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The Alchemist : Themes, Motifs, Allusions, Vocabulary

The Alchemist : Themes, Motifs, Allusions, Vocabulary. Alchemy: [al-kuh-mee] -noun, plural -mies for 2.

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The Alchemist : Themes, Motifs, Allusions, Vocabulary

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  1. The Alchemist:Themes, Motifs, Allusions, Vocabulary Alchemy: [al-kuh-mee] -noun, plural -mies for 2. 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.

  2. Biography • Paulo Coelho has led an extremely interesting life. Rebelliousness defined his youth. He was a hippie. He wrote popular lyrics for some of Brazil's most famous pop music stars, including Elis Regina and Raul Seixas. Shortly after, he worked as a journalist. • In 1986 Paulo Coelho walked the Road to Santiago, a medieval pilgrim's route between France and Spain. He later described this experience in ‘The Pilgrimage’, published in 1987. The following year, his second book ‘The Alchemist’ established his worldwide fame.

  3. Biography Paulo Coelho on the Road to Santiago

  4. Themes • Fate versus Will Fate is constantly intertwined with will, and a key theme of the book focuses on how much in life is under one's control, and how much is controlled by fate.

  5. Themes • Love Love is described as a part of the Soul of the World. Love occurs in life and Nature. As everything supports each other, they love each other.

  6. Themes • Controlled Luck The theme of controlled luck is prominent in this book: if one really wants to fulfill his or her Personal Legend, the whole universe will conspire to help make it happen. Coelho refers to this as the idea of "beginner's luck", or the concept of favorability. Santiago is blessed with beginner's luck, when he decides to go to Africa. This whets his appetite to fulfill one's Personal Legend.

  7. Themes • Spiritual Enlightenment In The Alchemist, a kind of spiritual enlightenment is accomplished by fulfilling one's Personal Legend, and adding to the Soul of the World, which is the "light" of most religions. The spiritual influence of this book is omniscient. Omniscient: [om-nish-uhnt] adjective 1. having complete or unlimited knowledge, awareness, or understanding; perceiving all things. –noun 2. an omniscient being. 3. the Omniscient, God.

  8. Motifs • Motif: [moh-teef] -noun 1. a recurring subject, theme, idea, etc., esp. in a literary, artistic, or musical work. 2. a distinctive and recurring form, shape, figure, etc., in a design, as in a painting or on wallpaper. 3. a dominant idea or feature: the profit motif of free enterprise.

  9. Motifs • Omens Omen: [oh-muhn] -noun 1. anything perceived or happening that is believed to portend a good or evil event or circumstance in the future; portent. 2. a prognostic. 3. prophetic significance; presage: a bird of ill omen. –verb (used with object) 4. to be an omen of; portend. 5. to divine, as if from omens. Being able to observe and read omens is a key motif throughout the book. Omens play a key role in the unraveling of Santiago's fate.

  10. Motifs • Personal Legend The Personal Legend is a being's reason to live. Everything in the world has a Personal Legend, and by reaching one's Personal Legend, one adds to the Soul of the World, the purity of the world. The Personal Legend of a person surfaces at childhood, and one can never find true happiness without fulfilling it. The question of whether one chooses to pursue his or her dream is key.

  11. Allusions • Allusion: [uh-loo-zhuhn] -noun 1. a passing or casual reference; an incidental mention of something, either directly or by implication: an allusion to Shakespeare. 2. the act of alluding. 3. Obsolete. a metaphor; parable.

  12. Allusions • Melchizedek is a figure mentioned by various sects of both Christian and Judaic traditions. He is commemorated as one of the Holy Forefathers in the Calendar of Saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church on July 30. • Melchizedek's name can be translated (from Hebrew) as “Zedek is my king” or “My king is righteous”. In Genesis, Melchizedek is also referred to as king of Salem (generally believed to be ancient Jerusalem), and priest of El Elyon. Traditionally El-Elyon is translated as most high God, and interpreted as a reference to Yahweh (by tradition), or God (in other words, Zedek is king of Salem and priest of God). Many scholars believe that the name refers to Zedek - regarding El Elyon as referring to the most high god, and using Melchizedek's name as the indicator of who the deity was (in other words, Zekek the most high god). • If the majority of scholars are right in taking the name as a reference to Zedek as the most high god (rather than “priest of God”), then it would imply that Zedek was the main deity worshipped at Salem at that time. Jerusalem is plausibly referred to as city of Zedek (ir ha-zedek) in the Book of Isaiah, as well as home of Zedek (neweh zedek) in the Book of Jeremiah, and as gates of Zedek (sha'are zedek) in the Book of Psalms, though it is also true that in each of these cases zedek is traditionally translated as righteous (as in city of righteousness).

  13. Allusions Statue of Melchizedek. Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome.

  14. Allusions Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek by Dieric Bouts the Elder, 1464-1467

  15. Allusions • Tithe: [tahyth] noun, verb, tithed, tith·ing. -noun 1. Sometimes, tithes. the tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to God or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obligation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like. 2. any tax, levy, or the like, esp. of one-tenth. 3. a tenth part or any indefinitely small part of anything. -verb (used with object) 4. to give or pay a tithe or tenth of (produce, money, etc.). 5. to give or pay tithes on (crops, income, etc.). 6. to exact a tithe from (a person, community, parish, etc.). 7. to levy a tithe on (crops, income, etc.). -verb (used without object) 8. to give or pay a tithe. • In The Alchemist, Santiago must twice pay one-tenth of his possessions. In the Biblical reference, Abraham pays Melchizedek one-tenth of his battle winnings in exchange for being blessed in the name of God.

  16. Allusions • The Melchizedek priesthood is a prominent feature of "Mormonism" - that is, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. • Christians believe that Jesus is the Messiah spoken of as "a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek" (Ps. 110:4), and so Jesus plays the role of High Priest once and for all. Jesus is considered a priest in the order of Melchizedek because, like Melchizedek, Jesus was not a Levite, and thus would not qualify for the Levitical priesthood (Heb. 7:13-17). • The Book of Mormon of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints describes the work of Melchizedek in Salem in Alma 13:17-18. According to Alma, Melchizedek was King over the wicked people of Salem, but because of his righteousness, his people repented of their wickedness and became a peaceful city. • A collection of early Gnostic scripts found in 1945, known as the Nag Hammadi Library, contains a tractate pertaining to Melchizedek. Here it is revealed that Melchizedek is Jesus Christ[8]. Melchizedek, as Jesus Christ, lives, preaches, dies and is resurrected.

  17. Allusions • Isaiah 1:21–26 21 How is the faithful city become a harlot! She that was full of justice, righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers. 22 Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water. 23 Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves; every one loveth bribes, and followeth after rewards; they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them. 24 Therefore saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: Ah, I will ease Me of Mine adversaries, and avenge Me of Mine enemies; 25 And I will turn My hand upon thee, and purge away thy dross as with lye, and will take away all thine alloy; 26 And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning; afterward thou shalt be called The city of righteousness, the faithful city.

  18. Allusions • Dross: [draws, dros] -noun 1. waste matter; refuse. 2. Metallurgy. a waste product taken off molten metal during smelting, essentially metallic in character. 3. British. coal of little value.

  19. Allusions • Jeremiah 31:23 And Judah and all the cities thereof shall dwell therein together: the husbandmen, and they that go forth with flocks. • Psalm 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will enter into them, I will give thanks unto the LORD. • Genesis 14:18-20 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine; and he was priest of God the Most High. 19 And he blessed him, and said: 'Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Maker of heaven and earth; 20 and blessed be God the Most High, who hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand.' And he gave him a tenth of all.

  20. Allusions • Santiago The Way of St. James or St. James' Way, often known by its Spanish name, el Camino de Santiago, is the pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where legend has it that the remains of the apostle, Saint James the Great, are buried. There is not a single route; the Way can take one of any number of pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela. • Paulo Coelho made the journey and wrote about it. The Pilgrimage (Diário de Um Mago, in Portuguese) is a 1987 novel by Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho. It is a recollection of Paulo's experiences as he made his way across Northern Spain on the Pilgrimage of Santiago de Compostela in 1986.

  21. Allusions • The Philosopher’s Stone The philosopher's stone (Latin: lapis philosophorum; Greek: chrysopoeia) is a legendary substance, supposedly capable of turning inexpensive metals into gold; it was also sometimes believed to be a means of making people younger. For a long time it was the "holy grail" of Western alchemy. In the view of spiritual alchemy, making the philosopher's stone would bring enlightenment upon the maker and conclude the Great Work. • The first book in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series is entitled, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. In the United States, the title was changed to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

  22. Images The VR Romanesque Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela Paulo Coelho

  23. Images The Alchemist in Search of the Philosophers Stone, by Joseph Wright. 1771.

  24. Works Cited • http://paulocoelhofanclub.com/eng/pc_bio.htm • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alchemist_(book) • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melchizedek • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tithe • http://dictionary.reference.com/ • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pilgrimage • http://www.humnet.ucla.edu/santiago/iagohome.html • http://www.paulocoelho.com/engl/ • http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/wright/ • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosopher's_stone

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