Escobar 1 Gabriela Escobar Ms.

McMains English 10 Honors November 13, 2012 Similar Weaknesses Between Sheep and People In life, two species can be compared. When compared similar qualities may be found between the two. In this case, one can find this similarity in the weaknesses of Santiagos sheep in The Alchemist and people who fail to pursue their Personal Legend. People dont always strive, and sometimes people fail when searching for their Personal Legend. Weaknesses Santiago sees in his sheep are their indifference, pessimism, and dependence which also relate to the weaknesses of humans who fail to pursue their Personal Legend. One of the weaknesses Santiago notices in his sheep is their indifference. Paulo Coelho wrote, They were content with just food and water, and in exchange, they generously gave of their wool, company, and once in a while their meat, (7). In The Alchemist, Santiagos sheep dont care about what happens around them. As long as the sheep get what they want, theyll be fine. This is a weakness because a person who is indifferent doesnt care about what happens to them. Just like the sheep who are indifferent, people who are indifferent dont achieve their Personal Legend. Another weakness Santiago sees in his sheep is their pessimism towards their surroundings. Paulo Coelho wrote, The problem is that they dont even realize that theyre walking a new road every day. They dont even see that the fields are new and the seasons change, (10-11). In The Alchemist, the sheeps pessimism affects their life because the sheep constantly do the same routine every day. People who fail to pursue their Personal Legend dont

Escobar 2 notice how fast time passes by, and people arent alert of where they are or what is going on. In fact, this is very important because time and seasons are very important to a traveler on a journey. People, who are pessimistic, like the sheep, arent aware of their surroundings, which play a very important role on their journey to their Personal Legend. The last weakness Santiago sees in the sheep is their dependence on him. Paulo Coelho wrote, If I ever decided to leave them, they would suffer, (27). It is obvious by this statement that the sheep cant survive if things arent handed to them. This quote shows the reader that the sheep dont have the ability to get survival items for themselves, and some people have the same problem on their journey to pursuing their Personal Legend. People who are dependent cant move on in life if they cant learn to do tasks on their own. The weaknesses Santiago sees in his sheep are their indifference, pessimism, and dependence. All of these weaknesses relate to people who fail to pursue their Personal Legend. In this case, if a person has not matures and learned from life experiences, there will be a great probability that they will fail to pursue their Personal Legend. It is very important that a person who is searching for their Personal Legend prevents themselves from being indifferent, pessimistic, and dependent. If one avoids these qualities Santiagos sheep obtain, that person is on the perfect path to pursuing their Personal Legend.

Escobar 3 Works Cited Coelho, Paulo. The Alchemist. Trans. Alan R. Clarke. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1998. Print.