The Englishman
uses his books to understand alchemy like a cook would use a recipe to create a beautiful dish.
He wants to learn everything about the subject in order to understand a simple text written on
an Emerald Tablet. He figures that if he understands everything there is to know, from
alchemists' lives to discovering the Master Work by patience and a long-suffering search. The
Englishman says:
"The alchemists spent years in their
laboratories, observing the fire that purified metals. They spent so much time close to the fire
that gradually they gave up the vanities of the world. They discovered that the purification of
the metals had led to a purification of themselves" (81).
Sadly, after Santiago read the books, too, he realized that there were drawings and
codes that he didn't understand, so he wouldn't be able to discover the Master Work. When he
asked if it would be best to just understand what was written on the Emerald Tablet, the
Englishman was disappointed because to him, alchemy was an art that depended on books, magic,
codes, and the like in order to create the Master Work.
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