Yann Martel's Life Of Pi: Literary Analysis

During the seventeenth century, the scientific revolution in Europe was at its peak, changing people’s lives through the new techniques of the scientific method. Citizens of western civilizations had previously used religion as the lens through which they perceived their beliefs and customs in their communities. Before the scientific revolution, science and religion were intertwined, and people were taught to accept religious laws and doctrines without questioning; the Church was the ultimate authority on how the world worked. However, during this revolution, scientists were inspired to learn and understand the laws of the universe had created, a noble and controversial move toward truth seeking. The famous scientists of the time, such as Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo and Newton, were known to be natural philosophers, intending to reveal God’s mystery and understand (through proof) the majesty of God. Throughout previous centuries, people had hypothesized how the world and natural phenomenon may work, and new Protestant ideals demanded constant interrogation and examination. Nevertheless, some of these revelations went against the Church’s teachings and authority. If people believed the Church could be wrong, then they could question everything around them, as well. As a result, the introduction of the scientific method, a process by which scientists discovered and proved new theories, was revolutionary because it distinguished what could be proved as real from what was simply

Another controversial issue dealing with Life of Pi that is not necessarily in the book but rather dealing with people who have read the book. Many people believe the story Pi tells about being at sea with the animals is truth, while others believe it is with people. There have actually been debates on whether or not the people version is true. Which, in the book, it says, “So tell me, since it makes no factual difference to you and you can’t prove the question either way, which story do you prefer? Which is the better story, the story with animals or the story without animals?” (Martel 317). It does not actually state which story is the truth, but the reader must make their own inference to piece together what they think.

In the novel, Life of Pi, by Yann Martel, the theme of truth is seen most prominently in the last part of the book when main character, Piscine Patel is being interviewed by two Japanese men. Pi defines truth as being relative and an invention of man, when the believability of his story is questioned. He argues that even stories, such as his, can still be true to some no matter how difficult to believe they are.

In Yann Martel’s novel Life of Pi, he wants the reader to decipher whether his first story or his second story is real. The first story consists of the protagonist, Piscine Patel, being trapped on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger, Richard Parker, and many other animals from his father’s zoo after they were lost together at sea. In the second story, Piscine re-tells a different story with a chef, his mother, and a sailor, this was to give the Japanese investigators “a story that wont surprise them (you)” (Martel 302). Martel clearly wishes the reader to understand why “Pi” might

Yann Martel’s theme of truth being relative is again established when Pi experiences a shipwrecked. On the lifeboat, Pi continues to survive living with a bengal tiger, he survives after seeing the other animals on the boat kill each other, and he survives by eating fish even though he is a vegetarian. Inspite of all the suffering Pi is going through he still turns towards God. This is proved when Pi says, “I practised religious rituals that I adapted to the circumstances – solitary Masses without priests or consecrated Communion Hosts, darshans without murtis, and pujas with turtle meat for prasad, acts of devotion to Allah not knowing where Mecca was and getting my Arabic wrong. They brought me comfort, that is certain. But it was hard, oh, it was hard. Faith in God is an opening up, a letting go, a deep trust, a free act of love – but sometimes it was so hard to love. Sometimes my heart was sinking so fast with anger, desolation and weariness, I was afraid it would sink to the very bottom of the Pacific and I would not be able to lift it back up...The blackness would stir and eventually go away, and God would remain, a shining light in my heart. I would go on loving” (208-209). Through this quote, Yann Martel is showing how Pi continues to worship God even though he was suffering and struggling with his faith. Pi still believes that God is the most important to him inspite of what his is going through emotionally

But it’s up to the reader to see what story they truly believe. When Pi tried to explain his story to the investigators about what really happened on the lifeboat and about the island only made of algae, or that a banana can flout the investigators demanded that Pi would say the truth. During this time Pi told the investigators how Richard Parker saved Pi’s life multiple times. One of them was one the hyena was

They did not want to believe his encounters with animals so they decided to rather stretch the truth. The image of a cook cannibalizing his mother and the other sailor and then Pi eating them sounded incredibly horrifying. The animal story seems to be unacceptable as a “true” account. Instead of Pi standing his ground about what was truly happens, he gives the men the choice as to which story they wanted to believe or recount as the “true” story. Of course, they choose the one with the animals, as it is in some ways easier to “believe” than the one that is perhaps more

All in all as Pi faces struggle first hand, his moral values are tested by extreme difficulties resulting in a loss of innocence. Although when Pi is on the boat he faces challenges that lead him to loss of moral value when Pi returns to society he knows he has to put animalistic behaviors behind him. Pi does not remain a savage forever, it is only when he re emergences into the real world he can regain a sense of

It seems that in Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, the gist is to make the readers believe in God. Martel delivers this using Piscine (Pi) Molitor Patel, the protagonist of the book. Pi is a young boy who shows lots of love and devotion towards God, that when he is stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean the only way of survival is to have faith, in which Pi does have. Martel also bases the central theme of the book relating to human faith in God where Pi represents this as he is a follower of three different religions. Finally, the narrator who is an older Pi gives two stories at the end of the book, which story is the truth is unknown that is why the narrator gives the choice to

Does Martel’s Life of Pi treatment of religion give power to God or does it give power to works of fiction? Instead of giving power to the one versus the other, Martel is not trying to get the reader to believe in God, to prove his existence, but rather there is a justification of a person’s individual right to choose in believing in God. Life of Pi doesn’t try to question religion as an institution, but rather there is a focus on the debate between fact and fiction where “Martel’s position is a postmodernist one, from the perspective of which God’s existence has the same status in relation to truth and reality as Pi’s experience of shipwreck” (Stratton 6). In Martel’s work there isn’t a focus on what is to be more believable in either fiction or religion, but rather how there are no other alternative in between the two.

Similarly both stories include Pi being shipwrecked with hungry individuals who must fight to survive. First story he is with animals and the second story he is with members of the ship’s crew. Both stories include conflict and violence in order to survive. The line between humanity and what is animalistic becomes blurred. When survival is threatened, people and animals will do anything to survive. The animal story is more fictional and

Life of Pi, written by Yann Martel, follows the life of Piscine Molitor Patel who physically endured over two hundred days on a directionless lifeboat with only a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker as a companion. When Pi is first recovered and put into a hospital, he is forced to recount his detailed story to a couple of judgemental Japanese correspondents, Mr.Okamoto and Mr.Chiba, who not only do not believe his story, but laugh in his face as he vocalizes it. They believe Pi’s tale is nothing more than just that; a fictional tale which he invented. Despite Pi embellishing the events that occurred into almost complete fiction and unbelievability, such events did happen, just not in the same way Pi explains. With taking Mamaji’s initial promise into consideration, Pi’s story involving animals is the better story. To begin Martel’s novel Mamaji says that Pi’s story was one that would make one believe in God. The story without animals is not only brutal, depressing, and traumatizing but it also disregards the fun of believing in something for the sole purpose of wanting to. Pi Patel furthers this idea when he says “If you stumble at mere believability, what are you living for?...Love is hard to believe, ask any lover. Life is hard to believe, ask any scientist. God is hard to believe, ask any believer. (Martel 297). Pi explains it best, his story with animals may be unbelievable;however, unbelievable things occur every day. He agrees with the condescending Japanese men, in the aspect that his story is unimaginable, yet challenges them by forcing them to think.

Animals imagery can change the story to male it more attractive and mysterious. In this adventure, Pi lost everything. At the beginning of the novel, Pi was surrounded by animals instead of humans. At the end, Pi was alone on an island. Richard Parker is not only the tiger, but also Pi’s best friend or even Pi’s shadow. However, Richard Parker used to live in the forest, and Pi needs go back to the real world. Therefore, the animals imagery can maintain Pi’s shadow—Richard Parker in his mind forever; moreover, this adventure of Pacific Ocean is an unforgettable and valuable memory which was happened on Richard Parker which is a tiger and a courageous Indian

Yann Martel and Pi from the beginning of the novel “Life of Pi” were trying to win over your trust. Martel knew from the beginning this would be a hard story to believe, but what people don’t realize is there is a story in a story.

You see it everywhere, whether it's in movies, songs, books, or in real life, you see people ignoring the harsh realities and using excuses of much variety to help them ignore the simple but horrific truths. Situations take place every single day that have realities that are too horrible for people to want to believe, therefore forcing them to ignore the authenticity of a situation in favor for a story that lacks both factuality and reasoning. Although most people ignore the realities, the fact of the matter is that it is not physically possible for someone to go even one day without choosing the better story or ignoring the reality of a pressing issue or situation that occurred during the day. It was seen in the book Life of Pi, written by Yann Martel, that the main character, Pi Patel, suffers a horrific event known as the sinking of the Japanese cargo ship The Tsimtsum. Although the situation at hand is rough he survives aboard a lifeboat with limited supplies and only an adult Bengal Tiger by the name of Richard Parker to keep him company. Towards the end of the well written novel, Pi reveals to us during an interview with a pair Japanese reporters that there was an alternate story that may be the most factual. However, due to the fact that there have been two told stories about Pi Patel’s survival at sea, it is up to society to choose the better story, the one that they think is the reality. As was stated by the author, Yann Martel, “ Reality is an interpretation, a