How we cite our quotes: (Part.Paragraph)
Quote #7
The boy was shaking with fear, but the alchemist helped him out of the tent.
"Don't let them see that you're afraid," the alchemist said. "They are brave men, and they despise cowards." (2.592)
Poor Santiago is constantly being threatened with death, and the alchemist wants him to just suck it up. Great. Real helpful, alchemist. Okay, okay, it's actually good advice—but it's even harder for Santiago to face death now, since he has Fatima to live for.
Quote #8
"There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure" (2.600)
This is pretty much all the self-help books of the past century boiled down into one sentence. Why spend all your money and time reading through that list when you could get it in a format short enough to tattoo on your forearm? (Kidding. Please don't get that tattooed on your forearm. Your mother would kill us.)
Quote #9
The boy knew the desert sensed his fear.
They both spoke the same language. (2.616-17)
Cue spooky voice: You are becoming onnnnnne with the desert. No, really, this is big: Santiago has learned to observe fear in others, and now he himself is emitting the signs of fear, just like some fear-pheromone that Axe isn't about to stick in a bottle. Nature isn't just a static landscape in The Alchemist; it can actively sense and influence human events.