Book report by Natalie Portnoy

The Notion of the “Personal Legend”

grobayo25 — 2024-10-23 18:27:48 UTC

The idea of a Personal Legend symbolizes desires within a person and their fate and dreams to be sought after. No matter how big or small one's destiny is, every person has a meaning and a way of contributing to the world and their own life as a whole. The idea of Santiago following his personal legend guides him through the whole story. His deep desires are to travel and learn about the complexities of the world, and specifically his quest to find treasure at the Egyptian pyramids. It is more about action and learning by doing than just having a dream. Santiago spends the whole story trying to find the treasure, which leads him to experience immeasurable life-or-death situations. Many times in the book, Santiago faces moments where he could easily abandon the trip as a whole, especially after meeting Fatima or even after he loses his money. As people, our callings drive us to pursue our dreams, truly embrace risks and the unknown, and trust ourselves. Achieving one's personal legend takes sacrifice and dealing with risks and challenges along the way. The world is truly a person's oyster, and it is up to what they want to do with their life—to change the world for the better.

The Purpose of The Alchemist

grobayo25 — 2024-10-23 18:28:33 UTC

He guides Santiago throughout the story and pushes him to reach his potential. The Alchemist is a mentor for him; he teaches him about deeper spirituality and pushes him to trust his inner knowledge. He also pushes him to follow his heart and understand and speak the universal language of the soul of the world. The alchemist is careful to not overstep and purely be there to assist but not intervene. He firmly believes that Santiago is capable of achieving so much and strengthens his faith, especially when Santiago is experiencing difficulties in his journey. He not only keeps the story moving, but he also leads Santiago across the desert to the pyramids. The alchemist helps turn him into an enlightened man who finally can accept and realize that the true treasure is not the material wealth/goods but the journey and wisdom for his travels.

Getting Robbed and Losing Everything, Parts One-Three

nportnoy25 — 2024-10-23 18:33:06 UTC

Getting robbed and losing everything is terrible, awful, and life-changing - or not?? Santiago genuinely had little to no emotional strife after losing everything, MULTIPLE TIMES. These plot lines were so underdeveloped and made the reader feel nothing. I understood the first robbery and how it affected the storyline, but the second two were pointless. These could have been moments of emotional struggles and character development- Santiago could have contemplated his decision to pursue the journey or maybe recognized a character flaw- but they were instead repetitive. In my opinion, if a moment serves no longterm purpose or doesn't enact character struggle then it should be excluded.

The Purpose of the Alchemist

nportnoy25 — 2024-10-23 18:39:23 UTC

Why did the character the book was named after have absolutely nothing interesting about him? It makes NO sense! I feel as though if he never existed, Santiago would have reached a similar conclusion and still pursued his personal legend. The Alchemist is so one-dimensional he has no flaws, interesting background, or nuanced insight. I think it would have been more interesting to see Santiago traveling the desert alone instead of just listening to and obeying the alchemist. He would learn to tap even deeper into the signals of the omens and develop more. I felt like the Alchemist told Santiago everything he already knew: to listen to his heart, and the desert, and continue on his journey. The king and the Alchemist were practically one and the same so why have two separate characters? Overall, I believe the alchemist does not deserve the novel to be named after him because he was pointless.

grobayo25 — 2024-10-23 22:34:30 UTC