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Introduction to Life of Pi

Introduction to Life of Pi. By: Yann Martel. Key Facts. Genre : Allegory; fable Time & Place Written : Researched in India & Canada and written in Canada in the late 1990’s. Publication Date : 2002 Narrator : Piscine (Pi) Molitor Patel and the author, Yann Martel.

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Introduction to Life of Pi

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  1. Introduction to Life of Pi By: Yann Martel

  2. Key Facts • Genre: Allegory; fable • Time & Place Written: Researched in India & Canada and written in Canada in the late 1990’s. • Publication Date: 2002 • Narrator: Piscine (Pi) Molitor Patel and the author, Yann Martel. • Tone: funny, surreal, philosophical, and at times, journalistic. • Tense: Past

  3. Themes • The Will to Live: In both sections of the story, the survivors do whatever it takes to live—even if what they have to do is barbaric, immoral or detestable under normal circumstances. • The Importance of Storytelling: The book itself is a story within a story. One side is factual, one side seems rather fantastical. Both are true on some level; one actual events and the other more metaphorical. • The Nature of Religious Belief: Connects with the theme of Storytelling in that all religions have stories that explain why they exist. Also, on some level both believers and listeners have to have faith to exist.

  4. Motifs • Territorial Dominance: Establishing one’s personal space and territory is necessary for survival; regardless of how violent it can be. • Hunger and Thirst: A continual obstacle in the story. Also plays a role in the theme of survival and what a person/animal will go through to survive. • Rituals: The practice of daily rituals is compared with the instincts and habits of the other people and animals in the story; they also serve as a means of survival for Pi.

  5. Symbols • Pi: Pi’s name represents several things. It is a letter in the Greek alphabet that also contains alpha and omega (beginning/end), terms used in the book to denote dominant and submissive creatures. Pi is also a mathematical number, used to calculate distance in a circle. These associations establish the character Pi as more than just a realistic protagonist; he also is an allegorical figure with multiple layers of meaning. • The Color Orange: Represents HOPE & SURVIVAL.

  6. Setting • Time: The author tells Pi’s story from an undetermined point, some years after the publication of his second book in 1996. Pi’s ordeal begins on July 2, 1977, and continues for 277 days. • Place: Pi’s boyhood home in Pondicherry, India; the Pacific Ocean; Tomatlan, Mexico; and, briefly, Toronto, Canada.

  7. Author’s Note • He tells the reader that the story blurs the line between fact and fiction • Martel uses his narrator to make serious commentary on everything from religion to politics, and the mock-journalistic introduction emphasizes the intersection of fact and fiction in his literary world • He also introduces himself, and he lets the reader know that he inserts himself into the story as a fictional character.

  8. Religions in the Novel • Catholicism: the Christians in union with the Bishop of Rome. • Christianity: based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings. • Muslim: Qur'an—which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet; it is an Arabic word meaning "one who submits to God“.

  9. Places in the Novel • Pondicherry, India • Toronto, Canada • The Pacific Ocean

  10. Religious References • Vishnu: a popular Hindu god, venerated as the Supreme Being in the Vaishnava sect. He is also commonly known as Narayana or Hari • Kaabala: is the name applied to the whole range of Jewish mystical activity. While codes of Jewish law focus on what it is God wants from man

  11. Religious References • Lakshmi: the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity (both material and spiritual), fortune, and the embodiment of beauty • Ganesha: the Hindu deity in a human form but with the head of an elephant - represents the power of the Supreme Being that removes obstacles and ensures success in human endeavors

  12. Religious References • Shiva: a major Hindu deity, and is the Destroyer or Transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine • Krishna: a Hindu deity, a complete avatar "incarnation“ of the preserver-god, Vishnu. Krishna is often described and portrayed as an infant or young boy playing a flute • Brahma: the first god in the Hindu trimurti. He is regarded as the senior god and his job was creation

  13. Animals • Zebra • Meerkats • Bengal Tiger • Hyena • Orangutan • Sea Turtles

  14. References SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on Life of Pi.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2006. Web. 17 Oct. 2012.

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