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Dreams, symbols, signs, and adventure follow the reader like echoes of ancient wise voices in "The Alchemist", a novel that combines an atmosphere of Medieval mysticism with the song of the desert. Withthis symbolic masterpiece Coelho states that we should not avoid our destinies, and urges people to followtheir dreams, because to find our "Personal Myth" and our mission on Earth is the way to find "God",meaning happiness, fulfillment, and the ultimate purpose of creation. The novel tells the tale of Santiago,a boy who has a dream and the courage to follow it. After listening to "the signs" the boy ventures in hispersonal, Ulysses-like journey of exploration and self-discovery, symbolically searching for a hidden treasure

located near the pyramids in Egypt. When he decides to go, his father's only advice is "Travel the worlduntil you see that our castle is the greatest, and our women the most beautiful". In his journey, Santiago seesthe greatness of the world, and meets all kinds of exciting people like kings and alchemists. However, by theend of the novel, he discovers that "treasure lies where your heart belongs", and that the treasure was the journey itself, the discoveries he made, and the wisdom he acquired. "The Alchemist", is an excitingnovel that bursts with optimism; it is the kind of novel that tells you that everything is possible as long as youreally want it to happen. That may sound like an oversimplified version of new-age philosophy and mysticism,but as Coelho states "simple things are the most valuable and only wise people appreciate them". As thealchemist himself says, when he appears to Santiago in the form of an old king "when you really wantsomething to happen, the whole universe conspires so that your wish comes true". This is the core of thenovel's philosophy and a motif that echoes behind Coelho's writing all through "The Alchemist". And isn't ittrue that the whole of humankind desperately wants to believe the old king when he says that the greatest liein the world is that at some point we lose the ability to control our lives, and become the pawns of fate.Perhaps this is the secret of Coelho's success: that he tells people what they want to hear, or rather that he

tells them that what they wish for but never thought possible could even be probable.

Coelho also suggests that those who do not have the courage to follow their " Personal Myth", are doomed toa life of emptiness, misery, and unfulfillment. Fear of failure seems to be the greatest obstacle to happiness. As the old crystal-seller tragically confesses: " I am afraid that great disappointment awaits me, and so Iprefer to dream". This is where Coelho really captures the drama of man, who sacrifices fulfillment toconformity, who knows he can achieve greatness but denies to do so, and ends up living a life of void. Itis interesting to see that Coelho presents the person who denies to follow his dream as the person whodenies to see God, and that "every happy person carries God within him". However, only few people chooseto follow the road that has been made for them, and find God while searching for their destiny, and their mission on earth. Consequently, is Coelho suggesting that the alchemists found God while searching for the elixir of life and the philosopher's stone? What is certain is that the symbolism of the text is a parallel tothe symbolism and the symbolic language of alchemism, and similarly the symbolism of dreams is presentedas " God's language". It is also symbolic that Santiago finds his soul-mate, and the secrets of wisdom in

the wilderness of the desert. The "wilderness" is a symbol that has been used by many great writers e.g.. Austen in "Mansfield Park", and Shakespeare in "King Lear". In the desert, Santiago meets h is "twin-soul"and discovers that love is the core of existence and creation. As Coelho explains, when we love, we alwaystry to improve ourselves, and that's when everything is possible. The subject of love inspires a beautifullyricism in Coelho's writing: " I love you because the whole universe conspired for me to come close toyou." "The Alchemist" is a novel that may appeal to everybody, because we can all identify withSantiago: all of us have dreams, and are dying for somebody to tell us that they may come true. The novelskillfully combines words of wisdom, philosophy, and simplicity of meaning and language, which makes itparticularly readable and accounts for its bestselling status. Plot

The Alchemist follows the journey of an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago. Santiago, believing arecurring dream to be prophetic, decides to travel to a Romani in a nearby town to discover its meaning. The

gypsy tells him that there is a treasure in the Pyramids in Egypt. 

Early into his journey, he meets an old king, Melchizedek, who tells him to sell his sheep to travel to Egyptand introduces the idea of a Personal Legend (which is always capitalized in the book). Your PersonalLegend "is what you have always wanted to accomplish. Everyone, when they are young, knows what theirPersonal Legend is.[3]" He adds that "when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you toachieve it." This is the core theme of the book.

The Pyramids of GizaAlong the way, he encounters love, sex, danger, opportunity, disaster and learns a lot about himself and theways of the world. During his travels, he meets a beautiful Arabian woman named Fatima, who explains tohim that if he follows his heart, he shall find what it is he seeks.

Santiago then encounters a lone alchemist who also teaches him about personal legends. He says thatpeople want to find only the treasure of their personal legends but not the personal legend itself. Santiago

feels unsure about himself as he listens to the alchemist's teachings. The alchemist states, "Those who don'tunderstand their personal legends will fail to comprehend its teachings." It also states that treasure is more

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worthy than gold.

Santiago Santiago is the protagonist of the The Alchemist . Born in a small town in Andalusia, Santiago

attends the seminary as a boy but longs to travel the world. He finally gets the courage to askhis father's permission to become a shepherd so that he can travel the fields of Andalusia. Oneday, he meets a mysterious man in the town of Tarifa, who sends him on a journey to the

other side of Africa.Santiago is a curious boy whose open mind makes him particularly suited to finding hisPersonal Legend. He also values his freedom very highly, which is why he became a shepherdand why he is reticent to get involved in things which threaten his freedom. In the end, he

realizes that playing it safe is often more threatening to his freedom than taking a risk.Melchizedek Melchizedek is the king of Salem, a mysterious far-off land. Melchizedek appears to Santiago inthe town square of Tarifa, where he tells Santiago about the Soul of the World and his PersonalLegend for the first time. Melchizedek always appears to people who are trying to live theirPersonal Legend, even if they don't know it. While he appears at first to be dressed in commonArab dress, at one point he pulls aside his cloak to reveal a gold breastplate encrusted with

precious stones. He also gives Santiago the magical stones Urim and Thummim.The Englishman Santiago meets the Englishman on the caravan to Al-Fayoum. The Englishman is trying tobecome a great alchemist and is traveling to Al-Fayoum to study with a famous alchemist whois rumored to be over 200 years old and to have the ability to turn any metal into gold.Santiago learns much about alchemy from the Englishman, who lends Santiago his books while

they travel across the Sahara.Fatima A beautiful girl who lives at the Al-Fayoum oasis. Santiago falls in love with her at the wellthere. He and Fatima talk everyday for several weeks, and finally he asks her to marry him.Fatima, however, insists that he seek out his Personal Legend before they marry. Thisperplexes Santiago, but the Alchemist teaches him that true love never gets in the way of one's Personal Legend. If it does, then it is not true love.The Alchemist Very powerful alchemist who lives at the Al-Fayoum oasis in Egypt. Initially, Santiago hearsabout him through the Englishman, but eventually Santiago reveals himself to be the

Alchemist's true disciple. The Alchemist dresses in all black and uses a falcon to hunt for game.The Alchemist is also in possession of the Elixir of Life and the Philosopher's Stone.The Shopkeeper Gives Santiago a job in Tangiers after he has been robbed. Santiago takes the job at the

crystal shop and learns much about the shopkeeper's attitude toward life and the importance of dreaming. The shopkeeper, while generally afraid to take risks, is a very kind man andunderstands Santiago's quest - sometimes more than Santiago himself. This is the case whenthe shopkeeper tells Santiago that he will not return to Spain, since it it is not his fate.