“If you see money as the solution you will find it becomes the problem.” Recently in class, we watched the movie “Blood Diamond” and also read the novel “The Alchemist.” In both “Blood Diamond” and “The Alchemist” the author’s intent is the same, wealth does not bring true happiness and fulfillment to one’s life.
The author’s message is that in our day and age people are always striving to get the best toys and make the most money but what we fail to realize is that although we may get these things they do not actually bring fulfillment to one. An underlying message throughout out both of these literary works is to listen and consider the advice of people who are offering help. We will analyze the character archetype of being a mentor which is displayed in both the movie and the book. The mentor character can be defined as a person who advises you on what to do when you are unsure. The mentor archetype is effective in portraying the author’s intent as the author adapts the archetype to support their message, the author uses the mentor to share his message, and the audience is able to relate to the archetype. Firstly, we will analyze how the author does a good job of adapting the archetype to help fit the story that they are telling.
In the “Blood Diamond” movie the director adapts the character archetype of a mentor to a young journalist named Maddy Bowen. The mentor archetype is usually fulfilled by an older person who you can look up to but the director decided to adopt the archetype to help fit the needs of the movie and so it would make sense. The significance of adopting the mentor archetype is that it makes it more interesting and has the reader more engaged with the film. We can see this with “The Alchemist” as the author has multiple mentors starting with the King of Salam and then the alchemist.
He switches between the two mentors depending on what works best with the story at the time. “It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.” Paulo Coelho uses this quote when the King of Salem is encouraging Santiago to follow his dream and pursue his personal legend; life is not always about just staying at home, instead, it is about taking risks and following your dreams. The author’s ability to adapt and change who the mentor is to fit into the story allows the story to flow naturally and also keeps the reader engaged and looking for the author’s intent. Next, we will take an in-depth look at why the mentor archetype is the perfect archetype for sharing the author’s message to the reader.
A mentor is a wise person who helps instruct a usually younger and inexperienced person in the right ways; they help them throughout their journey. One example in “The Alchemist” is the quote “Remember that wherever your heart is, there you will find your treasure.” This quote highlights what the author’s message is; that wealth and treasure do not equal happiness. It is advice from the alchemist to Santiago regarding his journey. “Blood Diamond” also has examples of the director using the mentor to enlighten the audience on what the director’s intent is with the movie. One example of this is Maddy Bowen reiterating to Danny Archer that a diamond is never more important than one’s life, no matter how big it is.
The mentor archetype is often used by the author to help enlighten the audience about the author’s intent through the character.Finally, we will study how the mentor archetype is relatable and why this allows the reader a better chance at grasping the author’s intent. The mentor archetype is relatable for almost every person that reads the book or watches the movie; as we have all grown up with a father or mother figure that we can look up to.
It is significant to use as people are more interested in a book when they are able to see how it connects with there life and how they can use the messages they learn in their own lives. For example in “The Alchemist” there are a couple of characters that are mentors to Santiago such as the King of Salam, and the alchemist. These characters are people that Santiago has never met before but he realizes the wisdom that they portray and follows their advice for him to go follow his personal legend. The alchemist also continues to motivate and encourages him when he feels that he does not want to continue and is consent with the way his life is. “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it,” quotes like this showed how his mentors helped him persevere so he could reach his treasure. This helps communicates the author’s intent more effectively because whenever you are able to make connections it helps engage you more and also makes you care about what your reading. The reader would rather have some idea of what is going on and how it applies to his life than it be something he does not need or care about. The “Blood Diamond” movie is easy to make connections to for the audience members which helps the viewer recognize the author’s intent easily.
One example of an easy connection in the movie is Maddy Bowen and Danny Archer’s relationship. Most of us have a friend that we will look at for advice and go to when we need help. This relationship connects the audience to the movie and makes us more interested in what the author is saying. The mentor archetype is relatable to people who read or watch it; this is significant as it makes people actually care about what is going on in the movie and they become interested in what the author’s message is.
To conclude, the mentor archetype is effective in portraying the author’s intent as the author adapts the archetype to support their message, the author uses the mentor to share his message, and the audience is able to relate to the archetype. The author adapts the mentor to fit the needs of the story, which allows people to remain interested in to look for the author’s intent. The mentor is a key character as the author uses the mentor to spread their message. The mentor archetype is important as it allows the reader to connect and to learn from the author’s message. The mentor archetype is an effective way for the author to demonstrate their message to the reader.
