Assignment # 4: Life of Pi by Yann Martel

                This summer, I chose to read Life of Pi by Yann Martel, because it was recommended to me. Upon starting it, I did not know exactly what the book was about or under what context the author had written it; therefore, I read the novel thinking that it was a true story about a boy named Pi in India, when in fact it is completely fictional. Because I thought the events of the novel were real, I was devastated at the end of the book when two Japanese officials did not believe Pi when he retold his story. For this reason, I am so impressed by Martel’s storytelling. He successfully convinced me, the reader, that a young boy could fall in love with three religions, sail across the ocean with a Bengal tiger, and live to start a family.

            Martel began convincing me when he introduced the character Pi, who lives in a zoo with his parents and siblings in Pondicherry, India. The main reason I believed Piscine’s character so easily was that he had a vast knowledge of animals and zoos. A boy who lived in a zoo would surely know a lot about the behavior of animals, and Pi, the narrator, devotes a large portion of the novel to this. For example, he describes the territorial tendencies, and dangers of animals, which his father, the owner of the zoo, tells him about. It would make sense, too, that a boy in India at this time would be interested in religious practices. It would even make sense that he would be interested in multiple religions, which Pi was. He devoted himself to Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam, even though none of the leaders associated with these religions approved of it. Pi’s character is not only believable; he is also relatable, in that he wants to do more than is required of him. At a time in India when people were so unsure of themselves and their lives, Pi knows himself and his beliefs so well.

            Martel also does a great job of conveying the setting to the reader, through a young boy’s eyes. The reader understands the chaos of India at that time, through Pi’s perspective. For example, Pi discusses “a prime minister who has the armour plating of a rhinoceros without any of its good sense” with his teacher, and says, “religion will save us.” He also learns his father’s beliefs about the current situation. Finally, as Pi and his family leave India, in response to the government takeover, he explains the turmoil that is going on in India, without boring the reader with facts. Therefore, the reader gets a good sense of the setting through Piscine’s eyes.

            Finally, the novel itself pokes at the idea of belief. From Pi’s consistent belief in God to his attempt to persuade the two Japanese officials at the end of the book that he did in fact spend over one hundred days in a small boat with a tiger, he learns that belief is everything. Without belief, there is no way for Pi to convince the officials that his story must go in their records. Without anyone to believe Piscine, his story is not technically true. In this way Martel challenges the reader to believe Pi’s story, because he makes it seem so real.

Assignment #2: Most memorable 8 books

1. Wuthering Heights: I read this book a few years ago and loved it. I also love the movie that is based off of it. When I saw it on the summer reading list for this course, I remembered it well and decided to read it again. It is one of my favorite books.
2. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley: I remember certain aspects of this book very well. The characters stuck with me because they had such distinct qualities. The dystopian setting of the book is still very clear to me because it was so fun to imagine when I read descriptions of it.
3. The Giver by Lois Lowry: I know that this book stuck in my mind because it came to me as an example when I had to write SAT essays. The moral of this story, which stuck with me the most, is very powerful.
4. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls: This was a terribly emotional and shocking story. The life of this little girl has stuck with me as a reminder of how lucky I am, especially since the book is a true story.
5. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson: This book was memorable because of its shocking and terrifying events including torture and murder. Unfortunately some of these stuck with me.
6. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants collection by Ann Brashares: I read these when I was younger and I loved them so much because I could identify with each character in different ways.
7. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith: I loved this book so much because the story of the main character, a little girl from a poor and troubled family in Brooklyn, was so emotionally stirring. I desperately needed to know what would happen to this girl such that I had trouble putting the book down.
8. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett: I loved this book when I was in middle school because it terrified me and excited me to think of such a mysterious place as this little girl's garden.
9. Night by Elie Wiesel: This is the saddest book I have ever read. I cried for at least five minutes after reading it and its message has always stuck with me.

Excellent Storytelling in Life of Pi by Yann Martel

While the author chose to use Piscine Patel's voice for most of the book, there are chapters in which he describes the house of the future Piscine, as a third person observer:
     "On the shelf below are various articles of devotion: a beaker full of water; a copper spoon; a lamp with a wick coiled in oil; sticks of incense; and small bowls of rice and lumps of sugar. There is another Virgin Mary in the dining room. Upstairs in his office there is a brass Ganesha sitting cross-legged next to the computer, a wooden Christ on the Cross from Brazil on a wall, and a green prayer rug in a corner. The Christ is expressive--He suffers. The prayer rug lies in its own clear space. Next to it, on a low bookstand is a book covered by a cloth. At the centre of the cloth is a single Arabic word, intricately woven, four letters: an alif, two lams and a ha. The word God in Arabic. The book on the bedside table is a Bible."
This chapter connects to a later chapter told in the view of Piscine, after he has taken up Christianity in addition to Hinduism, in which he states:
"I entered the church, without fear this time, for it was now my house too, I offered prayers to Christ, who is alive. Then I raced down the hill on the left and raced up the hill on the right--to offer thanks to Lord Krishna for having put Jesus of Nazareth, whose humanity I found so compelling, in my way."

     Although these sections of the novel are not right next to each other, they connect so well together to represent the unique and very interesting method of storytelling that Martel chose. Martel describes the future Piscine Patel, so that the reader gets a sense of what he will become. The reader learns that future Piscine worships God in three religions: Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. In the next quoted section, Martel tells the story in Piscine's perspective so that the reader then understands how Piscine's love of the three religions came to be. The last sentence in which he prays to a god of the Hindu religion for his discovering a figure of a different religion is so powerful, because it is unexpected, but upon further review, makes perfect sense, since Martel already told the reader that Piscine was devoted to multiple religions. When Piscine first started discovering Christianity, I thought that he was going to convert to it, but without overtly saying that he loves God in different forms, the author subtly informs the reader that Piscine still intends to stay true to Hinduism, with the last sentence about Krishna. This is my favorite passage of the story because it stuck with me through the entire novel. The method of telling Piscine's story was not only unique, it was moving and intriguing. This passage made me want to read further to learn more about Piscine Patel.