In the books The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, and The Pearl by John Steinbeck, the main characters are both immature, but in different ways. In The Alchemist, the main character Santiago is a relatively immature person if compared to the end. He becomes wiser during the course of his journey, learning more about the world. Before Santiago achieves his Personal Legend, he does not know as much about the world. At the start of the book, he wants to marry a girl whom he does not even know the name of, and trusts a complete stranger with his money. This is awfully thoughtless of him. However, he is not all that immature. He learns from his mistakes, and he knows to believe in his …show more content…
In The Alchemist, Coelho uses diction and syntax to communicate the tones of pride and contentment. The author uses diction to communicate a tone of contentment by writing “If I had told you, you wouldn’t have seen the Pyramids. They’re beautiful, aren’t they?”(166). This sentence makes the author appear content that Santiago has been able to travel and see the Pyramids, despite the fact that Santiago went through such adversities throughout his journey. The author uses syntax to convey a tone of pride when Santiago says “I’m coming, Fatima” (167). This sentence is short, but brave, and the author seems proud of the boy for accomplishing his Personal Legend, and gaining so much wisdom on the way. In The Pearl, Steinbeck uses imagery and diction to convey a tone of contempt and relief. He uses diction to communicate a tone of contempt when he talks about a town being “a thing like a colonial animal. A town has a nervous system…News seems to move faster than small boys can scramble and dart to tell it, faster than women can call it over the fences”() When he calls a town “a thing”, that alone shows his scorn toward towns. His simile comparing the town to an animal