Life of Pi Analysis Essay free essay sample

It is not until the very end that the reader finally notices how the parts interrelate and tie the whole book together. Once the reader is aware of the book’s delicate balance the true meaning of the work is revealed: is there such thing as truth? Does our unique way of viewing the world affect what we believe to be the truth? Part One is the story of Pi’s up-bringing, and a way to suspend the reader’s disbelief. It tells of Pi’s knowledge of animals (he’s grown-up on a zoo), it reveals Pi’s love of religion and God (he actively practices three), and it gives a glimpse into Pi’s life after the shipwreck (he is alive and well, living in Canada). Part One is also the section that introduces a narrator into the story, whose purpose is to have Pi’s story told. It also adds documentary realism into this fictional story, making the reader further believe the stories told by Pi. We will write a custom essay sample on Life of Pi Analysis Essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page By interspersing the narration and Pi’s first person accounts, the story becomes one of fiction and non-fiction, because it is Pi’s story, but as told through the narrator. This relates to the true meaning because we realize that Pi’s story was told as how the narrator interprets it and believes it to be true; especially when Pi tells him, â€Å"Now it is your story to tell. † Part Two is the first-person account of Pi’s survival after the shipwreck, which takes up the majority of the book. During his description of his survival he explains his intimate relationship with the animals, especially Richard Parker, and uses creditable details to establish the account as true. He tells of how he achieved basic life functions, like sleeping, eating, drinking, to show that his survival was reality. But, throughout Pi’s accounts, there are still some seemingly impossible events, such as meeting the stranded Frenchman at sea, or discovering the carnivorous island. Part Two also highlights the importance of blind faith. Pi describes how whenever he felt as though he could not go on, he turned to God and faith to bring him solace. Part Three wraps everything up. It is the section in which Pi is rescued and interviewed, and in which the reader revealed to both the â€Å"better story† point, and the true meaning of the work. When Pi reveals the second story, this time with humans in place of the animals, the reader finally realizes the traumatic events he went through. This trauma, forces Pi to believe in the first story, with the animals. One can even argue that Pi wants to believe in God, faith, and the goodness of mankind so badly that he has tricked himself into thinking the first story is true. Because the truth is never full revealed, the reader is left to choose which is the â€Å"better story. † The placement of Part Two is crucial to this point. Since the story with the animals came first, and is much less traumatic, it makes you not want to believe the second story. Whatever story the reader picks to be true is a reflection upon how they view the world, relating to the true meaning of the work. At the end, one is forced to ponder whether Pi’s story is just an allegory of another set of events. Finally, the circular structure of the story seems to highlight the religious motifs in this book. At the very beginning of Life of Pi, Pi tells the narrator â€Å"I have a story that will make you believe in God†, and at the very end, after the Japanese interviewers pick the story with the animals, Pi says to them, â€Å"And so it goes with God. † The book goes full circle. It starts with God and ends with him; seeming to be without beginning and without end, much like religion and faith.