20 Santiago finally decides to continue going to Egypt. His being adventurous
influences his decision. He knows that his flock can be a good friend but he wants to know whether the desert can be a friend for him. The desert is a place where the
treasure is buried. He can always go home if he does not find it. Yet, he has enough money and the time he needs to go to Egypt. This becomes the
opportunity to pursue his dream.
3. To Decide whether to Leave Fatima or not
The third intrapersonal conflict faced by Santiago is to decide whether to leave Fatima or not. In the middle of his journey to Egypt, the caravan has to stay
at Al-Fayoum because of a tribal war happening in the desert. There, Santiago falls in love with an Arabian girl named Fatima when he helps the Englishman to
find the alchemist who lives at Al-Fayoum. He starts to think about becoming a shepherd again since Fatima is more important than the treasure, “The boy looked
around him at the date palms. He reminded himself that he had been a shepherd and that he could be a shepherd again. Fatima was more important than his
treasure” p. 100. Moreover, having saved the oasis from the attack of an army, Santiago
finally meets the alchemist. At first, Santiago does not know why the alchemist wants to see him. Eventually, he knows that the alchemist is a person who will
help him to pursue his dream, “When a person really desires something, all the universe conspires to help that person to realize his dream,” said the alchemist,
echoing the words of the old king. The boy understood. Another person was there to help him toward his destiny” p. 120. However, to continue searching for the
21 treasure, Santiago has to face the tribal war and he has to be separated from
Fatima. Thus, Santiago has a conflict with himself, “His heart was heavy, and he had been melancholy since the previous night. To continue his search for the
treasure meant that he had to abandon Fatima” p. 124. From the situation, according to Lewin as cited in Weiner 1980, Santiago
faces an approach-avoidance conflict. If he leaves Fatima, he will be able to continue searching for his treasure. On the other hand, he has to be separated from
Fatima and deal with the tribal war as well. Further, in dealing with this conflict, Santiago cannot solve his problem
alone. Therefore, he needs someone who can help him to solve it. He uses mediation. In this case, the alchemist becomes the mediator. First, Santiago tries
to tell the alchemist what makes him worried. The conflict arises because Santiago wants to search for the treasure but he has to leave Fatima and has to
face a tribal war. Then, the alchemist tries to give his point of view related to the problem that Santiago has. He tells Santiago the fact that Fatima is a woman of
the desert who will await her man and that she has found her treasure. He is her treasure. She wants him to find his own treasure. Moreover, the alchemist tells
about Santiago’s future if he decides to stay at the oasis. In the future, Santiago will marry Fatima and both will be happy. He will also be a wealthy man.
However, Santiago will not be happy since he will regret not trying to pursue his dream and it will be too late for him to pursue it. After listening to the alchemist’s
explanation, he finally decides to leave Fatima in order to search for the treasure.
22
CHAPTER III CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This chapter consists of three sections. They are the conclusions, implication, and recommendations. The conclusions contain the summary of the
answers of the problems formulated in this study. The implication presents the inference of this study to education. The recommendations present several
suggestions for future researchers who are interested in using The Alchemist as an object of their studies and for English lecturers who teach Prose.
A. Conclusions
This study aims to answer two problems. Firstly, how Santiago is described in the novel. Secondly, what intrapersonal conflicts that Santiago faces
in pursuing his dream. Based on the discussion, there are two conclusions in this study. The first
conclusion deals with the description of Santiago in the novel. Having employed several theories of character, it is concluded that Santiago is a major character of
The Alchemist because he becomes the important character who appears in every part of the story. He is also described as a round character since his personality
cannot be easily described in a single phrase or sentence. He is also categorized as a dynamic character since he experiences some changes in his appearance, ability,
and perception. Moreover, by using Murphy’s theory of characterization, how Paulo
Coelho makes Santiago’s characteristics come alive for the readers can be shown
