The Alchemist Fear Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Part.Paragraph)

Quote #1

He went on telling stories about his travels, and her bright, Moorish eyes went wide with fear and surprise. (1.17)

Fear seems pretty harmless when we first encounter it in the alchemist: it's how the merchant's daughter reacts to hearing about Santiago's adventures. Of course, we're talking low stakes here: her fear is like the kind you have when you read a horror novel. You're not actually fearing for your safety (uh, right?), but experiencing the fear along with the characters in the story.

Quote #2

"The land was ruined, and I had to find some other way to earn a living. So now I'm a camel driver. But that disaster taught me to understand the word of Allah: people need not fear the unknown if they are capable of achieving what they need and want." (2.152)

When the camel driver lost his property, he was probably tempted to be very frightened of the unknown: How would he pay his bills? How would he feed his children? How would he access Netflix? But the camel driver is a resourceful kind of guy—and someone who's resourceful never has to fear the unknown.

Quote #3

The boy noted that there was a sense of fear in the air, even though no one said anything. (2.156)

Just like love, fear is one of the unspoken languages of the desert. Santiago learns to sense it in the air, just like a rabid dog. Er, just like someone who can speak the Universal Language.