Life Of Pi And The Ocean

Great Essays
Setting in Life of Pi: The Relationship Between Pi and the Ocean The setting of a story plays a major role in the development of the plot throughout the novel. In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, the main character, Pi, is left without his family and only accompanied by an untrained Bengal tiger, Richard Parker. Surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, Pi is compelled to train the tiger for his own survival and faces several physical and spiritual challenges. The existence of these challenges is because of where the novel is set, Pi alone with the tiger, a lifeboat, a raft, and the Pacific Ocean. As a result of overcoming these obstacles, Pi is forced to change and further develop as a character. The significance of the setting is demonstrated through the …show more content…
Aside from satisfying his hunger and thirst, Pi must deal with Richard Parker and time. Pi, during a cold night of the ocean, ponders on how to survive with Richard Parker and concludes he must find a means of killing him to have the lifeboat all to himself. However, when Pi hears the “prusten” from Richard Parker, matters change, and Pi realizes that if Richard Parker dies, he “would be left alone with despair, a foe even more formidable than a tiger” (Martel 163-4). This demonstrates how Pi had developed to think more deeply and independently when preparing to take actions. Additionally, the enclosed surrounding teaches Pi responsibility, a key component to having independence. It can be noticed through the daily schedule that Pi creates. The fact that includes both his religious practices like praying in addition to maintaining the lifeboat for safety while also assuring that Richard Parker and he have breakfast, lunch, and dinner to satisfy their hunger and thirst. The extent of his responsibility is demonstrated when he gets “into the habit of cleaning up after Richard Parker” (Martel 210). Another example of Pi taking responsibility is the list he creates, of all the resources that he has along with him on his journey; the list includes physical items like “2 sea anchors” while also intangible items like “1 God” (Martel …show more content…
A conversation that Pi has with Mr. Kumar, the biology teacher foreshadows the value of faith. Although Mr. Kumar asserts that “[r]eligion is darkness,” Pi continues to believe that “[r]eligion will save us” (Martel 27). This foreshadows how faith will save Pi when he is alone in the ocean later in the story. An example of how faith helps Pi in the ocean is when he needs to be saved from the hyena and asks, “God, give me the time” and immediately afterwards, Richard Parker “had risen and emerged” steps in to kill the hyena which demonstrates the power of faith in survival. A literary critic, Paul Cockeram, similarly argues that his “faith, not his reason, enables Pi to survive” in such conditions (3). Cockeram supports his argument with a quote where Pi explains relying on reason would have resulted in his death. Another critic, June Dwyer, states that in the ocean, Pi searches to find companionship and “is simply grateful to have another sentient being sharing his ordeal” where Richard Parker satisfies these conditions (17). Both these critics imply that company was key to Pi’s survival, whether it was faith or Richard Parker, whom offer the support and hope that exists in

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    In the story of the Life of Pi, Piscine Patel is explaining to a secular author who was convinced that this man could make him believe in God. Thus, Piscine (Pi) tells an adventure from long ago. Pi explains that he was a young religious man born in India from zookeepers and is suddenly that he will move to Canada, as his father has job opportunities there, perhaps even better than in India. However, caos falls onto the boat to Canada and Pi is stranded on a raft with a zebra, hyena, orangutan and a tiger; although, the only left alive is him and the tiger. The story is all about how he and his survival instincts pull through and survive the rigorous challenges of the Atlantic Ocean.…

    • 1407 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    When Pi is lost at sea he faces emotional obstacles that he must overcome in order to survive. Pi knows that he must conquer his fear of Richard Parker and tame him in order survive. “I had to tame him. It was at that moment that I realized this necessity” (Martel 57). Pi must tame Richard Parker in order to stay on the lifeboat safely.…

    • 899 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Mrs. Erickson Lit Essay 12/07/2016 Life of Pi Life sometimes can be very awful and ugly, it is important to have the will to live because it is what keep you going in life. In the book “Life of Pi” by Yann Martel, a young teenager named Piscine whom the author called Pi, faced a dramatic accident in his life. While migrating to Canada with his family, his ship sank with an unexplainable cause, killing his whole family. Pi was left in a lifeboat with a hyena, orangutan and an adult Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. Both the hyena and orangutan did not survive, they died.…

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Pi Hero's Journey

    • 1733 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Everything in the world follow some sort of format whether it's building a rocketship or writing a story. The author Joseph Campbell studied the myth and made the famous claim that nearly all stories have similar ideas and the heroes' adventures are almost identical in their format. It describes the adventures and experiences that an archetypal hero would go through. The story of Pi on the boat also follows the format found in the hero’s journey of departure, initiation, and then return. During the departure he experiences the Ordinary world, the call to adventure and the crossing of the first threshold.…

    • 1733 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Pi’s persistent approach towards social survival endures countless obstacles: “I repeated the stunt with every teacher. Repetition is important in the training not only of animals but also of humans” (Martel 29). To prevent himself from a social disadvantage, Pi’s action clearly illustrates that one can effectively advocate for himself by the alteration of a situation. (-) Correspondingly, in the middle of Pi’s shipwrecked journey in sea, Pi frees himself from the dangers of the Carnivorous Island. He chooses to leave the carnivorous island, despite its innumerable benefits.…

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Pi’s suffering and survival instincts mentally dissipate Pi’s enjoyment of freedom that is essentially given to him through the vast setting of the Pacific Ocean. During the novel, readers become disconcerted with what the definition of freedom truly entails. It becomes more transparent that the definition of freedom is not a concrete idea, the idea of freedom is instead created from our own personal…

    • 1300 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    It is the irony of this story that the one who scared me witless to start with was very some who brought me peace, purpose, I dare say even wholeness(Martel, 204). Pi is able to avoid the signs of giving up by not being depressed while being stuck on the raft with Richard Parker in the middle of nowhere as well as not showing loneliness because in order to stay alive he had to fight his fear of tigers and build a…

    • 991 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    “The Life of Pi” and The Happiness of True Salvation The constant hope to find true happiness and bliss is an essential component of human nature. As Pi finds himself within the short reach of salvation he is overcome by relief as his days of hardship perchance to come to an end: “Can there be any happiness greater than the happiness of salvation?” (260).…

    • 1786 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Life of Pi is a fictional novel written by Yann Martel. The main character of this book is Piscine Molitor Patel, known to all as Pi Patel. He’s a sixteen year old gentle vegetarian who holds religion very dear to his heart. Overall he was stranded in the Pacific ocean for 227 days with a tiger named Richard Parker. The book is divided into 3 parts, Toronto and Pondicherry, The Pacific Ocean, and Benito Juarez Infirmary, Tomatlan, Mexico.…

    • 2013 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Life of Pi Essay Life has tons of struggles, problems, and challenges in it that we all have to go through, but sometimes, those issues can turn into something much more. In the novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel, we follow Piscine Molitor Patel, a young boy who goes from his home in India where his father runs a zoo to stranded in the middle of the sea on a lifeboat with a tiger. Pi has many beliefs that were formulated while he lived in India that we see appear on the lifeboat. These beliefs helped him survive through his time of peril. Pi’s three beliefs are that religion is important, routine makes life less complicated, and that someone needs to take charge in order for things to go right.…

    • 1238 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Life Of Pi Animals

    • 1400 Words
    • 6 Pages

    In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, we will learn how animals and humans may share the same characteristics. According to Pi, we can see that whether it was a tiger, zebra, hyena, and an orangutan or a cook, sailor, a mother, and Pi, the story works with both sets of characters because humans and animals are very similar. Sometimes we do not realize that our actions in our everyday lives are feral but in this day and age it has become normal in society. Humans and animals are very alike, but in the end we all share the same desire to survive even though we do it differently. An animal can represent a human by linking the characteristics together and comparing.…

    • 1400 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Life of Pi is a meta-fiction that inquires the reader’s faith. Using meta-fiction to his advantage, Matel questions the disparity between reality and imaginary. In his novel, he explores the contrast of mother nature, her gentle aura and her cruel behaviour. Her gentle side is demonstrated through the protagonist’s interpretation of the fauna and flora. Whereas, her cruel side is illustrated by Pi’s vivid encounter with ferocious animals.…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This shows that Pi believes that when God is with him, he could survive anything. This brings together the themes of spirituality and survival. Pi relies on religion to survive. One of the main reason he has survived is because of his connection to God. This point of the novel is really important because it shows that even though Pi has lost his innocence at the end of the novel, he hasn't lost his connection to religion.…

    • 1484 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Secondly, Pi continuous to practice his religious faith at sea and his belief in God give him more hope and strength. Lastly, Pi faiths keep him emotionally stable. To begin, Richard Parker is not only and animal but he is also the faith and strength of Piscine. Moreover, without Richard Parker, Pi would have not had the strength to survive in the middle of the ocean.…

    • 758 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Life Of Pi Religion Essay

    • 434 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Being alone in a boat after being part of a devastating accident made Pi find himself more. Pi was in god’s hand through the whole journey. ”Faith is an opening up, a letting go, a deep trust, a free act of love”, Pi finds himself loving life through this unique kind of journey. His mind developed so much by understanding life more through learning how to survive on a boat in the middle of nowhere and trying to tame Richard Parker the Tiger.…

    • 434 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays