Analysis Of Yann Martel 's Life Of Pi

The Life of Pi, an award-winning novel by Yann Martel, tells the story of Pi Patel, a young boy stranded at sea with an adult Bengal tiger. Marooned on a tiny lifeboat adrift in the Pacific Ocean, Pi finds himself struggling to survive. Faced with imminent suffering and death brought on by hunger, thirst, and an unending battle with the elements, Pi must make a decision between upholding his and society’s strict set of morals and values, or letting his survival instincts take over. Through compelling language and imagery, Martel gives Pi’s conflict between morals, fear, and survival a sense of excitement, suspense, and climax.

Life of Pi is a thrilling novel by Yann Martel, telling the story of a two hundred and twenty-seven day journey on a lifeboat between a religious boy and an adult bengal tiger. After losing his family in a shipwreck, Pi Patel is stuck on a lifeboat with a 450 pound Richard Parker. Together, they sail aimlessly, using the boat’s limited resources to survive. Throughout the novel Pi uses God as a way to cope with the multiple tragedies and obstacles he faces. In times of great difficulty, humans can lose their morals and values in exchange for survival.

First, there is an essential need for "physical survival" as he must keep his body alive(Sparknotes). The most basic needs being food and water. He knows how to protect himself from imminent danger such as Richard Parker. As well as other threats that come when being stranded at sea such as dehydration,sharks, and drowning. Pi's creativity to build an adjoining raft to keep a safe distance from aggressive dangers such as sharks and the tiger enable him to sustain physical safety. Secondly, Pi's necessity for "spiritual survival"(Sparksnotes). Pi must keep his hopes up and not yield to hopelessness. He says that Richard Parker kept him sane in the presence of a companion. Pi's mental toughness for taming the tiger prevented him from thinking about his deserted future. from a shipwreck. Lastly Pi has Biological survival as he is the sole member of the Patel family. He would have a desire to live a long and healthy life, raise a family and pass his genes on to the next generation. He is able to survive for 227 days at sea. As he inherited powerful swimming ability from his Uncle Mamaji. At the end of the novel, the readers learn that Pi is a father,"So his story does have a happy ending"(Martel). Ultimately,Pi's willingness to survive shows his character as an

Firstly, Pi’s devotion for God was clear and he often seeks clarity from god. Throughout the novel, Pi’s love for God caused him to practice three major religion at the same time; breaking any barriers between Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. Pi believes all three religions are equally true and interconnective as “[Islam and Christianity] both claim Abraham as theirs. Muslims say the God of the Hebrews and Christians is the same as the God of the Muslims. They recognize David, Moses, and Jesus as prophets” (80, Martel). Pi was morally ambiguous, he did not know if one religion would bring him closer to God than another causing him to follow all three. When Pi was stuck on the life boat, he often called out for help from god as he feared death. As he was giving up, a voice inside of him spoke from his heart and said “I will not die. I refuse it. I will make it through this nightmare. I will beat the odds, as great as they are. I have survived so far, miraculously. Now I will turn miracle into routine. The amazing will be seen every day. I will put in all the hard work necessary. Yes, so long as God is with me, I will not die. Amen” (164). Pi was uncertain whether or not he was going to survive however, he hoped through praying, he would as his faith in God brought him comfort.

Pi’s life before the boat crashing was full of hope and wonder. His presence was ethereal, making a purpose out of everything around him. His family ran a zoo, which gave him a tight-knit relationship with animals. Pi loved to try new things. He met new people which led to his exploration

Bengali polymath, Rabindranath Tagore, once said “you can’t cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water.” In the novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel, the protagonist, Pi, faces many challenges at sea while being accompanied by a tiger by the name of Richard Parker. This tiger, though a nuisance, proves to be essential in the role of Pi’s survival. Throughout the story, Richard Parker symbolizes survival, a reflection of Pi, and a being of God.

Life of Pi, written by Yann Martel, is a novel about a young boy, Pi, trapped with a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard Parker who survive together in the Pacific Ocean for 227 days. The central theme of the novel is Pi’s faith in God, which proves to be a crucial part of his survival during the extreme situation. In the book, How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas Foster, the author talks about the importance of literary elements such as symbols, geography, and stories to a literary piece. These elements are used in Life of Pi to develop its compelling story about growing up.

When Yann Martel tells of Pi Patel’s life story after the shipwreck, he presents it in two distinctive ways: one being with animals, and one without. As a young boy, Pi began to develop a love of animals as a result of growing up on the lands of Pondicherry Zoo, his family zoo in India. He also finds that he has a deep passion for religion. Supposedly, Life of Pi will make one believe in God, as it did to Pi in these two stories.

After waiting weeks to be rescued, Pi accepted the reality that he “could not count on outside help” (168). He learned how to fish and how to kill and how to prepare his meals for himself and for his tiger companion, Richard Parker. They were the only living survivors of the Tsimtsum and were unknowingly relying on each other to stay alive. Pi never stopped having hope that there was a higher power watching over him. He “practiced religious rituals” and “adapted to the circumstances” (208). It was moving, as a reader, to know that he is all alone and yet he has not given up and has not changed himself no matter how discouraging his situation

At the beginning of the novel Pi finds himself stranded on the Pacific Ocean after the ship he and his family were on sank with nothing but his beliefs, a lifeboat, a survivor’s manual, and a tiger he calls Richard Parker. Throughout the novel Pi is in a constant struggle with both his humanity and what he needs to do to survive. He learns of the cruel survival instincts within himself that he never thought possible. At the beginning of the novel Pi was nothing more than a boy who only saw the good in the world and in humanity. By the end of the novel, however, he becomes a man who has had to face things that no person should ever have to face alone even if one believes in

Light and dark parts of the world exist in many different forms. In the book, Life of Pi by Yann Martel, light and dark are scattered throughout Pi’s journey. Piscine ‘Pi’ Patel gets stranded on a lifeboat after the shipwreck of the freighter ship, the Tsimtsum, with some not so friendly survivors of the crash. During his journey to safety, day gives him comfort and night does not give him that satisfaction. Pi also creates an alter ego, Richard Parker, which expresses the dark, survival extinct he needs to survive which opposes the peaceful, religious man Pi lived as before the crash.

1 Life of Pi by Yann Martel is an extremely intriguing novel. In the end of Chapter 36 in part 1 the author mentions, “This novel has a happy ending”. However the book doesn't end on a particularly happy note. In the book, the last chapter shows that even though Pi lost his whole family and no one believed his story until he made his own family, he happened to survive the impossible whilst learning more about religion and life. However, in the end, the author has left the truth of Pi's life at sea for the reader to decide.

The saying “desperate times call for desperate measures” holds truth to an extent. In the award winning novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel, drastic measures are taken by characters in order to survive while stranded on a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean. Through his journey, main character, Pi Patel, endures many hardships and witnesses several deaths. Significantly, the death of the zebra accompanying Pi and the other animals establishes a generalization of human nature being sophisticated yet inherently vicious according to methods of survival.

“Survival is the ability to swim in strange water” (Frank Herbert). Pi demonstrated life on the Pacific as a test of all aspects. Life on the Pacific tested his physical endurance, he was lost for two-hundred and seventy seven days. In that time, Pi demonstrates his faith towards God, himself, and Richard Parker. Pi develops a robust bond with Richard Parker, then connecting spiritually. Survival in the novel Life of Pi is etched in the deepest parts of the story. These aspects of the novel are depicted through personal and self-reflection within himself. Pi survives because of his strength, faith and a close relationship with Richard Parker.

In Yann Martel’ Life of Pi, a young boy named Piscine Molitor Patel or Pi Patel is stranded on a lifeboat after a shipwreck. How can someone survive 227 days, on a lifeboat, on the Pacific Ocean with a Bengal tiger? Pi is an Indian boy from Pondicherry who is faced with great difficulties staying alive after being separated from his family following the shipwreck. His faith and belief in God greatly helped him get out of this misery. In the following paragraphs, I will explore the themes revealed throughout the novel. Many important and interesting themes are developed in the story. I will elaborate on faith or belief in God, survival and storytelling. All three themes have worked in conjunction to bring out this beautiful story.