ERNEST HEMINGWAY’S INFLUENCE ON PAULO COELHO

Abstract

The Old Man and the Sea was written in 1952 and the first edition of Alchemist appeared in 1988. Ernest Hemingway was a great pleader of man’s greatness that lies in man’s strength and struggle against the odds. Paulo Coelho also adores this great quality of man. Paulo Coelho just like Hemingway puts forward, through The Alchemist, his belief in the dignity of man. The protagonists of both writers sustain through striving even in such circumstances where most people would accept the defeat considering it a destiny. This paper explores some of the common characteristics in the mentioned two writers through their novellas i.e. The Alchemist and The Old Man and The Sea. The setting of the mentioned novellas, the heroes and the themes of these pieces of literature have surprising similarities. These comparable features are proof that like many other figures in the literary world, Hemingway has greatly influenced Paulo Coelho as well.