Read the passage. excerpt from the alchemist by paul coelho the boy observed in silence the progress of the animals and people across the desert. now everything was quite different from how it was that day they had set out: then, there had been confusion and shouting, the cries of children and the whinnying of animals, all mixed with the nervous orders of the guides and the merchants. but, in the desert, there was only the sound of the eternal wind, and of the hoofbeats of the animals. even the guides spoke very little to one another. how does this passage create a sense of place? by expressing the silence of the desert and contrasting the noise in town, the passage highlights the tranquility of the desert. the noise of the caravan when in town and its silence in the desert demonstrates how frightening the desert is. by describing the boy’s observations, the passage illustrates how much has changed in the boy’s life since meeting the king of salem. the vivid imagery and descriptions of the “nervous” guides and merchants show how chaotic the desert could be.