anyone and everyone in this world.It is a story that each one of us can relate with our lives in some means. The way the writer explains the philosophy of life through search for treasure is amazing.The book encourages the readers to pursue their dream or goal, no matter how discouraged they may feel at times. It is a tale of travel,learning, knowledge, self exploration, experience and success.It motivates a person to believe in destiny and work towards it.
Ideas that dissapointed me:
The fact that a boy who is a Shepherd travels around the world by just trusting some people seems a bit impractical.Santiago gets all that he wants soo easily and instantly which is not possible in this world.There are a lot of things in the book which get repeated again and again.Since it is a translated novel, it doesn’t exactly portray the author’s emotions.
I learnt quite a few life lessons from The Alchemist after reading it. The following,not in specific coherent sequence are my take aways from this book
Paulo Coelho likes to put so much of his philosophical aspect into his writings, which is something I admire about him, because it makes things seem more interesting and attractive when in fact, they are simple, like in this book.
•The book tells us to follow our dreams no matter what happens. Though Santiago faces a lot of barriers and obstacles throughout his journey, he doesn’t lose hope and is so determined to pursue his dream.
•The author tells us, through the struggles of Santiago, that the real treasure is not the bag of Spanish gold coins, but the knowledge and experience that he acquired on the way to get it.
•When you want something,all of the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.It doesn’t merely state that everyone will achieve whatever they wish. It means that when you truly want something and work towards it with perseverance,even luck favours you and you’ll achieve your goal with ease.
•Fear is a bigger obstacle than the obstacle itself.Fear is worse than the consequence or result of an event.So,it is better to face the challenge than to keep worrying about the consequences.
•Live in the Present- One shouldn’t think of the past or keep imagining about the future.Focusing on the present will change our perspective of life and makes us happy. So cherish the present.
•One must remain focused on his journey.The journey is more important than the destination. Pleasure is found not in finishing a task but in doing it.
