The boy and the old man.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008 6:33 PM
In The Alchemist, the boy was reading a book in the plaza. An old man approached him and try to strike up a conversation. After studying the old man for a few seconds, the boy was convinced that this is a useless old man who doesn't know anything about the world and sure as hell doesn't know how to read. The boy thus keep the conversation at minimal level trying to avoid unnecessary trouble. So, when the old man asked him what book is he reading, he showed the book cover to the old man, thinking that when the old man won't be able to read the title, he would realise that how pointless this conversation is and be so embarrass of himself and leave the boy alone.
But it turned out that the old man not only manage to read the title, he even tell the boy what the book is about. A book which tell the greatest lie in the whole world. And the old man turned out to be the King of Salem. A place which the capacity of the boy's knowledge hasn't manage to recognise.
It tells us that, we shall not judge a book by its cover. And delving further, that people are often not what we perceive them to be.
No, this is not a review.
Labels: The Alchemist
