logo

73 pages 2 hours read

Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1988

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Discussion/Analysis Prompt

Paulo Coelho incorporates figures like Melchizedek, Narcissus, and Joseph into his text. How does including historical/mythical/biblical people in his story add to his message? Why is it important to have these figures?

Teaching Suggestion: Encourage students to think beyond simply the messages and/or allusions to these people within the text. Culturally, what does the inclusion tell us? Symbolically? It may be beneficial to point out that these figures are all men, and to encourage students to think about the role of women in this text as well.

Differentiation Suggestion: For struggling readers and visual learners, provide a graphic organizer that sorts out what role each figure plays in the novel, and allow students to draw conclusions based on these diagrams.

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text