Zanele Nxamagele
Book review
The Alchemist Paulo Coelho
Summary
Santiago, a shepherd from Andalusia, keeps having the same recurring dream about a child who tells him to go find the hidden treasure which is situated at the base of the Pyramids in Egypt. Santiago goes and enquires to an old woman, who is actually a Gypsy, about this dream, and she tells him to go to Egypt, but in return would like a tenth of his treasure. Santiago feels dubious about this information since he quite enjoys the life of being a shepherd. Santiago then meets an old man who seems to have the ability to read Santiago’s mind, named Melchizedek, who claims to be the King of Salem, and he tells Santiago the same thing told to him by the Gypsy. He tells Santiago
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He is constantly
Fatima – is the only female in the book who is looked at in more detail. She is the beautiful Arab girl Santiago instantly falls in love with at the oasis, and she is portrayed to be patient and caring, by her being compliant to wait for Santiago while he pursues his Personal Legend, and by in fact pushing him towards it in the first place, regardless of the fact that it will in fact separate them – “I want my husband to wander as free as the wind that shapes the dunes.” She is a humble, optimistic and self-less person, and is madly in love with Santiago – “Ever since I was a child, I have dreamed that the desert would bring me a wonderful present. Now, my present has arrived, and it's you”
Language/diction
The language Coelho uses in The Alchemist is quite straight-forward and understandable. It’s not like old English with connotations or denotations which were hard to understand. Although Santiago is quite educated, his language is not of a high standard. I think Coelho gave this book a more colloquial form of language to give the book a more realistic and legitimate feel. This makes it easier for the reader to engage with the novel.
Imagery