Number 3.14 In The Book Of Pi

(62), Pi, Pi thinks this one day after talking to Mr. Kumar. B. This quote shows the religious part of Pi. After learning about the Muslim faith he notices how everything is related to each other. This is important to the story because religion is what kept him alive on the

According to Mahatma Gandhi, "Prayer is the key of the morning and the bolt of the evening." ("Religion Quotes"). The character Pi Patel in the novel Life of Pi has a very active spiritual life because he prays every day. He does not pray for one religion; in fact, he is a devout follower of three religions: Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity. In the novel, the author uses devices of figurative language such as similes, metaphors, and imagery to illustrate the profound effect that religion has on Pi's life.

Karanvir Dhami Ms. Yu ENG3U March 7, 2011 Symbolism in Life of Pi In Life of Pi there are many literary devices used to present the different themes in the novel. The main literary device used in Life of Pi is symbolism. Symbolism is often used to represent an object to something else, either by association or by resemblance. Most of the names of animals, objects and even humans in this novel have a symbolic meaning. In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, symbolism such as pi’s name, the colour orange and the algae island, are used throughout the novel to provide Pi with protection to help him either survive or overcome his emotional pain. The mathematical pi is undefined, infinite and unable to be understood, just like Piscine Patel.

The first thing that inadvertently displays Pi as a Christ figure is his name Piscine Molitor Patel. He was named after a Parisian swimming pool that Mamaji described as being “a pool that the gods would have delighted to swim in” (Martel pg 11). The name in of itself, is a place that the gods are reborn, this show the depth of religious fervor Pi is implicated in and it foreshadows the devotion he will have in the future. In an ironic twist his name becomes a playground slur by his classmates, he comments how the harassment his name causes is his “crown of thorns”. To stop the relentless pestering he shortens his name to Pi, which in mathematical terms is a number that is irrational, infinite, and non-repeating. His classmates also soon pick

The mathematical constant to which ‘Pi’ relates his name has a value of 3.14 which is the approximate fraction 22/7 this represents the 227 days Pi survived at sea. When Pi is introducing himself at his new school he goes up to the board in each class during attendance, writes his name and beside it “π = 3.14” and draws “…a large circle, which [he] then slice[s] in two with a diameter, to evoke that basic lesson of geometry.” Pi repeats this same routine with every teacher on the premise that “repetition is important in the training not only of animals but

There is a foreshadowing device in Piscine’s name because the pool that he was named after was “as big as small oceans” (19) and he survives later on in the Pacific Ocean which is the largest ocean on planet Earth. Everything that he was taught as a little boy, all of the lessons on swimming made sense because it was all useful in the survival. Pi was the only one who knew how to swim in his family and it seemed like faith that he only survived the big storm. Patel’s nickname ‘Pi’ relates to the novel as the theme was religion, it hit the aspects. The reader can understand Pi’s

As Pi grows up he is surrounded by Hindu culture and beliefs from his mother, as it is the “most common religion in the Indian subcontinent”(Carnagie,et al 239). “Hinduism is a South Asian religion based on traditions that emerged around 1500 BCE”(Carnagie,et al 239). Hinduism’s followers are called Hindus. “In India, Hinduism is called Sanatana Dharma, which means “eternal religion” or Vaidika Dharma, which means “religion of the Vedas,” a set of Hindu scriptures or holy writings”(Carnagie,et al 239). Hinduism “is the world’s third largest religion following, Christianity and Islam”(Carnagie,et al 239), which are the other two religions in the novel.

Pi`s name started popping up in the story when Pi said that he “was named after a swimming pool”(8) by his father`s friend named Francis Adirubasamy. Francis named Pi, Piscine Molitor Patel because he said that, “no swimming pool in [his] eyes matched the glory of the Piscine Molitor” (12), so that is the reason how Pi got his name. As a result of Pi`s name being Piscine Molitor Patel. It closely sounded like Pissing Molitor Patel, which later caused him to get bullied by teachers and students. Due to getting bullied because of his name. Pi was going to decide that he was going to change it. In the end, Pi change his name from Piscine to Pi or 3.14 to help stop the bullying, and also came up with a cool new nickname for himself too.

The name “Pi” in the novel “Life of Pi” was very significant in the story because it develops the character of Pi himself throughout the story to show his complexity. Pi is not only a name, but it is also used frequently in math as the number 3.14, which never changes. However, this number is only rounded to this value, there are actually too many decimals that make it hard for people to understand, so rounding it to a simple 3.14 makes it easier. The characteristics of this Pi relates to the character in a way. For example, the infinite amounts of decimals in 3.14 represents the different kinds of reality Pi has considered about the world. There are infinite point of views one can view the world as there are infinite decimals to numbers. This name develops Pi into more than a protagonist, but a constituting figure with multiple

The Life of Pi is a story about a young boy named Pi Patel, short for Piscine Patel. Pi was born and raised in India as the son of a zookeeper. At school, Pi was bullied because of his name. Kids thought it was funny because when you pronounce his first name sounds like you’re saying “pissing”. But that doesn’t stop him from learning and discovering new things. Being very curious, Pi begins to study many different religions, such as Islam, Christianity, and Hinduism; Even though his father says “Believing in everything at once, is the same thing as believing in nothing.”

Throughout Pi’s life at sea and after being rescued, he makes an example of many important figures and states of being in the Hindu religion. Pravritti: “people who choose to live in the world rather than withdraw from it.” (Carnagie et al.) The contradictory Nivritti: those who choose to withdraw from life. Dharma: “righteousness in one’s religious and personal life.” (Carnagie et al.) Finally, Artha: “prosperity and success in material affairs.” (Carnagie et al.) These four words play an important part on the happenings inside Pi’s mind, as well as how his life moves along.

Piscine Molitor Patel was tired of people misprouncing his name so the start of a new school he change his name to Pi. Pi had an interesting life, his

Pi develops an interest in science and religion essentially through two different people named Mr Kumar, Pi’s teachers during his childhood. Mr Kumar and Mr Kumar were the “prophets of [his] Indian youth”. The two Kumars are influential in Pi’s life and both represent either science or religion. Pi’s atheist biology teacher Mr. Kumar, introduces the idea of reason and science to Pi. Mr. Kumar, the biologist teacher sparks reason, logic and scientism within Pi.

Prompt: Yann Martel sprinkles the novel with italicized memories of the "real" Pi Patel and wonders in his author's note whether fiction is "the selective transformation of reality, the twisting of it to bring out its essence." If this is so, what is the essence of Pi? (Survival & Religion & To find the meaning or reason for unexpected acts by god or earth)

Pi’s name, whether readers think so or not, has a significant role in the novel Life of Pi. Not only does it foreshadow many events in the story, it also has a notable connection to the story’s major themes.