analysis of the conflict of the main character in the novel the alchemist by paulo coelho

14 Pages·2015·0.2 MB·English

ANALYSIS OF THE CONFLICT OF THE MAIN CHARACTER
IN THE NOVEL THE ALCHEMIST BY PAULO COELHO
Boma Yuliadi Yanuar1, Elfiondri2, Femmy Dahlan2
1Student of English Department, Faculty of Humanities, Bung Hatta University
Email: [email protected]
2Lecturer of English Department, Faculty of Humanities, Bung Hatta University

Abstract
This study is aimed to identify the character traits and find the relation to the setting of the
novel. Besides that, the writer also describes how the main character‟s conflict depicted in the
novel. In explaining the aim of the study, the writer applies the structuralism theory by Edgar
V. Roberts which emphasizes to find the relation and connection among the elements of
literature. From the analysis, the writer finds that the main character‟s traits are related to the
setting and the conflicts that run in the plot of the novel. The main character faces two
conflicts; they are external conflicts and internal conflicts. The external conflicts occur
between the main character and the other characters in the novel. Meanwhile, the internal
conflicts occur within the main character itself.
Keywords: character traits, setting, conflicts of the characters
Introduction After reading the whole of the novel,
Human being faces many problems in the writer chooses to analyze this novel
their life. The problem can be in form of because the writer finds that the main
love, problem in the work place, inside or character of the novel is encountered several
between families, or problem within the conflicts that change his life from a common
character itself or with other characters. shepherd into an alchemist that can turn
Some people called those problems as himself to a wind. The writer believes that
conflicts. Conflicts also can be found in a the conflicts that appear in the main character
literary work. And just like an imitation and journey is become an interesting point to
representation of human being, characters in discuss.
literary work may suffer in a conflict that can
Methods of the research
affect their life.
In collecting the data for this
The conflicts can appear in several
research, the writer applies library research
forms; such the conflict with other people,
method by reading several related book to
conflict with the environment, and conflict
support his analysis. The primary data is the
that appear in one character only and so on.
novel itself, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Further, Roberts states that there are two
The writer reads the novel with fully
kinds of conflicts; they are external conflicts
comprehension to understand the problem in
and internal conflicts.
the novel and then the writer analyzes it by his commitment as a shepherd. He likes
using the structuralism theory. being a shepherd because he likes to travel
and meet new people in a new place. When
The secondary data are obtained by
his father sent him to the church to become a
reading and understanding several books,
priest, his heart refuses the condition. As it is
article, journal, or essay which supporting the
described, “But ever since he had been a
research and also data browsed from the
child, he had wanted to know the world, and
internet to find other sources. In analyzing
this was much more important to him than
the data, the writer starts from the analysis of
knowing God and learning about man‟s sins
the intrinsic elements of the novel that
(8)”.
enables the writer in finding out and
The curious trait of Santiago is
analyzing the wanted data. Then, after
obviously described when he expressed his
collecting the data from the intrinsic aspect
desire to visit other place in other town. The
that is the character and relating it to the
dialogues below show his curious
other elements like setting, plot, theme and
personality.
point of view, the writer can get the
“Well, I‟d like to see their
information clearly about the relationship
land, and see how they live,”
between the main character‟s traits, the
said his son. […] “But I‟d like
setting and plot on the novel.
to see the castle in the towns
where they live,” the boy
Result and Discussion
explained. (9)
Characters of the Novel
From the dialogues above, it can be
The character that will be discussed
seen Santiago‟s curiosity and desire about the
in this chapter are those who having conflict
condition of the people from other place. He
with Santiago as the main character. The
insists to become a wanderer and sees the
traits of the character will be discussed based
lives in another town. The following
on their speech, action and comment from
dialogues show how Santiago keeps insisting
other character.
to become a traveler. The dialogues above
Santiago
also imply that he repeats his statement to
Curious
visit the other land as he said before. In the
Curious is the first dominant trait of
other hand, his father, who disagree about his
Santiago. According to Merriam-Webster
opinion, explains that there is no different
dictionaries curious is “having a desire to
between their land and the other‟s land and
learn or know more about something or
someone”. Santiago‟s curiosity is reflected in
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said that it is only shepherd who travels a lot The dialogue indicates that Santiago
amongst them. has found a resolution to solve his problem
Clever after being robbed at tangier. Before being
The second trait of Santiago that can robbed, he met a young man who speaks and
be found in the story is clever. According to understands Spanish. The young man agreed
Cambridge dictionaries, clever stands for to become Santiago‟s guidance to the
“having or showing the ability to learn and pyramid if he gave his money before they
understand things quickly and easily”. leave the place. But Santiago lost the boy in
Santiago‟s cleverness is reflected through the the middle of a crowded Tangier market. The
story when he arrived at the Africa. After robbery then leads him to work for a crystal
being robbed, he realized that his language is merchant who lives on a hill of Tangier.
different to the local people so he began to Persistent
observe his surroundings. He found a The next trait of Santiago is
solution to his problem when he saw an persistent. Based on the Merriam-Webster
Arabian spoke with Spanish. Both of them dictionary, persistent is “continuing to do
are trying to erecting a stall. Even though something or to try to do something even
they language are different, the stall assemble though it is difficult or other people want you
perfectly. to stop”. Santiago‟s persistent is obviously
Santiago applied what he had just shows since he decides to leave his home
seen when he found a shop with a dirty town in Andalusia. But before leaving
window. The following dialogue shows that Andalusia, he decides to become a shepherd.
Santiago is initiating to clean the window He got confronting by his father who wanted
with his jacket. But he found the man did not him to become a priest. His father explains
understand to what he had just done. that the people from other world are basically
“I can clean up those glasses the same with them. Those who came to their
in the window, if you want,” town think that their town is beautiful and
said the boy. […] they would like to live there forever. He
The man looked at him keeps persist that he wanted to see the other
without responding. land and see how they live. The following
“In exchange, you could give dialogue shows Santiago‟s answer;
me something to eat.” “[…] amongst us, the only
The man still said nothing, ones who travel are the
[…] (48) shepherds.”
Well, then I‟ll be a shepherd!”
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His father said no more […] anything else except selling and buying
(9) crystal pieces. Since he knows that the
A shepherd is the one who wander all business is falling down at Tangier, he
over the country with their sheep folks. A should move to the nearby city which grown
shepherd sees many things and meets many faster than Tangier. But he chooses to stay
people. To become a shepherd means that he because he was afraid to start a new business
can travel to the other town and making a lot and because the only thing he had ever
of friend. The quotation indicates that his learned to do was to buy and sell crystal
father had no choice except accepting glassware.
Santiago‟s choice. Even though he had Grateful
explained everything, Santiago keeps insist The next personality trait of the
to become a shepherd. crystal merchant is grateful person.
The Crystal Merchant According to Oxford dictionaries, grateful is
Pessimist “the feeling or showing an appreciation for
The crystal merchant shop keeper is something done or received”. The merchant
described as a pessimist person. According to is described as a figure who obey and having
Merriam Webster dictionaries, pessimist is great respect to the Muslim culture. He had
“an inclination to emphasize adverse aspects, worked in the crystal business for almost
conditions, and possibilities or to expect the thirty years and he never regrets it (49).
worst possible outcome”. The condition that The story continues with the
shown the pessimist personality of the crystal improvement of the crystal business when he
merchant is described when he was told has meets Santiago. The boy had asked him for
been working as a crystal seller for almost some adjustments in the shop, but he feels he
thirty years. He felt too late to change had enough and no need to risk the business
anything and was also too afraid to take a for more.
risk for his crystal business. “I‟m doing much better, and
[…] He had been in the same soon you‟ll be able to return
place for thirty years; a shop to your sheep. Why ask more
at the top of a hilly street out of life?” (54)
where few customers passed. The quotation that contains the
Now it was too late to change speech of the merchant above shows that the
anything—[…] (46) crystal merchant had satisfied with the
The part of paragraph above implies business he had made. He thinks that there is
that the crystal merchant doesn‟t want to try no need to make an improvement to the shop.
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He just wants the boy to be as satisfied as he „dies of thirst just when the
feels at that moment, so that they wouldn‟t palm trees have appeared on
make any mistakes in running out their the horizon.” (139).
crystal business. However, several days later, The dialogue above indicates that the
he accepts the boy ideas in making some alchemist had shown many people surrender
improvement to the shop. in pursuing their dreams. He tries to convince
The Alchemist Santiago to keep believing in his dream and
Wise chasing it with all of his heart. He explains
The first characterization of the that if the boy given up to pursue his dream,
alchemist that can be found in the novel is he analogized it as same as a person who
wise. According to Oxford dictionaries, wise given up after he sees a place to rest at a
is the feeling of “having or showing desert.
experience, knowledge, and good judgment”. Cultural Setting
He is described as a figure that seldom makes According to Oxford dictionary
a wrong option in deciding something. Later culture is, “the ideas, customs, and social
in the story, the alchemist is said had lived behaviour of a particular people or society”.
for two hundred years and is able to So, it can be said that, cultural setting is the
transform any metal into gold (69). A reflection of beliefs, opinions, and religious
character that has been living for a long aspects of a certain location. The writer finds
period should have lots of experiences and that the main character has to face another
knowledge. culture in the novel The Alchemist.
Besides being an extraordinary African Culture
character, the character of the alchemist also Society
has mission to tutor Santiago in pursuing and According to Cambridge dictionary,
realizing his destiny. The alchemist the word society stands for, “a large group of
accompanies him to cross the desert because people who lived together in an organized
he had memorized the detail of the desert. He way, making decision about how to do things
also knows how to deal with the desert. The and sharing the work that needs to be done.
following dialogue in the story below reveals All the people in a country or in several
the wise of the alchemist. similar countries can be referred to as a
[…] that‟s the point at which society”. Meanwhile, according to Merriam
most people give up. It‟s the Webster, the word community defines for “a
point at which, as we say in group of people with a common
the language of the desert, one characteristic or interest living together
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within a larger society”. There are several is said the oasis has it chieftain who control
communities that the writer found within the the life in the oasis (112-113).
larger society of African. They are the people Religious
that make the journey with the caravan, the African people are considered
people that live at the oasis and the basically religious. Jenkins wrote that, “In
tribesmen. They stand with their obligation the African world God is understood as
as the most important thing above the creator, though he is far away. In the African
individual right which is so contrast to the view of reality, everything is related, thus it
European people who appreciate their is basically a “religious” worldview”
freedom. (Jenkins: 1991). This condition was proved
In the novel, Santiago has to face the by the main character of the novel. In the part
condition of living in a small group of people of paragraph below shows that Santiago is
when he decides to leave Tangier and move experiencing adapted to the African culture.
to the oasis of Al-Fayoum. He had to ride “There is no wine in this
with a caravan which contain almost country,” the young man said.
hundreds people and animals (74). “The religion here forbids it.”
The travelers adopted the (37)
practice of arranging the It can be seen that Santiago is trying
animals in circle at night, to order wine at the bar. It also implies that
sleeping together in the center he used to drink wine in his previous country
as protection against the where it is legal in Europe. He feels that he
nocturnal cold. And the leader needs to make a adjustment to the condition
posted armed sentinels at the at the time where he was given a cup of tea
fringers of the group. (81) by the bartender. But then, he meets a young
The condition above indicates that man who warns him that he can‟t order a
Santiago is involved in a small group of wine because it is forbidden.
travelers. He and the other travelers have to In another part of paragraph shows
adapt with the condition of the Sahara desert. that Santiago is having some conversation
They were instructed by the leader of the with the crystal merchant. The crystal
caravan and protected by some soldiers. The merchant seems to introduce “Maktub” to
story continues and the caravan approaches Santiago. He learns it when he was having a
at the oasis. The oasis is described as a large difficult decision to leave or to continue his
town which surrounded by thousand trees. It journey to the pyramids. As he continue his
quest, he began familiar with the words and
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use it when he thinks that his fate is that described the exposition can be shown in
cooperates with him or someone who is in the part of narration below;
the middle of his journey to pursue his own […] His purpose in life was to
Personal Legend. The paragraph below travel, and after two years of
shows that Santiago is adapted to the concept walking the Andalusia terrain,
of “Maktub”. he knew all the cities of the
The boy was beginning to region. (8)
understand that intuition is The narration above is a paragraph
really a sudden immersion of which contains the introduction of the main
the soul into the universal character and his condition before he chooses
current life, where the to start a journey. The narration implies that
historical of all people are the reason of the main character chooses to
connected, and we are able to become a traveler is because he had already
know everything, because it‟s known every part of his birth town. Then, in
all written there. (77) another part of paragraph, the author
The quotation shows that Santiago is introduces other character who takes part in
about to understand the concept of “Maktub” building the conflict in the story.
that the crystal merchant teach him. And also The crystal merchant awoke
in another part of paragraph shows that with the day, and felt the same
Fatima is trying to make Santiago understand anxiety that he felt every
that she won‟t go anywhere and as a woman morning. He had been in the
of t he desert it is important to convince their same place for thirty years: a
man to pursue their dream because they shop at the top of a hilly street
know that their man will be come back one where few customers passed.
day. As the woman said, “Maktub,” she said. […] (46)
“If I am really a part of your dream, you‟ll In this case, the crystal merchant is
come back one day.” (102) the next character that being introduced with
Plot of the Novel the background of his condition that had
Exposition lived in the same place for a long time. The
Exposition is the introductory narration above also implied that he worked
material that creates the tone, gives the in the business of crystal trading which is
setting, introduces the characters, and described that the business is in a bad
supplies other facts necessary to condition. The next character that exposed by
understanding. In the novel, the condition
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the author in the story is the alchemist. As The part of narration above implies
the following narration described; that the main character is surprised when he
The times rush past, and so do arrive at the Africa for the first time. In his
the caravan, thought the country, he would never find man walking
alchemist, as he watched the hand to hand with other man or women
hundreds of people and covered with veil or even few people having
animals arriving at the oasis. pray with an unusual gesture.
[…] (90) Climax
The condition above is the The next stage of plot is climax.
introduction of the alchemist. It also contains Climax occurs when Santiago and the
the next setting of the story. It can be seen alchemist are being seized by the desert
that the alchemist is always watching the tribesmen. They refused the assumption as
caravan arrive which can be said that he is the spies from other tribes. The alchemist
waiting for someone. The narration also offer their lives if the boy couldn‟t turn
include oasis as the place that will be visits himself into the wind in three days.
by the main character. The men laughed. They were
Rising Action used to ravages of war, and
Rising action is the second stage of knew that the wind could not
plot where characters engage in conflicts. deliver them a fatal blow. Yet
The rising action of the novel is depicted each felt his heart beat a bit
when the main character arrive at Africa. He faster. They were men of the
found the first problem that he should solve desert, and they were fearful
is the different between his language and the of sorcerers. (147)
local language. He also has to face the The quotation that contains the
culture differentiation. opinion of the tribesmen above is an
[…] in just a few hours he had implication of the untrusting feeling to the
seen men walking hand in alchemist statement that claimed the boy
hand, women with their faces could turn himself into the wind. It is said
covered and priest that that it is only them who used to be soldier in
climbed to the tops of towers war that could destroy something. In the
and chanted—as everyone other hand, the wind can‟t do the same thing.
about him went to their knees Then in a part of paragraph, it is said
and placed their foreheads on the boy proved his word after three days and
the ground. (35) turned himself into the wind;
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So the wind blew with all its accompanied Santiago to the pyramids, so he
strength, and the sky was filed decided to leave the boy and says farewell.
with sand. […] Their horses Resolution
cried out, and all their Resolution is the events following the
weapons were filled with climax and falling action. Resolution is also
sand. (156) the events when the rounds out and the action
From the quotation above, it can be is conclude.
seen that the boy is succeed to fulfill the The resolution is told in the part of
chief of tribesmen demands by turning speech below.
himself into the wind. The situation is proven […]In my dream, there was a
by the horsemen and their horses which are sycamore growing out of the
showing fear of the wind. And also because ruins of the sacristy, and I was
they already know the kind of wind that they told that, if I dug at the roots
had met before. They usually called it with of the sycamore, I would find
the simum. a hidden treasure. But I‟m not
Falling Action so stupid as to cross an entire
The fourth stage of plot is falling desert just because of a
action. Falling action is the events after the recurrent dream. “ (172)
climax which closes the story. In the novel of The dialogue above indicates that the
the alchemist, falling action happens right treasure is cannot be found in the pyramids.
after the boy turning himself into wind. The The speaker tries to tell to the boy that he had
falling action ends with the farewell of the a dream which refers to the boy action while
alchemist and the boy after rode for the entire finding his treasure. The ruined church of the
day and they arrive at a Coptic monastery. shepherds and the sycamore growing out of
“From here on, you will be the ruins sacristy is the first place that is
alone,” the alchemist said. being described as the first place where
“You are only three hours Santiago having his dream and also the place
from the pyramids.” (162) where he usually sleep at night.
From the conversation of the Conflicts of the Novel
alchemist and the main character above, it In literature, conflict is the central
can be seen that the alchemist decides to end issue and makes the story move. The
his journey with the boy. It is implies that the conflicts of the characters happen through the
alchemist mission is accomplished. He had plot of the story. It develops tension and
interest to the audience. In other words,
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without conflict a literary work will be seen that the crystal merchant doesn‟t want to
boring and bring no interest to the audience. take a risk to his crystal shop. He is afraid
The writer found several types of that the display will become a waste thing if
conflict in the novel The Alchemist. The it breaks. The merchant thinks that if the
conflicts happen among the characters in the crystal is broke, it will affect the daily
novel and also happen inside the character income of his shop. Santiago then confronts
itself. him and gives him an analogy with his life as
External Conflicts a shepherd. He assumes the crystal as his
Santiago versus the Crystal Merchant sheep and the merchant and him as the
Even though the boy is working for shepherds. The risk is something that
the merchant at the crystal shop, the everyone must face in the life.
relationship between them is not always Santiago versus the Alchemist
running well. Santiago has to work carefully The alchemist is the next character
because the merchant is always being a fussy that having conflicts with Santiago. The
person. Nevertheless, he stays at the job conflict between Santiago and the alchemist
because the merchant gives him good starts when the boy arrived at the oasis of Al-
commission and treated him fairly. The Fayoum. He asked him who is daring to read
conflict starts when the boy suggests some the omen in the desert.
new ideas to the merchant shop. The first “It is I who dared to do so,” he
idea is to build a display case for the crystal. repeated, and he lowered his
“I‟ve never had one before,” head to receive a blow from
the merchant answered. the sword. […] “The sword
“People will pass by and didn‟t fall. Instead, the
bump into it, and pieces will stranger lowered it slowly,
be broken.” until the point touched the
“Well, when I took my sheep boy‟s forehead. It drew a
through the fields some of droplet of blood. (115)
them might have died if we The quotation above contains the
had come upon a snake. But action where the alchemist is trying to kill
that‟s the way life is with the the boy in their first meeting. He feels irritate
sheep and with shepherds.” when he found that there is another person in
(55) the middle of the desert who also has the
From the conversation between the same ability like him. He tries to intimidate
boy and the crystal merchant above, it can be the boy so that he would have the
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