Pi Hero's Journey

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.

The Hero’s Journey can be found in various films including “Big Hero 6”. If you have already seen this movie then you will know how Hiro, our main character, progresses throughout the 12 stages of the hero’s journey. In this movie Big Hero 6, Hiro Hamada shows what it means to be an epic hero throughout his journey with his diverse group of friends to save his world. In Hiro’s ordinary world, Hiro, who graduated from high school at 13 and is very smart, bot fights in a dark alley.

Religious people often sacrifice their beloved items such as food, jewelers, and even animals in order to impress God, so they can fulfill their wishes and desires. In the novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel, the author tries to relate individual’s life’s goals and sacrifices through the characters of his story. In order to survive, the main character of the novel- Pi - sacrifices his beliefs and integrity. The young, bookish, and religious boy faces the harsh truth of reality. He stays with Richard Parker-a Bengali tiger-on the dangerous journey of his life. Throughout the novel, he learns about sacrifices and he himself gives sacrifice. One of the major themes is sacrifice; Martel argues that sacrifices are often essential in order to gain higher goals.

Humans generally face struggles in their lifetime. Such struggles could be within themselves or with someone or something else but commonly stem from some sort of opposition in lifestyle. In Yann Martel’s novel, Life of Pi, Pi’s passion for personal survival conflicts with his moral obligations to himself internally, morphing his external character.

The uplifting story of an underdog hockey team at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York is told by the film Miracle. The team is composed of many college hockey players trying to better their game play. Tryouts come and go and it is when Coach Herb Brooks reads the final roster of the 1980 Olympic Men’s Hockey Team that starts the beginning of the greatest moment in sports history.

What images come to mind as you reflect on your childhood? Playgrounds, blackboards, and soccer balls may be among the warmest of memories. Yet for many mermaids swim their thoughts, princesses get swept of their feet, and lions roar to their loyal place in the animal kingdom. There is no doubt that today’s entertainment has most of its touch using classical influences. Walt Disney has produced animated films that have captured the heart and imagination of audiences of all ages around the world through the magic of storytelling and imagery. Many of us appreciate the imagination and magic that Disney puts into its animations with out knowing they are based off of classical and traditional storylines

The night air was heavy with silence. Clouds drifted across a calm sky, and a full moon shone in the distance. In a small hut on the outskirts of the valley, an old man lay in bed, awake in the peaceful slumber of the village. His breaths came in rattling gasps, his forehead burned, and his joints felt stiff with pain. He shifted on the blankets, his withered hands clenched in fists as he tried to suppress the wave of bitter memories coming to him. His life had been nothing more than work, loss, tragedy. He remembered all of his hope, his ambition, in his youth, and he smiled bitterly. No one would remember him as the man that he had once hoped he would become. Now, as his breathing became heavier and he felt himself fading on the brink of

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

Joseph Campbell, an American mythological researcher, wrote a famous book entitled The Hero with a Thousand Faces In his lifelong research Campbell discovered many common patterns running through hero myths and stories from around the world. Years of research lead Campbell to discover several basic stages that almost every hero-quest goes through Many followers of Campbell have defined the stages of his mono-myth in various ways, sometimes supplying different names for certain stages. For this reason there are many different versions of the Hero’s Journey that retain the same basic elements. these steps are ;ordinary world : This step refers to the hero's normal life at the start of the story, before the adventure begins. Call to Adventure:

Life of Pi shows that humans and animals should do anything necessary to survive whatever challenges they face to live instead of just accepting death. Whatever ways that help one to survive are necessary, even if they compromise personal values, are vicious, or are wicked. Pi, a human; a hyena, and a blind man all fight to survive in a variety of ways that are examples of this thesis.

Joseph Campbell describes the 17 stages that occur during a hero’s journey, also known as Monomyth. The Odyssey by Homer is a story based on Ulysses and his journey, I will be describing the stages of Monomyth based on Campbell’s ideas. These stages will focus on Ulysses and his son Telemachus. According to Joseph Campbell, a hero’s journey normally entails three phases; the departure, the initiation, and the return. (Wikipedia)

Each change of situation helped Pi make good decisions that not only improved his identity but also receive the experience of a lifetime he can count on. By fulfilling his physiological and basic needs while on the ocean, Pi improved his abilities to become fearless, resourceful and physically stronger. Pi needed to take the grim decision to leave behind his vegetarian diet to fulfill his basic needs. Although, this decision was uncontrollable he was able to overpower his desperation by leaving the algae island. Pi proved that when individuals face adverse situations when lacking physiological needs, basic needs and desperation gain the ability to adapt to their change of situation by improving their identities. Humans are faced with obstacles in their lives of which they must overcome by adapting to the situation. This experience helps them gain new elements to their

In Life of Pi, by Yann Martel, a boy named Piscine Patel, known to many as Pi, finds himself trapped on a small lifeboat with animals after he evacuates a sinking ship. The ship was used for transporting himself, his family, and the animals from the family’s zoo to Canada. Yann Martel uses the literary devices characterization, setting and imagery to highlight the theme the will to live during Pi’s voyage in hope surviving. Piscine Patel is characterized as someone who takes good care of their body as he heads to diner.

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.