Literary Essay
Imagine being stranded alone in a boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Canadian author, Yann Martel’s fourth book, Life of Pi portrays Pi Patel, the protagonist, stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean fighting for his survival after a shipwreck killing all of his family. Pi is originally stranded with a zebra, a hyena, a Bengal tiger and an orang-utan. All the animals were eventually killed except for Richard Parker, the tiger and Pi left on the boat. This was the beginning of a traumatic journey into the unknown. In the Life of Pi, hope is an important element of Pi’s physical survival, emotional wellbeing and his preservation of faith throughout his tumultuous 227 days at sea alone in a lifeboat with a 450 lb. Bengal …show more content…
Hope and faith are symbiotic. With hope, there is always faith. Born as a Hindu, Pi espouses two other religions, Christianity and Islam as he is very interested in loving God, the universal God. Pi has a strict routine of daily prayers and rituals. Pi prays and connects to Allah, Vishnu and Christ five times a day. “I practiced religious rituals that I adapted to the circumstances, solitary Masses without priests or consecrated communion…”(263) “Sunrise to Mid morning: ...prayers...Mid morning to late afternoon: ...prayers… Late afternoon to early evening: ...prayers… Sunset: ...prayers… Night: ...prayers...:”(240-241). Pi’s prayers strengthen his hope to be alive and to be rescued one day. At times of despair, Pi’s faith keeps him hopeful. Pi reminds himself that God is everywhere in his daily life. Even when he is almost struck by the lightning, he views it as a wonderful miracle from God. “Yes, so long a God is with me, I will not die. Amen.”(186) “The presence of God is the finest rewards.”(79). Pi’s hope and faith keep him connected to God. If there is hope, there is faith. With faith, comes hope. Through the traumatic events at sea, Pi continues to work very hard in his daily life to keep his faith. Hope and faith are closely interconnected and important for survival in difficult
Imagine being stranded alone in a boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Canadian author, Yann Martel’s fourth book, Life of Pi portrays Pi Patel, the protagonist, stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean fighting for his survival after a shipwreck killing all of his family. Pi is originally stranded with a zebra, a hyena, a Bengal tiger and an orang-utan. All the animals were eventually killed except for Richard Parker, the tiger and Pi left on the boat. This was the beginning of a traumatic journey into the unknown. In the Life of Pi, hope is an important element of Pi’s physical survival, emotional wellbeing and his preservation of faith throughout his tumultuous 227 days at sea alone in a lifeboat with a 450 lb. Bengal …show more content…
Hope and faith are symbiotic. With hope, there is always faith. Born as a Hindu, Pi espouses two other religions, Christianity and Islam as he is very interested in loving God, the universal God. Pi has a strict routine of daily prayers and rituals. Pi prays and connects to Allah, Vishnu and Christ five times a day. “I practiced religious rituals that I adapted to the circumstances, solitary Masses without priests or consecrated communion…”(263) “Sunrise to Mid morning: ...prayers...Mid morning to late afternoon: ...prayers… Late afternoon to early evening: ...prayers… Sunset: ...prayers… Night: ...prayers...:”(240-241). Pi’s prayers strengthen his hope to be alive and to be rescued one day. At times of despair, Pi’s faith keeps him hopeful. Pi reminds himself that God is everywhere in his daily life. Even when he is almost struck by the lightning, he views it as a wonderful miracle from God. “Yes, so long a God is with me, I will not die. Amen.”(186) “The presence of God is the finest rewards.”(79). Pi’s hope and faith keep him connected to God. If there is hope, there is faith. With faith, comes hope. Through the traumatic events at sea, Pi continues to work very hard in his daily life to keep his faith. Hope and faith are closely interconnected and important for survival in difficult