Coelho, Paulo. The
Alchemist. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1993. Print.
Paulo
Colho’s novel The Alchemist chronicles the spiritual journey of a young shepherd
named Santiago. Initially, Santiago believes that he has achieved his life goal
of traveling by becoming a shepherd. Then Santiago has a dream that a child
transports him to the Egyptian pyramids to find a treasure and Santiago
conveniently wakes up when the treasure is about to be found. Santiago decides
to visit a Gypsy to interpret his dream and the Gypsy advises him to seek out
the treasure in Egypt. Before Santiago embarks on what he will later know as
his Personal Legend to the pyramids, he meets King Melchizedek who teaches him
many lessons which will be useful on his journey. The three core lessons that
King Melchizedek teaches Santiago are the importance of following one’s
Personal Legend through the omens God gives, the importance of faith and
positivity, and the danger of fear. Santiago sets out for Egypt and meets a
merchant, Englishman, The Alchemist, and most importantly the love of his life
Fatima. All of the characters Santiago meets on his journey through Africa are
the manifestation of King Melchizedek’s lessons. When Santiago reaches the
pyramids and searches for his treasure, he realizes that the treasure he had
been searching for was in the journey, not the destination.
The
major theme in The Alchemist is the
importance of following a Personal Legend. Paolo Coelho defines what a Personal
Legend is through the character of King Melchizedek who says, “It’s what you
have always wanted to accomplish. Everyone, when they are young, knows what
their Personal Legend is” (Coelho 21). In The
Alchemist almost every character experiences a roadblock standing in the
way of following their Personal Legend. Santiago, the main character thinks he
knows what his Personal Legend is and he is mistaken. Santiago faces roadblocks
like the theft of his money in the marketplace and negativity from the Crystal
Merchant and himself in search of his Personal Legend. The Englishman’s
reluctance to try Alchemy, by turning lead into metal fail gets in the way of
following his Personal Legend because he becomes stagnant in his journey for a
period of time. Lastly, the Crystal Merchant’s insistence on dreaming about his Personal Legend instead of
living it would have held him back if Santiago had not become part of his
business (we don’t know if the Crystal Merchant eventually made his dreams
reality or not). The comprehensive theme of following Personal is comprised of
not only following your dreams, but realizing that there are obstacles one must
endure; some people may be mistaken in the understanding of their Personal
Legend, some will let relationships, good or bad lead them off course, some
will be crippled by fear, and others will simply run out of time to pursue
their Personal Legends. When someone has realized what their Personal Legend
is, it changes their life because every subsequent action is consciously taken
in an effort to achieve their final goal, and any action that is not could be
very detrimental. Lastly, when someone figures out what their Personal Legend
is, as Santiago did, they mature in the process, learning many important
lessons that they may not have learned any other way.
Kennedy,
John F,. Profiles In Courage. New
York: Harper & Brothers, 1956. Book.
Profiles In Courage written by then junior senator John. F. Kennedy
from Massachusetts chronicles the political careers of eight American senators
who stood courageous in the face of adversity throughout different eras in
American History. Kennedy spotlights
John Quincy Adams, Daniel Webster, Thomas Hart Benton, Sam Houston, Edmund G.
Ross, Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar, George Norris, and Robert A. Taft. The
central issue that all of the aforementioned senators battled, among others,
was party loyalty versus national loyalty versus personal beliefs. At one time,
all of the senators were berated by their constituents for not advancing their
beliefs in congress, or shunned by their political party for not adhering to
the party’s platform, or lastly they were ostracized for their personal
beliefs. All of the senators endured a huge amount of political calamity as
most politicians do, but these eight senators stand out in history because they
were boldly courageous and did not give up. The senators believed they were
meant to serve their country and stood steadfast in their personal calling to
serve.
Senator
John Quincy Adams stands out as the most audacious senator profiled in
Kennedy’s book. John and Abigail Adams, John Quincy Adams’s parents stated that
their son was marked for future leadership, “in the cabinet.. a guardian of his
country’s laws and liberties” (Kennedy 31). This insinuates that John Quincy
Adams was draw to politics from birth, serving the budding United States of America
with his bold leadership was Adams’ Personal Legend. Fortunately, Adams
realized what his Personal Legend was from childhood and did whatever it took
to stay on the path that would help his dream of political future come into
fruition. Adams had “a tenacity of purpose, a lofty and inflexible courage, an
unbending will which never qualified or flinched before human antagonist”
(Kennedy 31). On account of Adams’
determination, he began his political career in the Massachusetts legislature,
then was elected to the Senate where he would face an obstacle that would
almost throw him off the course of following his Personal Legend, similar to
Santiago in The Alchemist, who
becomes disillusioned by the thief in the marketplace and the Crystal Merchants
initial negative response to his journey to Egypt. John Quincy Adams received
tremendous backlash for voting against his party for the Louisiana Purchase and
voting to impose taxes on Massachusetts citizens, among many other heretical
actions. Adams relationship with his party and constituents soon became
irreparable and Adams was alienated in congress. The alienation resulted in
several bouts of depression and extreme self-deprecation, like Santiago, Adams
has become disillusioned by others opinions and led astray from his Personal
Legend and into a pity party. Eventually
Santiago rises from the cloud of negativity that haunted him by looking at the
Urim and Thummin that King Melchizedek gave him. Adams rise from negativity is spurred by a
similar action, he looks at one of his father’s old letters penned to him which
states “my advice to you is steadily to pursue the course you are in” (Kennedy
45). By receiving this motivation from his late father, Adams courageously
pursues his political career in spite of his alienation and soon becomes
President, reaching the pinnacle of his career. If Adams had not experienced
the obstacle of alienation, it is unclear if he would have pushed further in
his career to become President. Adams’ career goes to show that obstacles in
following one’s Personal Legend seem like an inconvenience, a bout of bad luck,
but truly they are necessary in order for lessons to be learned that will be
beneficial in the future.
Eat Pray Love. Dir. Ryan Murphy.
Perf. Julia Roberts, Javier Bardem and Richard
Jenkins.
Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film.
“Eat Pray Love” chronicles the
journey of an unfulfilled woman, Liz Gilbert who divorces her husband and
travels to Italy, India, and Bali to discover her true self. Liz Gilbert
thought she was living the dream life she had always dreamt of, but she suddenly
experiences a “mid-life crisis” and sets off on an enlightened journey where
she learns about nourishment, prayer, inner peace, and true love. In Italy, Liz
learns to simply enjoy the present moment and appreciate the art of food. In
India, Liz is exposed to meditation, which she initially struggles with until
she meets a Texan who helps her to relax and be still. Liz’s last stop on her
journey is Bali, where she reconnects with a medicine man she met years earlier,
meets the love of her life, and learns to finally accept herself and be
comfortable in her own skin.
“Eat
Pray Love” is essentially the modern, female version of The Alchemist, Liz Garret initially believes that she is following her
Personal Legend, but she is mistaken, just like Santiago was in the beginning
of The Alchemist. Liz sets out on a
journey initially to “find herself”, just as Santiago set out on a journey to
find his treasure. What Liz and Santiago are oblivious to in the beginning of
their journey is that they already have what they are searching for, which is a
lesson that both characters can only learn through their journeys. The film begins with Liz meeting a medicine
man who serves as the catalyst to Liz following her Personal Legend when
he instructs her to “follow her heart,”
which is exactly what she did when she returns home and decides to embark on a
life changing journey. Santiago’s quest
to follow his Personal Legend was also spurred by a spiritual character, King
Melchizedek. Liz and Santiago begin their journeys the same way and meet
characters that teach them key lessons on their journeys. For example Liz and
Santiago have symbiotic relationships, Liz with the Texan, and Santiago with
the Crystal Merchant. Liz is introduced to the Texan in India and he helps her
to “move on” from her previous relationships that are taking up space in heart
so she can open up and love again. Liz then helps the Texan to move forward and
forgive himself for his alcoholic past, both characters learn from each other
and grow together, similar to the relationship Santiago has with Crystal
Merchant. Santiago teaches the Crystal Merchant that “every blessing ignored is
a curse” and the Crystal Merchant teaches Santiago that there is a language
without words (Coelho 58). Both Liz and
Santiago come to similar conclusions at the end, however, they both have
different concepts of what a Personal Legend is. At the end of the film, Liz says “If you're
brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting….and if you are
truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a
clue and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher and if you
are prepared, most of all, to face and forgive some very difficult realities
about yourself, then the truth will not be withheld from you” (Eat Pray Love). To Liz, her
Personal Legend was more about understanding who she was in the past so she could
accept herself in the present versus Santiago’s Personal Legend which was about
traveling and eventually falling in love.
Hirst, Damien. The Acquired Inability To Escape. 1991. Tate Modern.
Web. 12 June 2012.
The Acquired Inability To Escape,
manufactured by Damien Hirst in 1991 is a 2134 x 3048 x 2134 millimeter
container made of Glass, steel, and
silicone which contains an office desk, chair, ashtray, and cigarettes inside. The Acquired Inability To Escape is part
of a contemporary art project called “Internal Affairs,” also by Damien Hirst
which was his first solo exhibition at a public gallery.
Damien
Hirst’s The Acquired Inability To Escape
illustrates the danger of fear that prevents people from following their
Personal Legends, similar to the crystal merchant in The Alchemist. The sculptural installation displays a desk and
chair, indicative of a working environment that is sealed shut by glass and
steel. Hirst’s choice to enclose the desk with a steel frame shows how strong
the “Inability To Escape” from an unfulfilling work environment is. Steel is
one of the densest metals on Earth and in this sculpture it serves as a
physical barrier as well as a psychological barrier to following one’s Personal
Legend. The crystal merchant in The Alchemist was stuck in his disintegrating
business and became content with only the dream of going to Mecca instead of
actually traveling there for himself because he was afraid he would have
nothing else to live for if he achieved his dream. The crystal merchant has
acquired the “Inability To Escape” because he is held hostage by his own fear. The
title of the sculpture is open to the interpretation that the fear of escaping
from a secure occupation is an acquired belief brought on by forces like
society, family, and sometimes even oneself. King Melchizedek from The Alchemist supports this belief when
he says “ ...as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it
will be impossible for them to realize their Personal Legend”, therefore people
become negatively influenced by beliefs and opinions from various outlets in their lives and are
susceptible to complacency overtime (Coelho 21).
MGMT. "Time To Pretend." Oracular Spectacular. Red Ink Records, 2007. CD.
“I'm feelin' rough I'm feelin' raw I'm in
the prime of my life / Let's make some music make some money find some models for wives /
I'll move to Paris, shoot some heroin and fuck
with the stars You man the island and the cocaine and the elegant cars /
This is our decision to live fast and die young.
/ We've got the vision, now let's have
some fun. / Yeah it's overwhelming, but
what else can we do? / Get jobs in
offices and wake up for the morning commute? / Forget about our mothers and our friends / We were fated to pretend. / I'll miss the playgrounds and the animals and digging
up worms / I'll miss the comfort of my
mother and the weight of the world / I'll
miss my sister, miss my father, miss my dog and my home / Yeah I'll miss the boredom and the freedom and the
time spent alone / But there is really
nothing, nothing we can do / Love must be
forgotten. life can always start up anew / The
models will have children, we'll get a divorce, / We'll find some more models, everything must run its
course / We'll choke on our vomit and
that will be the end /
We were fated to pretend”
We were fated to pretend”
MGMT’s
“Time To Pretend” is about a young adult who is in what he thinks is the prime
of his life and is misled by society into following one path and finally
realizes he chose the wrong one.
“Time
To Pretend” tells the tale of a young man who has the world at his feet yet and
decides to rebel, living the life of a wild rock star, consciously not
following his true dreams. The young man
aspires to ‘live fast and die young’ engaging in many risky activities,
relishing in his carefree lifestyle. Considering the year “Time To Pretend” was
recorded in, the young man’s decision to enter a life of rock and roll is
stereotypical and common. Increasing amounts of young adults are sold the false
idea that being in the entertainment industry is the best way to have a
fulfilling life. Unlike Santiago, who is breaking free from the conventional
career of becoming a Priest, the young man in “Time To Pretend” is adhering to
the stereotypes set forth in his
generation. However, Santiago and the young man featured in the song chose
their respective lifestyles because they truly believe that it will bring them
happiness and success. The
young man described in the song is chasing after a lifestyle that will be
ultimately unfulfilling to him. Eventually, the young man becomes stagnant in
his life and has completely lost sight of his dreams. Towards the middle of the
song the young man seems to be backed into a corner by his lifestyle,”yeah it’s
overwhelming, but what else can we do? Get jobs in offices and wake up for the
morning commute.” The young man is overwhelmed with the fact that he seems to
be somewhat stuck in his life. A lesson Santiago learns during his journey is
that if you do not learn constantly, you become stagnant, impeding all progress
toward discovering your Personal Legend. The young man described in the song is
experiencing what Santiago was warned about. The young man has experienced no
personal growth, making it difficult for him to even know what his true
Personal Legend is, similar to the Crystal Merchant whose crystal shop and
dream of traveling to Mecca were collecting dust.
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