Using Imagination to Cope with Suffering in Life of Pi

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.” –Albert Einstein

The power of imagination can be described as invincible. With the use of imagination, one can reach undefined triumphs and create a new powerful world. In the book, Life of Pi, by Yann Martel, a blooming young boy named Pi Patel begins to develop a wondrous mind that expands his knowledge, true meaning of independence and value of life. His imagination is what allows him to cope and get through his suffering. The role of his imagination and stories are extremely significant in the sense that these telling are completely irrelevant to his current situation. Forcing him to not feel alone, he creates a solution using his imaginative trait as a distraction from reality.

Pi Patel is a sixteen year old boy whose imagination can be described to such an extent that one may actually believe it. Imagination is of great important and a prime and positive quality that Pi possessed. Religiously speaking, Pi is a very proud Hindu and although he lacks nothing, he wants more. When introduced to one religion after another he learns the importance of storytelling while also becoming aware of wording things differently even though the moral of the story is the same throughout. Being born a Hindu, Pi once heard the story of Christianity and gained the desire to become one. In response to Pi’s request, the Priest says, “You already are, Piscine-in your heart. Whoever meets Christ in good faith is a Christian. Here in Munnar you met Christ.” (Page 63) Pi began to think that he himself is Christian and will practice the faith. When b...

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... of priority in his mind rather than trying to figure out more survival methods. With that said, towards the end of the novel, telling and describing these random events in detail was his survival method Even though they were false it is what distracted Pi from reality and was an excellent pass time for him as well.

Life of Pi is an excellent and well-written novel by Yann Martel and expresses the idea of imagination. With that we can achieve many things such as survival as shown by Pi who did just that and turned out perfectly fine. Everyone has different ways of coping with things in their life but whatever it is; the goal is to distract oneself from reality. Pi is a young boy who has experienced many hardships and suffering realistically but also experienced many wild and unrealistic events imaginatively and that is what in the end, allowed to him to survive.