When writing, authors need to think of their audience and involve an element of surprise. Authors use plot twists in their writing to help them accomplish surprising the audience, allowing them to keep their audience’s interest. Not only do plot twists help keep the audience’s attention, they also make the audience question their beliefs about what they think of the story. Authors can use this tool to advance their themes. Yann Martel uses a crazy plot twist in his book, the Life of Pi, to suggest to readers that truth is relative.
In the beginning of the Life of Pi, Yann Martel establishes his theme of truth being relative through the main character, Pi. When Pi was confronted about worshiping three different religions, he says, “Bapu Gandhi said, ‘All religions are true.’ I just want to love God” (69). In stating this, the audience is given a brief glimpse of Pi’s worldview. Additionally, when Pi is explaining how Atheists have their own views of truth, he says, “Atheists are my brothers and sisters of a different faith, and every word they speak speaks of faith” (28). He believes that even atheists are religious because they believe is that there is no God. Yann Martel is showing, through Pi’s words, that truth depends on a person’s beliefs. Further along in the story, Pi asks his mother for a Islam pray rug and a Christian baptism. His mother tells him if he going to be religious he can only practice one religion, not three. In response to his mother Pi asks her, “If there’s only one nation in the sky, shouldn’t all passports be valid for it?” (74). Pi response again shows Pi’s worldview; what religion people practice does not matter, but who they are worshipping is more important. What religion people believe to be ...
... middle of paper ...
...same, that is their truth.
Truth is relative; this means that truth is what people want to believe. Yann Martel has built this idea throughout the story, from Pi’s beginning life through his rescue. When Pi asks the interviewers which story is better, Yann Martel is allowing his audience to choose their own truths, and to choose which story they think is the better one. Pi’s truth is that he lived through the shipwreck; the way he survived is not important, just factual differences. The same can be said about religion. What religions people practice does not matter, just factual differences, but who the people worship is the biggest importance. Yann Martel is making people think about what their truth is and decide for themselves what they want to believe to be true.
Works Cited
Martel, Yann. Life of Pi. New York: Harcourt, Inc., 2001.
Stranded for 227 days at sea in a lifeboat, with no one else except an adult Bengal tiger. This is exactly what the main character Pi, in "The Life of Pi" went through. "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel is a story about a boy named Piscine Molitor Patel, an Indian boy who survives more than seven months floating on a lifeboat in the Pacific Ocean, with no one else but a 450-pound tiger (Cooper). Yann Martel was born on June 25, 1963, in Salamanca, Spain. His parents, Emile Martel and Nicole Perron, were both born in Canada. He spent his childhood in several different countries, including France, Mexico, the United States, Canada, and Costa Rica. As an adult, he lived in many other places but one of them was India, which may be where he got inspiration for writing “Life of Pi”. Yann Martel uses the literary elements similes and foreshadowing, to express the theme that believing in religion can give you the faith to want to survive.
Storytelling is a way of expressing one’s imagination through fanciful adventures and serve a variety of purposes. One important reason is to capture a special moment and endure it but mostly because it unites us and of course entertains us. In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, and Tim Burton’s The Big Fish, storytelling is seen as more important than the truth. Throughout the novel Life of Pi, and the film The Big Fish, it can be argued that the truth is intertwined with the lies in each story to form a new kind of truth. An example of this would be when Pi retells his story to the two Japanese men in a way in which he makes the animals human and introduces a different version of the truth. Both the film and movie also share a unique way of story telling because what they both share is a common moral “quest” which involves the main character, who is usually the hero, must overcome challenges in order to achieve a goal or reward at the end.
The twists in the plot start with the exposition and rising action in the short story.
As Pi is an active disciple of three separate religions, one would assume he has a shifting opinion on reality and it’s roots. Despite seeing himself as a practicing Hindu, Christian, and Muslim, he believes that there is a unity of all things. This contradicts
Why should reader acknowledge both stories? Martel withheld which story to be the “truth” therefore stating either story to be the sole story would be mere speculation. If one were to assume either story to be the truth, it is dependent on the reader’s mindset, bias, and experience. However what they believe to be the correct answer is an assumption. “You can’t prove which story is true and which is not. You must take my word for it.” ( p.352) There is no way of proving Pi story to be true or to be false. Regardless, we are taking Pi word that he is indeed answering the question. Being the sole survivor of the shipwreck, he alone is the only one who can tell the tale. “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 the animals or the story without animals?” (p.352) Both stories make no difference to the reader,
The power of Imagination can give humans the will power to accomplish anything. In the book Life of Pi by Yann Martell Imagination helped Pi the main character get through his long journey aboard a lifeboat. Over the course of this story Pi encounters many different situations where he needs to use his imagination. Towards the end of the book you as the reader have the option to believe the story you just read or a second story, a more vulgar and less interesting story. As the reader you have to use your imagination just like how Pi needed to use his imagination. Imagination allowed Pi to survive by keeping him sane, protecting him and lastly to acquire the traits of telling a beautiful story.
Choices play a prominent role in ensuring comfort and happiness in life. People make choices, which ultimately shape their lives. In Yann Martel’s The Life of Pi, the main character, Pi Patel is forced to make choices, which go against his morals, but ultimately keep him alive. This becomes clear when Pi chooses to change his person by eating meat. Pi then chooses to eliminate all personal boundaries, due to his incredible will to survive. Finally, he chooses to view all of the people on the life boat as animals in order to cope with the psychological distress of being lost at sea. When faced with choices, Pi puts all morals behind him to survive.
From the beginning of the novel it is pretty clear that religion is a major issue in the life of Pi Patel. “I have kept up what some people would consider my strange religious practices”(3). However, when the Christian and Islamic faiths are presented to him, he can’t decide which practice he wants to call his own. In fact, he wants to know why can’t he be all three of them. The reason Pi can’t decide on which religious practice he will be ultimately faithful to is because he notice so man similarities in the three of them. Mainly the Christian and Islamic practices. When asked why doesn’t he choose between the three he replies, “I just want to love God” (69). Be that as it may, his faith(s) are soon put to the ultimate test.
Life of Pi begins with an author’s note in which Martel describes being told by the character Mamaji that Pi has “‘a story that will make you believe in God’” (ix). This essentially sets up the basis for the entire theme of the novel. The main character, Pi, claims to practice three religions simultaneously: Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam (Martel 81). Much of Pi’s explanation of his own childhood consists of his own religious journeys. He begins with an explanation of how his aunt introduced him to Hinduism upon ...
“Religion is that system of activities and beliefs directed toward that which is perceived to be of sacred value and transforming power.” (James Livingston) In the story “Life of Pi”, the main character Pi practices 3 religions all at once. (Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism) Although the 3 are very different from each other, Pi ignores the clashing views and finds coexistence and equal love for them. Pi born
Pi is a very religious person who had many beliefs, which causes some issues with his family. At one point, all of his religious teachers were in an argument over Pi’s beliefs, in which he replies “Bapu Gandhi said ‘all religions are true’ I just want to love God.” (Martel, 69). This furthered Pi’s bravery when he was able to stick up for himself in
The author left the reader thinking about how religion and faith can have an impact in our lives positively. Religion can affect our choices in life, and faith In the novel, Pi grows up to be a religious man, growing up in a place with diverse culture. He believes that “religion is about choosing the better story”. Therefore, he learns to worship three religion - Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.
Pi is an indian, but except Hinduism, he also believes in Christianity and Islam. It is pretty unusual. However, these three religions save his life when he meets storm on the sea. Religion is a key component in Pi’s survival because it lets him understand that he has to coexist with other creatures, it leads Pi to accept that even if he did not survive he would be redeemed, and it gives Pi the hope for survival.
People don't truly accept life for what it is until they've actually tasted adversity and went through those misfortunes and suffering. We are put through many hardships in life, and we learn to understand and deal with those issues along the way. We find that life isn't just about finding one's self, but about creating and learning from our experiences and background. Adversity shapes what we are and who we become as individuals. Yann Martel's Life of Pi shows us that adverse situations help shape a person's identity and play a significant role in one's lief by determining one's capabilities and potential, shaping one's beliefs and values, and defining the importance and meaning of one's self.
Imagine being stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean in a lifeboat, not alone but with some carnivorous animals, as company. The chances of survival do not seem so high, but when one has the will to survive, they can do anything to attain it. Pi Patel and his family are on their way to Canada from Pondicherry, India, when their cargo ship the Tsimtsum sinks. Pi is not the only survivor of the ship, along with him is a hyena, an injured zebra, an orangutan and a 450-pound orange Bengal tiger. Pi travels across the Pacific Ocean in only a lifeboat, with food dwindling quickly, he needs to find land and most of all survive the voyage. In Life of Pi; Yann Martel develops the idea that having the will to survive is a crucial key to survival; this is demonstrated through symbolism of the colour orange, having religion on the protagonist’s side and the thirst and hunger experienced by the protagonist.