The Alchemist
by Paulo Coelho
The Alchemist tells a story that is simple, yet is considered by many to be profound. The protagonist is the restless Santiago, who while training to become a priest feels the strong desire to travel. So he trades in the seminary life for a more peripatetic profession. He buys some sheep and takes up shepherding.
Day in and day out he watches over his flock. And while he loves them, he cannot help but feel that their existence is somehow limited – grass and water, water and grass. They never seem to appreciate the beautiful landscape of Santiago's homeland, the Spanish province of Andalucia. His sheep never seem to know that there might be something else to life. They don't dream.
Even Santiago's parents dream – or at least they once did. But theirs is a life of struggle, which long ago extinguished any thoughts beyond life's basics. Now Santiago dreams and has dreams. His is the heart of an explorer, one who longs to see what is just over the next hill.
After feeling that he's being shown some omens, Santiago consults a gypsy who interprets the signs as indicating that his future is to travel to Egypt. Whereas most would have listened but not heeded such advice, our hero sells his sheep and sets sail to find himself.
The Alchemist is an old-fashioned fable so it is short, sweet and an easy read. And as a fable it offers us a message, which is unabashedly simple. This is the story of someone who listens to their heart and follows their dream.
Coelho's point is that too many of us believe what the village soothsayer tells Santiago is the biggest lie of all time – that we cannot control our destiny. But this isn't a story to suggest that one can blindly do what one wants without consequences. Following one's dream has a price. Equally, not following one's dream has a cost.
While many consider this work to be a spiritual masterpiece, I have to say that I have never considered The Alchemist to be a life-changing read. To be sure, it is inspirational and it contains hefty doses of local colour. It might even get you thinking about your own dreams and what you could do to follow them. But its story is a relatively weak one. And disappointingly, the philosophy offered to its readers is not all that distinguishable from so many others on the self-help shelf.
The Alchemist is available at Amazon.
Alan's Rating:
| Life-changing |
| Can't live without |
| Put the kettle on and settle down |
| Worth a quick flick |
| Leave it on the shelf |
Alan Bridges
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