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Life Of Pi Religion Essay

Decent Essays

Yann Martel’s awe inspiring fantasy-adventure novel, the Man Booker Prize winning ‘Life of Pi’ (2001) tells of a Tamil boy living in Pondicherry who is left to survive the harsh oceans on a lifeboat, with a tiger as his companion. Through the adventures of the protagonist, Piscine Molitor “Pi” Patel, Martel explores how the notions of science and religion work in unison to cultivate a deeper understanding of the world as we know it. Pi’s struggle to stay alive amid saving an orangutan, hyena and zebra reflect the wordly thematic concern of survival.
U might need an opening sentence..but it probs isn’t necessary. Pi’s scientific understanding of the world is heavily influenced by his historical context of being brought up in a zoo. His upbringing allowed for deep relationships to form with various exotic animals. Similarly, Pi’s spiritual and religious perception of the world, was shaped by numerous religious philosophies coupled with a …show more content…

I don’t mean to defend zoos Close them all down if you want (and let us hope that what wildlife remains can survive in what is left of the natural world).I know zoos are no longer in people’s good grace. Religion faces the same problem. Certain illusions about freedom plague them both” – Pi,
Pi’s inspiration in pursuing science and religion originated from his childhood “prophets”, Mr and Mrs Kumar. Both the Kumars and Pi’s cultural Islamic context prompt him to major in zoology and religious studies at school. In this way, Martel shows us as readers how understanding both aspects (religion and science) can help the individual to understand the world. This is shown through Mr. Kumar’s insightful statement to Pi in,
“There are no grounds for going beyond a scientific explanation of reality and no sound reason for believing anything but our sense experience. A clear intellect, close attention to detail, and a little scientific knowledge will expose religion as superstitious bosh. God does not exist” – Mr

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