Life of Pi Essay

A bildungsroman is a novel in which the moral and psychological growth of the protagonist is depicted from the genesis to the denouement of the given work.

In the very beginning, the protagonist, Liesel, is faced with her first tragic encounter. On a train traveling toward Munich to live with foster parents, Liesel endures the death of her six year old brother. “There was an intense spurt of coughing. Almost an inspired spurt. And soon after-nothing” (Zusak 20). Her brother’s death happens so quickly that Liesel and her mother are left in disbelief and despair. This incentive moment began the tragic journey for Liesel or as Death named her, the Book Thief. After leaving her mom and being brought to her foster home, Liesel clings to the hope that this is just temporary. Because her foster father, Hans, taught her how to read and write, she desperately attempts to reach out through letters to her mom with no response. Even though Liesel is in this tragic journey, she has comfort and companionship from her foster parent, Hans, Rudy, a neighbor boy, and finally Max, the hidden Jew. Each of these relationships causes a chain reaction towards tragedy. As for Hans, “Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father's eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver. Like soft silver, melting” (Zusak 34). Because of his kindness, Liesel also observes the tragedy. Having seen Hans being whipped multiple times in front of many people for helping a Jew and then drafted into war for also helping a Jew, Liesel sees the consequences for standing up for your own beliefs. Hans also developed in Liesel the love of reading which causes her to stand in horror and watch the burning of the book ceremony. Rudy, on the other hand, has a different relationship with Liesel. A love hate relationship that dealt with stealing and a childhood of mischievousness, these two characters bring joy in each others’ lives. Not knowing what they would do without each other, Liesel and Rudy depend on each other only to have that

This novel is classified as Bildungsroman, and an article defines this genre as a novel that shows a young protagonist’s journey from when they are a child to an adult, focusing on all their experiences that shaped them into the person that they

Bildungsroman: When the reader is able to see how the character grows and is able to experience the journey of the character.

The process of maturation and growing up while moving through life is a different experience for every single person. Since this can vary so greatly from person to person, it may be hard to relate to others and their struggles. The concept of growing up could be considered as a blind person constantly encountering new situations, which have been invisible and foreign to them thus far in their life. These everyday struggles are what eventually help people in the long run while developing into the best person that they can possibly be. A bildungsroman by definition is a story that shows the progression of characters as they come to age throughout works of literature or film. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison and Finding Nemo, which is Disney Pixar children’s movie, both share this common literary element as well as the theme of invisibility. The main characters of these two works find themselves fighting through their personal journey’s of life’s ups and downs in an endless daily cycle of finding out who they truly are while frequently feeling invisible to the general population they are surrounded by. Although growing up and changing as a person is never easy as new life experiences occur, Marlin, Nemo, and the Narrator find themselves as changed characters from the beginning to the end of these separate works.

In chapter one, two themes stand out as ones that seem to be included throughout the novel; fighting to live and religion. Towards the end of the chapter, the narrator speaks of extensive injuries, including anemia, dark urine, and leg swelling. These, along with the others mentioned seem to be a sign that Pi had to survive a very difficult situation. He would have had to fight hard to live through that situation, so he must have a strong will to live. Religion seems to play a large role in the Pi’s life, based on the first chapter. He studied religion in post-secondary, and mentions that he has odd religious practices. For someone to study religion, it must be a large part of their life. Also, if he has been through a life-threatening situation,

Often in literature, a story tells of a brief portion of a person’s life, often only spanning a few months to a year’s time, however, sometimes, a story will follow a character from their youth into their adulthood, allowing the reading to see how the character develops over the course of their life. Such as story is called a Bildungsroman; it follows one main character from their youth into adulthood. Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre follows the story of Jane Eyre as she goes from a young orphan being sent to school for the first time, into her time as a governess, dependent on her boss for survival, and eventually ending as an individual of equal standing as her husband. Jane Eyre is a clear example of a Bildungsroman as it illustrates the story of Jane's life, beginning with her as a young child being abused by her aunt and following as she goes through school and work as a governess until she ends the story as an independent, grown woman.

Reflecting on Christianity Pi knows his faith in God would save him from damnation if he were to die, offering him some sense of comfort. “Pi's understanding of "God" is fundamentally altered by having to live so perilously close to the overwhelming forces of nature— including the sea and the tiger. His understanding of nature is likewise inevitably shaped by his practice of three religions” (Stephens 14). Reflecting back on atheism he knows he has to come up with a plan to survive and that he can’t just rely on God for his physical needs. Going back to Islam, which values animals as much as any other creature, Pi does some serious thinking about Richard Parker and figures out that his only way of not getting eaten by him is to take care of him. Lastly, Hinduism,“It seems orange—such a nice Hindu colour—is the colour of survival because the whole inside of the boat and the tarpaulin and the life jackets and the lifebuoy and the oars and most every other significant object aboard was orange. Even the plastic, beadless whistles were orange.” (Martel

Through this ordeal, his faith is tested. His religion gives him hope and sanity and the relationship he forms with the tiger helps him through his journey. In order to survive his ordeal at sea, Pi calls upon his beliefs from a number of different religions. The religions that he relies on are Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, and Atheism. Pi prayed three times a day thus placing his survival in God’s hands, while still using his scientific knowledge.

Pi’s inner struggle with his religion and morals vs his survival instinct is symbolized by Richard Parker. This can be exemplified as Pi expresses, “It was Richard Parker who calmed me down. It is the irony of this story that the one who scared me witless to start with was the very same who brought me peace, purpose, I dare say even wholeness” (Martel 179). Richard Parker is a Bengal tiger that is a constant threat in Pi’s life. Although, he eventually provided Pi with rich companionship and calmed him down. Pi takes a major sorrow and turns it into a spiritual gift. Pi believes that God who has a very forbidding presence, can bring peace, wholeness and many other happy things. In Yann Martel’s interview he states, “The more you know about an animal, the more you understand them” (insert citation). Initially, Pi feared Richard Parker, but he is forced to find a way to

A bildungsroman is a novel that recounts the psychological or moral development of its protagonist from youth to maturity, when a character recognizes his/her own place in the world. Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee is a bildungsroman based on Jean Louise. In chapter 18, there is moment where Jean Louise realizes her place in the world. It is when her uncle, Dr. Finch tells her to look back at everything that has happened and she realizes that it is still the same. This moment in the book shapes the development from Jean Louise’s young virtuous self to her older free minded self. This moment also explains the meaning of the novel by Jean Louise figuring out that she is her own watchman.

Some definitions of the bildungsroman novel and its characteristics will be presented in the first section of this paper. Then, in the second section, the two novels cited above will be analyzed separately. The elements which make them be considered bildungsromane will be pointed out. Finally, to conclude, the differences and similarities between them will be dealt with so that it will be clear in what ways the bildungsroman differ in the two novels.

In literary criticism, a Bildungsroman (German pronunciation: [ˈbɪldʊŋs.ʁoˌmaːn]; German: "novel of formation, education, culture"),[a] novel of formation, novel of education,[2] or coming-of-age story (though it may also be known as a subset of the coming-of-age story) is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood (coming of age),[3] in which character change is extremely important.[4][5]

Bildungsromans: German word meaning “a novel of formation.” It's a story about the mental development or the growth and maturity of a character. For instance, To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, an exceptional literary novel that entails a “coming of age story.” It is evident that the protagonist, Scout, matures as the novel progress resulting in character growth.

Bildungsroman is a German term coined by Philologist Karl Morgenstern and later popularized in 1905. It has many variations and subgenres such as Entwicklungsroman (“development of novel”), Erziehungsroman (“education novel”), Kunstlerroman (“artist novel”). Twentieth Century is much known for its marvelous developments and it spread to Germany, France, and Britain. Sometimes the term coming of age is used compatibly with Bildungsroman. This term is used to describe the protagonist’s psychological and moral growth from childhood to adulthood. It conveys the person understanding who is in search for her identity and answer for her life’s question. Mostly Bildungsroman novel starts with protagonist abscond due to emotional stress. It also highlights