Life of Pi. Search this site. Yann Martel Biography. Narrative Structure. Confined Freedom vs. Free Confinement. Man vs. The Island. The Ending. Awards and Praise for Life of Pi. Life of Pi - A Film. I think only in movies is horror vocal. Free Confinement Religion Man vs. The Island "I did not scream. When he is nearly dead from starvation, Pi happens upon a island. There were meerkat bones and he said he used the heads for bait. He left the island with a bunch of skinned meerkats.
He had to be at sea again for a while to only have bones and had used all the heads already for bait. In any case I am in the camp that the story with the animals is the real story. Mar 04, AM. I loved your interpretation. I think that spiritually, the island was a point of renewal, granted him right when he needed it, truly a gift of mercy from God.
In time, he learned that he couldn't stay forever, because it would indeed prove his downfall. I think that each of us reach that point repeatedly in our lives. We come to an intersection, and we must make the choice to stay within our comfort zone, or to move on to the next level. I am a devout Mormon and we literally believe that to stop progressing, attaining, trying, achieving, can and will prove key to our spiritual deaths.
I absolutely do not think you have read too much into your interpretation. Mar 06, PM. Weren't there rodent bones in the boat, that would support that the island story is true? I do see how the two competing stories, animal and human, reflect the competing philosophies of faith and atheism. Because the tiger story is more wonderful, it's an idea of the beauty of faith. At the same time though, Pi appreciates atheism, but he scorns agnosticism. So here, being doubtful about which story is true is not a good resolution for the reader.
The reader needs to believe one or the other. Mar 10, PM. In a religious context this island is similar to the garden of Eden. Pi sees himself content here and yet he does not understand where he is. Once he partakes of the fruit, his eyes are open and he is enlightened with knowledge which helps him to understand what the island really is.
I think that this island has major religious symbolism Mar 15, AM. To me the island was a 'hint' that the second story represented the truth, in that the island was something someone in a delirious or semi-conscious state would dream up.
He had withdrawn into his mind to survive--his body having shut down and his conscious mind unable to process what it had witnessed. Mar 17, PM. I totally agree with the previous comments that reading that last few pages was maddening. I was angry as well, but I still really liked the book. It's a strange combo. The island thing was really confusing, but for me, I was so wrapped up in the ending that I placed the island in the back of my thoughts and let the authors intenstions of confusion and symbolism take foreground.
PS: After much thought and haunting from this book, I stick with my gut--first story is true. Mar 28, PM. I, personally, can't say whether the original story was true or not but either way I found that the story would have been considerably less interesting and thought provoking if the island hadn't been included.
I mean, just imagine what the book would be like without it. In my opinion, it would have been much more boring and it wouldn't give you as much doubt as to whether the story was true which I thought was the whole thrilling point of the book.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I thought the island was meant to invoke fantastical thoughts and give an air of excitement and sci-fi to the story. Mar 31, AM. I just finished this book and have really enjoyed reading everyone's comments. Paola, I agree with you about the island. Maegen and Josh, I would tend to agree with you as well except for one thing.
I tended to think that Pi blocked out the horrible memories of what really happened and drew analogies to animals. The mind can play tricks, and we can remember things very different than how they really happened or block them out altogether.
It is a coping mechanism. But then there is that one thing: the meerkat bones that were found in his boat. Where on earth would they have come from if not the island? Would that not suggest that the Richard Parker story is the true one? As an aside, this has been such a puzzle for me that it has been hard to let go of the story.
Apr 07, PM. I agree with Kim. I started questioning Pi's grip on sanity after he wrote "I die" at the end of chapter Two blind men in life boats run into each other in the middle of the Pacific after months? Pi thinks Richard Parker is answering him? And then the algae island! You can believe the animal story with hallucinations or Pi's "other" story. Apr 11, AM. So then maybe the island exists as proof that your interpretation of the story is the correct one.
If you believe the first story, the meercat bones "prove" to you that all of the fantastical seemingly impossible things that have happened so far are true. Because, we all have to honestly admit, neither story is actually true. Or rather, both stories are equally true. May 01, PM. I don't feel like digging into my brain right now, but off the top of my head it is the first time Pi and Richard Parker are able to go their separate ways. Am I right?
It's been a while. If Pi is the tiger, either figuratively or really, then perhaps it shows that the tiger in him must press on a bit longer, and innocent Pi, feeding once more as a vegetarian, must yield again.
May 31, AM. I think the island represents the time in his journey where he is tempted to give up on survival.
He sees peace, comfort, sustenance, in death. The island represents this escape from his difficult life. However, in the end he realizes life is more appealing to him. I am still wondering what his perspective on life after death is with such a broad array of religious beliefs.
I'm still not totally sure about it but its a thought. Excellent book based on the concept that reality is truly based on perception.
Jun 04, PM. I wonder if the island is in the tradition of the Hero's Quest where the hero must decend into the depths of hell and death. I like the island because it is so maddening, I think it is supposed to leave you confused because it sticks out so strangely from the rest of the story. After passing this test he finally reaches land. Jun 06, PM. Did anyone think Richard Parker was God?
Even Pi can not know for certain if God exists. Then when he comes to the island and is about to die he chooses the "leap of faith" and he survives and Richard Parker after saving Pi's life walks away. Richard Parker God led him to the beach where he is rescued. It seems that life is a story, you can choose your story and the story with religion the animals is the better story - that's why Pi has faith. Jun 11, AM. It is interesting. When I got to the second story, I found myself being upset and disappointed that I was NOT getting what the beginning promised: a story that would make you believe in God.
How the hell would that second story refresh my beliefs? I discoverd that I am an agnostic, according to Pi. I doubt everything. I was upset that no one went back to the boat to investigate the stupid meerkats! Why, with the evidence at hand, wouldn't they? Well, because they were insurance agents and they had no interest in the story except on a personal level, unless it had revealed details of the crash Then, I'm left with the fact that I was reading an allegory and neither story was "true" to begin with.
I know that. So deciding between the two is utterly unnecessary and a mean trick of a talented word-smith. He sets up the criteria by getting us emotionally invested in someone else's criteria of belief and then presents us with a test of faith. Related Themes: Survival. Page Number and Citation : Cite this Quote. Explanation and Analysis:. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. Chapter One day the boat approaches a low-lying island covered with trees.
Pi assumes that the island is a mirage, but he decides to Pi finally believes that the island is not a hallucination, and he becomes delirious with joy.
He eats some of the A few days later Pi decides to explore the island. It seems large and rises to about sixty feet at its highest point. It consists A storm hits the island while he is ashore, but the island absorbs all the waves with barely a tremor Pi finds something sinister about the situation and wonders more about the nature of the island.
He finds his answer days later, when he is exploring the forest. Pi begins to understand the awful truth about the island , and he tests his theory that night. He drops one of the meerkats from the Pi realizes that the island is carnivorous. The algae becomes acidic and deadly at night, digesting the ocean fish it
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