The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho About Author Background Contemporary Literature Characters Summary Plot overview Themes Symbols Message

1. THE ALCHEMIST~Paulo Coelho

2. ABOUT AUTHOR
• Born on August 24, 1947, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• A rebellious teenager and his parents committed
him to an asylum three times
• After drifting among several professions, Coelho
changed his life's course while on a visit to Spain
in 1986 at the age of 36
• Also devoted himself full-time to the craft of
writing
• Coelho's fans call his books inspiring and life-
changing
• He wrote the best-selling novel, The Alchemist,
which sold 35 million copies
• the most translated book in the world by a living
author

3. BACKGROUND
• Coelho was able to write at this pace because the
story was
"already written in his soul."
• The book's main theme is about finding one's destiny
• According to The New York Times, The Alchemist is
“more self-help than literature”
• The advice given to one of the character in the novel
that
"when you really want something to happen, the
whole universe will conspire so that your wish comes
true"
• Core of the novel's philosophy and a motif that plays
throughout it

4. Contemporary Literature
• written works produced from a specific time in history
through the current age
• Some see it as an extension of postmodern literature, but
most refer to it as a literary era of its own
• The contemporary period extends to the current day
• Typical characteristics of the contemporary period include
reality-based stories with strong characters and
believable stories
• Well-defined realistic, and highly developed characters
are important in classifying a written work as
contemporary

5. CHARACTERS
Santiago: Protagonist and a central character, an
adventurous shepherd
•who have unwavering resolve to accomplish his
personal legend of finding a treasure
Alchemist: Very powerful alchemist who lives at the
Al-Fayoum oasis in Egypt
•He dresses in all black and uses a falcon to hunt for
game
•He was also in possession of the Elixir of Life

6. Melchizedek: The king of Salem, he appears to
Santiago in the town square of Tarifa, and tells Santiago
his Personal Legend and gives him the magical stones
Urim and Thummim
•He appears to possess magical powers and helps
people pursuing their Personal Legends
The Englishman: Santiago meets the Englishman on
the caravan to Al-Fayoum. The Englishman is trying to
become a great alchemist and is travelling to Al-
Fayoum to study with a famous alchemist and to have
the ability to turn any metal into gold
•He is a cynic and adore reading his tomes

7. Fatima: A beautiful girl who lives at the Al-Fayoum oasis.
Santiago falls in love with her
•She insists that he seek out his Personal Legend before they
marry but the Alchemist teaches him that true love never
gets in the way of one's Personal Legend
Crystal Merchant: Gives Santiago a job in Tangiers after he
has been robbed
•The shopkeeper, while generally afraid to take risks, is a
very kind man and understands Santiago's quest -
sometimes more than Santiago himself

8. SUMMARY
While sleeping near a sycamore tree in the sacristy of an abandoned church, Santiago, a shepherd boy,
has a recurring dream about a child who tells him that he will find a hidden treasure if he travels to the
Egyptian pyramids.
An old woman tells Santiago that this dream is prophetic and that he must follow its instructions
Next Santiago meets a mysterious old man who seems able to read his mind. This man introduces
himself as Melchizedek, or the King of Salem
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 interpret omens
Santiago wavers briefly before selling his flock and purchasing a ticket to Tangier, in northern Africa, to
which he travels by boat

9. Shortly after he arrives there, a thief steals all of Santiago's money, so the shepherd boy decides to look
for a way to make enough money to return home
He finds work in the shop of a crystal merchant. After eleven months of working in the shop, Santiago is
unsure of how to proceed
Should he return to Andalusia a rich man and buy more sheep? Or should he cross the vast Sahara in
pursuit of the hidden treasure of his dreams? He joins a caravan traveling to Egypt
Santiago meets an Englishman who wants to learn the secret of alchemy, or turning any metal into gold,
from a famous alchemist who lives at an oasis on the way to the pyramids
The caravan eventually reaches the oasis, and there Santiago meets an Arab girl named Fatima and falls in
love with her instantly
Afterward, Santiago is confronted by a black- garbed, veiled stranger with a sword, who sits atop a white
horse. It is the alchemist

10. The alchemist tells Santiago that he needs to return to the
oasis, and that the rest of the trip is Santiago's to make
alone so that he can claim his Personal Legend
Santiago arrives at the Egyptian pyramids and begins to
dig. He finds nothing buried in the ground. Thieves beat
Santiago and rob him of his money
After he tells them of his dream, though, one of the
thieves recounts his own dream about a buried treasure in
the sacristy of an abandoned church
Returning to Andalusia, Santiago goes back to the church
where he dreamed of the treasure near the pyramids. He
digs where he slept, beneath a sycamore tree, and there it
is: Santiago's treasure

11. PLOT OVERVIEW
Rising Action: Santiago makes a series of
material sacrifices in order to pursue his
Personal Legend to reach the pyramids of
Egypt
Climax: Santiago struggles to turn himself into
the wind while being held by warring
tribesman in the Sahara Desert
Falling Action: Santiago arrives at the
pyramids, but in a twist, he must go back to
Spain as he learns that his treasure was buried
where he started his journey

12. THEMES
Dream
Love
Fate
Selfishness
Unity
Aspiration

13. SYMBOLS
 Santiago’s sheep: symbolize the sort of existence
lived by those who are completely blind to their
Personal Legends
Alchemy: in which a base metal is transformed
into a more valuable metal like gold, functions as
the dominant symbol in The Alchemist
-Represents Santiago’s journey to achieve his
Personal Legend

14.  Urim and Thummim: These stones stand
for the characters' needs to respond to
omens, which are essential motivating
factors
Oasis: The oasis symbolizes life, love, and
domesticity

15.  The pyramids represent the ancient and
inscrutable
Thieves represent everyone who tries to
find a short cut to his or her Personal
Legend; the journey is necessary, according
to The Alchemist.

16. MESSAGE
Each one of us has a dream given to us by God and He
gives us clues times again and again so that we recognize
those clues (‘omens’) and follow these dreams with
great zeal
Embrace the present
Make the decision
Be unrealistic
Always take action