Sasha Furey, 3/9/19
Life of pi:
Pi, an inquisitive, young intellect, tells the story of his life, which, as mentioned, begins in his
youth. Early on in the novel, Pi explains the origins of his unique name, whilst introducing
key characters. Of incredible intellectual capacity, Pi meets various significant religious
people, and who all simultaneously lead him to take on the different religious beliefs of
them all. His parents, who own Pondicherry zoo, are supportive of their blossoming child,
and passionate about the zoo. Early on, Pi learns an important lesson: to treat the animals
that his is surrounded by, with ultimate respect, or face the consequences (a lesson which
echoes throughout the rest of the novel). This part forces us to stop and think about our
levels of respect for certain beings, and to what level we take things for granted. “There are
animals we haven’t stopped by. Don’t think they’re harmless. Life will defend itself no
matter how small it is.”
Martel exploits Pi's eagerness to make enquiries about the meaning of certain actions to
bring to the attention of the reader, debates including welfare of zoo animals and how
content they actually are. “A good zoo is a perfectly worked-out coincidence.”
One day, there comes an awkward time for Pi as the religions and their respective
representatives come together and argue over which religion Pi should confine his beliefs
to. His parents, who raised him Hindu find this troubling. Despite this, Pi is determined to
stay true to his reasons for becoming religious in the first place.
The story makes sudden progress when Pondicherry zoo uproots and sets off by boat to
Canada. The ship sinks, but Martel slows this part down to analyse the way people behave
in a crisis. ‘(Pi) I stood nailed to the sport, frightened and incredulous and ignorant of what I
should do next’, ‘Where were the officers and the crew? What were they doing?’. This
disaster leaves Pi as the only human to be left alive, having made it onto a lifeboat, along
with a Hyena, Orangutan, Tiger and Zebra. The Hyena mercilessly eats the Orangutan and
Zebra, and consequently the Tiger eats the Hyena. Now, it is only Pi and the Tiger who
remain, lasting months on the lifeboat, however during this time Pi lives in constant
trepidation due to his knowledge about Tigers and their characteristics. This makes for an
apprehensive read.
Eventually they reach an Island where they both survive for some time. But this tricky
dynamic carries on. This disappointed me as I would have hoped that this salvation from
their habits on the boats would bring more respite/relief.
Eventually Pi and Richard Parker (the Tiger) leave the Island, then wash up on a Mexican
beach, where Richard Parker disappears into a Jungle and Pi is recovered by locals. He never
sees Richard Parker again. He is interviewed by two officials who do not believe his story. He
then tells a different version where the animals are replaced by people and gets them to
decide which story they prefer. Pi bids them goodbye with God’s blessings. A report is filed
which favours the story with the animals.
This book, in an anecdote-style replay of Pi’s life, has succeeded in every aspect, to enrich
and challenge my mind. Yann Martel masterfully creates a multi-layered adventure which
grips the reader, due to its carefully constructed narrative and philosophical meaning. The
Sasha Furey, 3/9/19
novel contained three particular techniques, which Martel seemed to gravitate towards,
and that I very much appreciated; the first is the symbolism throughout, which added more
levels of meaning and morals. Martel’s use of metaphors, for instance ‘In a second everyone
was laughing. It fell away as we filed into the class. I walked in last, wearing my crown of
thorns.’ (The book contains many powerful thoughts and views on the topic of religion). The
second of the techniques is the incredible level of description and use of listing throughout.
Sometimes overly graphic depictions appear towards the end, when the plot reaches a
climax, however one becomes so engrossed and curious, you cannot help but read on. The
third of the techniques is the element of comedy and mocking the way in which we perceive
the world, using sarcasm; this surprised me as I would have not imagined that sarcasm,
however subtle, would be a common technique used in such a literary novel. This allowed
me to involve myself and reflect on the way I see certain aspects of life.
Yann Martel has written a truly spectacular novel, which unquestionably deserves all of the
hype that surrounded it, as it is a profound blend of philosophy, religion and adventure.