The Alchemist Literary Analysis and Plot

 The Alchemist was a great book by Paulo Coelho, and I am so glad that my english teacher Ms.Trinkner recommended the book to me. It has been an absolute pleasure to read about a boy on his journey to find his true meaning for life.

One large thing talked about in the book is this concept of Omens. I’m not sure how much I believe in it for my life, however within the novel, Coelho writes about how there are all of these signs round us which are indicators of what choices we should take in life, who we should become and so forth.

I strongly believe against a greater being, but I have had times in my life where crazy things have happened that my brain can’t seem to explain. The idea of omens, though, hasn’t struck me too largely due to the fact I assume have experienced plenty of positives in my existence that ended up not being accurate.

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Things that I thought were signs and ended up being nothing at all. Either way, it’s something I am going to be looking out for more in my life.

 The alchemist literary analysis shows that the main idea of the book is someone finding their purpose in life. I feel that everyone has their own reason for being alive, weather thats just to work, raise a family, and enjoy life. Or if its to try and change the world such as fixing global warming.

Everyone has some purpose in life. The book has helped me think about my view on the matter. An interesting thought to me was that objects can have a purpose in life. I had never considered this before reading the book. The book talks about what it means to find your meaning or purpose, saying that it is a difficult thing for any person to take on. You have to go out of your comfort zone in order to do it, taking risks, and trusting in something bigger than you. This is another idea that I did not consider before reading.

Everybody wants to have a good idea of their purpose in this world and they want to be happy. Maybe when you are getting signs in life weather it be from something in the world or your heart, when you ignore it that could cause you to lost touch with what your life is meant to be. This could be the cause of sadness for many in the world. The novel sparked this idea for me because it talk about how the heart is key to finding our purpose, hurting when we do the wrong thing or lost track. Life will test us in many ways and you must stay on track or risk losing your touch with your journey in life over time.

I found that this book could get very deep if you really got into it and the book could have different meaning for others, but these were some of the thoughts the book put in my head. I would recommend anyone read this book, even if you take nothing from it. It is a good read no matter who you are. 

Works cited

1. Coelho, P. (1993). The Alchemist. HarperOne.
2. Bremmer, J. N. (2003). Paulo Coelho and the alchemist of literature. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 46(3), 226-235.
3. Haddad, S. R. (2009). The pilgrimage and the alchemist: The novels of Paulo Coelho. Brazilian Review, (86), 3-23.
4. Ferreira, A. (2017). Myth and philosophy in Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist. The Journal of Language and Literature, 8(2), 55-59.
5. Coelho, P. (2012). Warrior of the Light: A Manual. HarperOne.
6. Leal, L. S. (2008). The writer as alchemist: Transforming the quotidian in Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist. Neophilologus, 92(3), 485-501.
7. D'Adamo, F. (2013). The alchemical quest in Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist. Journal of Comparative Literature and Aesthetics, 36(3-4), 175-182.
8. Singh, N., & Puri, A. (2020). A study of Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist: An analysis of alchemy, alchemist, and their relationship. American International Journal of Research in Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 33(1), 93-100.
9. Cunha, M. S., & Alves, I. (2019). Archetypal elements in Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist: A study of Santiago's transformation. Journal of the Faculty of Arts, 28(2), 165-179.
10. Sánchez-Pardo, E. (2018). The alchemical symbolism in The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. The Langston Hughes Review, 22(2), 83-96.