The Alchemist (1988) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

show spoilers

Summary edit see section history

Characters edit see section history

show spoilers

• Santiago: Santiago is a young shepherd in Andalusia who has always wanted to travel.
• Melchizedek: Melchizedek is the King of Salem who meets the main character of the story after he had decided not to believe in his dreams. Santiago at first mistakes Melchizedek to be a bothersome old man who is trying to cheat the boy but finds signs which tell him that the old man was more than what he appeared to be.
• The Crystal Merchant: Santiago is hired by the Crystal Merchant. The merchant is a kindly man who is fair to Santiago, and even though he is afraid of change he takes Santiago’s advice about the shop. The money begins pouring in and the shopkeeper is very grateful to Santiago. He has a dream to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, but he fears that if he actually completes the journey he will have nothing to look forward to in life. He thanks Santiago for helping him.
• The Englishman: A character Santiago befriends while on his journey. The Englishman is seeking the alchemist so that he can learn the secrets of alchemy.He has been learning alchemy for years. Rather than from the world around him, The Englishman likes to learn from books.
• Fatima: Fatima is a young girl at the oasis, a woman of the desert. She is very beautiful, and as soon as Santiago sees her he loves her, and never wants to leave the oasis. She loves Santiago as well, and convinces him that he needs to go searching for his treasure. She teaches Santiago that there is no reason needed for love, but that "One is loved because one is loved" and that she will wait for his return just as the women of the oasis wait for their men to return.
• The Alchemist: The Alchemist is a mysterious man that Santiago encounters later in the novel. He guides Santiago towards reaching his destiny or personal legend.
• Jesus Christ.: Santiogo's God
• Narcissus: Add a description of this character.

Quotes edit see section history

• “Treasure is uncovered by the force of flowing water, and it is buried by the same currents.”

  Melchizedek

• “When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision.”

  Narrator

• “If you start out by promising what you do not even have yet, you'll lose your desire to work toward getting it.”

  Melchizedek

• “It is the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.”

  Santiago

• “People learn, early in their lives, what is their reason for being. Maybe that's why they give up on it so early, too.”

  Melchizedek

• “That's what alchemists do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.”

  Santiago

• “When you want something the whole universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

  Melchizedek

• “It's not what enters men's mouths that's evil. It's what comes out of their mouths that is.”

  The Alchemist

• “One is loved because one is loved. No reason is needed for loving.”

  Fatima

• “Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.”

  The Alchemist

• “From that day on it was the desert that would be important. She would look to it every day, and would try to guess which star the boy was following in search of his treasure. She would have to send her kisses on the wind, hoping that the wind would touch the boy's face, and would tell him that she was alive. That she was waiting for him, a woman awaiting a courageous man in search of his treasure. From that day on, the desert would represent only one thing to her: the hope for his return.”

  Narrator

• “...world's greatest lie: At a certain point in our lives we lose control of what is happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate.”

• “The boy reached through to the Soul of the World, and saw that it was a part of the Soul of God. And he saw that the Soul of God was his own soul. An that he, a boy, could perform miracles.”

  Narrator

• “You will never be able to escape from your heart. So its better to listen to what it has to say. That way you will never have to fear an unanticipated blow.”

  The Alchemist

• “Intuition is a sudden immersion of the soul into the universal current of life, where the histories of all people are connected, and we are able to know everything, because it's all written there.”

  Narrator

• “People need not fear the unknown if they are capable of achieving what they need and want.”

• “When you possess great treasures within you, and try to tells others of them, seldom are you believed.”

  The Alchemist

• “Whoever you are, or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something, it's because that desire originated in the sold of the universe. It's your mission on earth.”

• Popular Highlights from Kindle Customers

• “It’s this: that at a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what’s happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate. That’s the world’s greatest lie.”

  Highlighted by 2538 Kindle customers

• “Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity.”

  Highlighted by 2535 Kindle customers

• There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”

  Highlighted by 2505 Kindle customers

• It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting,

  Highlighted by 2393 Kindle customers

• Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about his or her own.

  Highlighted by 2311 Kindle customers

• when each day is the same as the next, it’s because people fail to recognize the good things that happen in their lives every day that the sun rises.

  Highlighted by 2281 Kindle customers

• “We are afraid of losing what we have, whether it’s our life or our possessions and property. But this fear evaporates when we understand that our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand.”

  Highlighted by 2060 Kindle customers

• ‘The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon.’”

  Highlighted by 1890 Kindle customers

• “Because I don’t live in either my past or my future. I’m interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you’ll be a happy man. You’ll see that there is life in the desert, that there are stars in the heavens, and that tribesmen fight because they are part of the human race. Life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is the moment we’re living right now.”

  Highlighted by 1864 Kindle customers

• “That’s what alchemists do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.”

  Highlighted by 1676 Kindle customers

Setting & Locations edit see section history

show spoilers

• Andalusia, Spain: Santiago's home country.
• Tangier, Morocco, Africa: Where Santiago works in a crystal shop for over a year
• Cairo, Egypt: This is where his search will lead him.
• Al-Fayoum
• Sahara Desert: Where Santiago learns to listen to his heart and to "become the wind".

First Sentence edit see section history

Table of Contents edit see section history

Glossary edit see section history

• anima mundi or the "soul of the world": --is, according to several systems of thought, an intrinsic connection between all living things on the planet, which relates to our world in much the same way as the soul is connected to the human body. (Wikipedia) The book is largely based on this concept, the "Soul of the World"
• Language of the Universe: Omens, coincidences and dreams are the means by which the universe seeks to communicate. By remaining open to these omens, Santiago is able to learn more about the world and about himself.
• Levanter: The name of the wind that blows off of Africa into Spain. So called because it comes from "the Levant." It is related to the conquest of Spain by the Moors. Santiago thinks that it brings the scent of exotic women and adventure.
• Sacristy: Room where the vestments of the church are kept.
• Alchemy: noun, plural -mies for 2. (From Dictionary.com)1.a form of chemistry and speculative philosophy practiced in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance and concerned principally with discovering methods for transmuting baser metals into gold and with finding a universal solvent and an elixir of life.2.any magical power or process of transmuting a common substance, usually of little value, into a substance of great value.

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

show spoilers

• Unspoken Language: "The language that everyone on earth was capable of understanding in their heart. It was love." (page 92). The are several references to this thoughout the book. Santiago seems particuraly fascinated with it.
• The Soul of the World: "It was the pure language of the world. It required no explanation, just as the universe needs none as it travels through endless time." (page 93). Santiago talks about this theme throughout the book and it fascinated by it. The idea originated with Plato: anima mundi.
• Destiny: One of the themes of the book is around destiny and discovering one's own Personal Legend. And, that few people ever aspire to accomplish their full destiny.Everyone when they are young knows what their Personal Legend is. At that point in their lives everything is clear and everything is possible and they're not afraid to dream. But, as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible for them to realize their Personal Legend.
• Alchemy: Alchemy in The Alchemist is symbolic of taking one thing and transforming it into another, but having respect for what the object originally was.

Series & Lists edit see section history

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Paulo Coelho (Author)

Other Contributors:

1. Michel Collin
2. Örjan Sjögren (Translator)
3. Alan R. Clarke (Translator) - English Language Translator
4. Jeremy Irons (Reader) - Very good reader. Rich sonorous voice.

First Edition edit see section history

Awards edit see section history

• Guinness World Record (Most translated book by a living author)
• Nielsen Gold Book Award (UK) (2004)
• Corine International Award (Germany) (2002: Fiction)
• Flaiano International Award (1996, #1)
• Super Grinzane Cavour Book Award (1996, #1)
• Grand Prix Litteraire of Elle (1995, #1)
• Golden Book Award (1995, #1)
• Golden Book Award (1995, #1)

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: PQ9698.13.O3546
• Dewey: 741.5981

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Like The Little Prince, this is a book that younger children could read (or have read to them) and enjoy the story. At its core, it is a wonderful story about a boy who becomes a shepherd in order to have the means to travel. On his travels, he discovers the world and himself. Also like The Little Prince, this is a book that if read when older, there is so much more meaning to the story that you'll wonder if you read the same book when you were younger. In a nutshell, it is a book for all ages. It would be hard for younger readers to understand.

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Literature & Fiction
• Books › Religion & Spirituality › Spirituality
• Books › Literature & Fiction › World Literature › Middle Eastern
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Literary
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Contemporary

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history

• Paulo Coelho - Wikipedia
• Paulo Coelho: Author's official website

Movie Connections edit see section history

• The Alchemist (IMDb): Unknown release date, starring Laurence Fishburne.

More Books Like This edit see section history

Books That Influenced This Book edit see section history