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Tuesday, January 26, 2021
Knowing Pi—due March 4
How is Martel helping you know Pi Patel, a fictional character who is "true" (Tuesday Term: mimesis)? Include a sentence—with its page number—from the novel that applies to this question. Write 200+ words of your own.
I think that the best way that Martel has brought Pi to life and made him seem real in our world is through the interview-style that the novel is written in. Martel places himself inside the story, claiming that in order to author this novel, he interviewed Pi himself and was introduced to Pi by another person, even though Pi is a figment of Martel’s imagination. The fact that he mentions his previous book failing and other parts of his life that actually happened bring a sense of realism to the story too. When Martel writes about his “interview” with Pi and writes chapters from both his and Pi’s perspective, it gives me the sense that Pi is an old man recounting an adventure from his past that actually happened in this reality. In addition to the perspective of the story, an additional factor that makes Pi “true” is his imperfections. Sure, he’s a genius that finishes high school in a year and then double majors in two unrelated subjects in college, but apart from this, he does not have a ton of endearing qualities. He isn’t a superhero or a mega-athlete or a royal prince. He isn’t 6’8” like Chief Bromden or heir to an entire kingdom like Simba. There isn’t much about him physically or situationally that sets him apart from an average person. All of his unique traits—his intelligence and the fact that he follows three religions at once—are comprehensible and could even be mimicked by a reader if they really wanted to, making him one of the “truest” novel protagonists you can have.
As the writer of this novel, Yann Martel does an amazing job of going into depth about Pi's past. While most authors would want to rush through and get to the main point (I know I would). Martel instead decides to take us deep into the memories and thoughts of the character. I believe that this will be extremely beneficial to myself as the reader, as it will help me connect with Pi and understand him as the story goes on. Martel makes it so much easier to understand Pi as he brings us along for every little detail that takes place inside of his head. He includes all of the past memories and events that are most important to Pi. This will help us understand the way he reacts and the decisions he makes in the future. I think that his description also helps the reader connect with the character and find similarities. Pi's religious practices can help many reads relate to him and understand his thinking. Not only can they relate to him, but this will also help them have sympathy for the character throughout this novel. Martel shares this about the character, "He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." This shows that Pi's physical appearance leaves him as a very average and maybe below-average individual. He in no way represents the heroic or brave protagonist physically. I think that his emotional characteristics will challenge this stereotype many times as the book goes on. We will find that his true strength and strong suits come from within him.
Yann Martel does a great job at making Pi Patel seem like a “true” character especially at the beginning of the book in the author’s note. Martel is in a coffee shop in the town of Pondicherry located in French India. The coffee shop is a good place for conversation with anyone. Martel ended up talking to Francis Adirubasamy, an elderly man who tells Martel “‘I have a story that will make you believe in God.’” (page x). This story that was supposed to make a person believe in God was the story about Pi Patel. Adirubasamy then brought up the train tracks and how they used to stop at the zoo where Pi lived. Martel and Adirubasamy continue to carry the conversation about Pi and Martel takes notes on Pi’s life for the sake of his new book he plans to write. Martel then looks up Pi’s number in the phone book and proceeds to call him and set up times to meet. In the concluding paragraph of the author’s note, Martel begins to say thank you to a few people. The first person he thanks is Pi Patel himself. By thanking Pi, it makes it easier for the reader to believe that Pi and his story are both “true.” Martel does a great job at making Pi’s story seem so “true” because of all the realistic events, including meetings in coffee shops and phone calls, that lead up to them meeting so Martel can interview Pi and write his story.
Yann Martel has a very fascinating way of writing that is very unique but also extremely intelligent. Having Pi Patel as a "real character" is insane and weird (but in a good way). I honestly would not have known that he wasn't real, or fictional. Pi Patel is someone fictional but the feeling given to him is someone like Kobe, if you will, he needs to be given the honor he deserves. Having Pi given that feeling makes him seem or feel very real. Yann Martel gives Pi respect which makes it all believable. In the author's note, Yann shows how he is giving Pi the respect he deserves. "It seemed natural that Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person-in his voice and through his eyes, But any inaccuracies or mistakes are Yann's. The choice of descriptive words to describe Pi is showing so. Calling him Mr. Patel equals respect. Saying that anything inaccurate or mistaken is Yann's fault shows again how much respect Yann has for Pi. This is all creating a fictional character who is believed or thought to be real, all with descriptive words and the intelligent ability to deceive readers into believing the unbelievable.
As far as I've gotten into the novel, the bulk of what I know about Pi Patel is from his past. I'm starting to understand what his life as a child was like, and why it was like that. As a reader, though, none of that information is really relevant to me unless I see the aftereffects of that childhood. I want to know how Pi lives his life now. Martel does an excellent job of putting himself in the reader's perspective and trying to write in a way that will give us what we want to know. Martel writes in an almost "interview" style that allows us to see the "past" Pi and "current" Pi. Martel's interview allows us to understand Pi's character now, and why it is important. There are things that we would never know without Martel's narration. We would never know that "At times he gets agitated. It's nothing I say (I say very little). It's his own story that does it." unless Martel tells us that about his character (Martel 42). I also think that Martel is helping us get to know Pi Patel by giving us a reason to get to know Pi. We really would never get to hear about Pi's story if it weren't for Martel's narration. This interview-like format sets a tone for the information that Pi gives us in general. As readers, we might take in the information a bit differently if this wasn't the case. Lastly, Martel gives us the opportunity to feel close to Pi through his narration. We get to understand him on a seemingly more personal level, and it hooks us into the novel a bit more. Pi isn't a random guy that has a cool story anymore; he's a friend who is sharing their life with you.
Though I have just started the book Life of Pi, it is clear to see several things about the main character. Firstly, he has had a traumatic experience in his life. This can be seen by the way he talks of small encounters with people bothering him. A very good example of this is when he recalls a story about a waiter who saw him eating with his hands and asks if he is fresh off the boat. Little does the waiter know that this is exactly the case, and he has just offended the main character deep down. The second thing to see is that the main character has been wounded by this person named Richard Parker. While we know this is not actually a person—rather he is a tiger—the main character still describes him as a person because of the close attachment he felt when he was on the raft with the tiger. He also describes Richard Parker as a person because the tiger left him even though the main character felt close with the tiger. After reading some stuff about the character's inner conflicts, we get a physical description of him, "He's a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion. Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner. Expressive face. Speaks, quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (Martel 7).
When I began reading, I noticed how in detail Yann Martel writes. He depicts such a clear image of Pi Patel due to how much he writes. I feel like in the first couple of chapters, I was actually getting to know Pi. Not just what he looks like and his hobbies, but actually how Pi thinks and works. You learn about what his passions are, how he feels about the zoo, and what he thinks of his dad. We, as readers, feel like we are living his past through his eyes. When he talks about the pool and the zoo, we can read what he sees, but what he thinks of everything. It's more than just the basic information and insights. It's way more in-depth. "They froze like criminals caught in the act. I didn't dare lick them. I wiped them guiltily on my napkin. He had no idea how deeply those words wounded me"(Martel 7). This sentence not only shows the deep emotion of embarrassment but each physical action that came over Pi.
Piscine Molitor Patel is described in Life Of Pi in such detail that it can be hard to tell that he is not real. Yann Martel does a phenomenal job of pacing the story and making the character feel real. Pi has real emotions and real experiences. When everybody thinks of Life of Pi, they think of the man on the boat with the tiger. In reality, the book is a good way in before he even gets to that point. Martel goes into such detail at the beginning that I forgot what book I was reading. The way that Pi narrates exudes brilliance. Anyone can tell that this is a very smart person without even knowing about him. “I felt I was in the presence of upside-down yogis deep in meditation or hermits deep in prayer, wise beings whose intense imaginative lives were beyond the reach of my scientific probing” (Martel 5). He talks in such a studious way and puts meaning into every word that he says. Yann Martel did amazingly at showing the acuteness of Pi through his narration.
Yann Martel helps us to get to know Pi Patel and to build this character from the very first page of the author's note. By Yann Martel telling us about his failed novel and how he needed to go to India for inspiration about his novel, we build a sort of connection with Martel and through this, we meet Pi's uncle. In his author's note, Yann meets Mamaji who tells Yann about Pi. Since this is in the author's note instead of the novel and it is through Yann's point of view it creates a sense of realism and helps tell us that Pi is actually a real person. Once the novel starts the interview style writing and switching between current and past it adds to the idea that this is all actually happening and coming directly from Pi's mouth. To further enforce this idea Yann Martel also talks a ton about Pi's past. By building Pi's character and telling his origin story such as who his favorite teacher is and his religious background this helps bring to life the character of Pi in this novel. Most books wouldn't include this much back story and skip straight to the interesting part such as Pi on the boat but by not doing this it helps make this book and make Pi real.
In the Authors note, Yann Martel is in the representation of a fictional Canadian author who just traveled to India. Within the Authors Note, Martel shows us an idea that will show how Pi's survival applied to his own religion. The fictional version of Martel, the Canadian author, interviews Pi when he is older to talk about his childhood and the context allows the reader to understand his past better due to the fact that he has already been through it and learned from it. I think that when Mamaji says to the author that Pi has a story that "will make you believe in God." This sets the grounds for the story and how valuable religion is to Pi and how it helped him survive. Martel also states the Pi became sad and gloomy when he arrived home from his horrible experience, but once he surrounded himself with his religious practices and zoological studies and he soon became happy again. That is a perfect example of how much Pi values religion. When we watched a snippet of the film, when the author sat down for a meal with Pi and Pi shared the story, that setting really set an expectation of how realistic and rememberable this story was going to be. Yet this is a fictional story, the way it is told is almost so believable that one would consider this a true, non-fictional story. Due to this, Martel goes above and beyond to set the tone for the main character as some authors do not.
In Life of Pi, Yann Martel goes into great detail about Pi Patel as a character. He describes in depth the background of him and his life as a child. He does a great job at giving the reader details about him as a character and developing Pi in the very first part of the book. Having this background information about Pi, the main character, it will make it easier for us to relate to him as the story progresses and understand where he is coming from. Without the narration of Yann Martel there are many things that we would miss about Pi as a character. Having two narrators can be confusing at times but it also allows for two perspectives and different interpretations from both. In the text “"He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." This shows the amount of detail that he uses in describing the character. We can really start to visualize and see him in our minds. It is also shows that he is just an average guy and there is nothing physically big about him. This can help you relate to him and see where he is coming from. Yann Martel does a great job in the first part of the book describing and giving background information.
As the writer of Life of Pi, Yann Martel does an excellent job from the beginning of the novel of going into detail about Pi Patel and his background. As Matel goes into great detail about Pi it helps readers make a connection right from the start of the novel. He is not like most authors and gets to the point of the story. Instead, he talks about Pi, which could be very beneficial to many readers, including me. With Martel talking about Pi it helps me connect with the story and make it a more interesting read. Without the details about Pi, I would not have the same connection with the book. I feel like I was almost starting to get to know Pi as a person. I was starting to get to know what he looks like, how he feels about things, or what he is most passionate about. I start to get to know a little bit more about his life. “He’s a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can’t be older than forty” (Martel,7). This description of Pi from the beginning of the story helps me visualize what he looks like.
Martel makes you think Pi is a real person by the interviewing that he does in the beginning. When it looks like the author is telling you how he heard about the story from Pi it makes you think it is a real person he is getting this story from. The author notes at the beginning telling us how he found Pi and the in-depth story of how he went through all these people makes it seem real. The way he wrote the story like Pi is talking to someone about his life makes it seem like Pi is a real person. The in-depth storyline showing how Pi got his name and certain random facts that he gives you is very detailed and seems real. I personally for a second changed my thought that it was fake before realizing it is fiction so it can’t be real. Martel really likes to play with mimesis by how he wrote the story he makes the reader think twice about the story being fiction. In the author's note, he says “My gratitude to him is as boundless as the Pacific Ocean and I hope that my telling of his tale does not disappoint him”(pg XII). This quote he says thanks to Mr. Patel and talks about the telling of his story doesn’t disappoint him. Hearing him say this can make you suspect that he heard the story from an actual person.
Through Part 1 of the novel, I believe Martel is doing a wonderful job helping me get to know Pi Patel. At first, it was semi-difficult attempting to wrap my head around the fact that Yann Martel Is writing about Pi Patel, a fake character. Yet, Pi Patel in the story has a very similar life to Yann Martel, for example indulging in three separate unique religions. His father owns a zoo, and they moved from India to Canada. Almost everything we are learning about Pi is in his way past and how he was raised. I believe he is giving great insight to show how smart Pi is. I also have found it interesting how he is given so much description and so many stories, yet he isn't a true person. When Pi and his parents are discussing his religious issues with the religious leaders, I thought it was interesting when he said, "Bapu Gandi said, 'all religions are true' I just want to love God." (Martel 69). I felt like there was nothing better he could have said in that situation. It put all of the leaders and his parents in their place, and they realized what the point of arguing with him is. It is his choice if he would like to practice three religions; who are you to say that he is unable to do such a thing.
If I were not told otherwise, I would have believed this was a true story. There is still a part of my brain I have to convince that this is fictional. Like a brain-teaser where you have to deduce what is real or fake. Yann Martel is incredibly talented with his writing and makes you believe that what he is saying is true. He includes himself as one of his characters which makes the book seem even more realistic. The addition of him and his interactions with the main character, Pi, give this book a deeper sense of reality. In the Author's note, Martel tells of a journey he made to India, as the cost was cheaper than Portugal, to write his new book. During this expedition, he came across a man in a coffee shop. This man told him of a story that would "make him believe in God." Martel then returns to Canada where he meets with Pi Patel and listens to his story. Towards the end of the Author's note, Martel includes a line explaining that "Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person," which adds to the sense of Pi being an actual being. Because of Martel's inclusion and wise choice of words, Life of Pi would be indistinguishable from a biography if set next to one.
Yann Martel does an exceptional job at the expedition of the book at bringing to life the character of Pi. In the midst of Pi opening the book, we get small little notes from Martel describing Pi's physical and emotional traits that allow the reader to understand his story more. First, when describing his appearance, Martel writes, "He's a small slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty" (Martel 7). Readers receive a vivid picture in their head of what the narrator of the book looks like at the time of his presentation. Furthermore, some characteristics are provided after the physical description. “Mild fall weather, yet he puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner" (Martel 8). Not only are we provided with physical traits that allow us to picture the character better, we are gifted with a character event that to some may seem ordinary, but really is beyond brilliant. Pi is used to the hot climate in India, but when he moved to a milder climate like Canada, he was in a different world. Midwesterners and those in Canada picture a mild fall day as 50-degree weather, where most people would be comfortable wearing shorts and a sweatshirt. But to Pi, this weather is most deserving of winter wear. I found this interesting and comical because it provides insight into the fact that Pi loves his new home, but he is still used to and accustomed to life back in India. This can be relatable to a lot of people, which is where Martel is a genius. He provides a relatable situation where people can relate to it, thus making the character of Pi more true in our minds.
Due to Yann Martel's mastery of literature, you feel as if while you read the novel that you could reach out and touch Piscine Molitor Patel. Martel accomplishes this by instead of diving straight into the plot or beginning with the conflict of the story early. Martel puts on the brakes of the story and describes Pi in painstaking detail. Martel describes Pi both physically and how he thinks. Physically he is described as a "...small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion. Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner. Expressive face. Speaks, quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (Martel 7). Even though the lengths that Martel went to describe Pi are extremely impressive they are easily surpassed by the emotional description of him. From the lengths that Pi goes to describe the zoo to how he got his name from a swimming pool in France and how he obtained his new name the amount of description of his character is staggering. Both elements work hand in hand together to make you feel (and essentially know) that Pi Patel is "true."
Yann Martel does a great job at making Pi seem like a real-life character. Martel goes into exceptional detail when talking about the main character Pi leading the readers to believe that Pi is indeed a real-life character and this is a true story about his life. This really comes out on page 7 when Martel describes Pi. "He lives in Scarborough. He's a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion"(Martel 7). By describing what Pi looks like in detail from his age to his height to his complexion Martel creates a perfect image of what Pi looks like. Any author can describe their main characters in such detail, but Martel takes it a step farther stating, "Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to diner. Expressive face. Speaks quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk"(Martel 8). By going into details about the weather and adding funny quirks like the fact he is wearing such a big coat on a nice day makes the reader fully relate to Pi and see him as more and more realistic. Explaining to the reader how Pi talks and expresses his face and hands show readers what it is like to be having a conversation with him and going into very precise detail about how and what he does, allowing the reader to feel like they themselves are talking with Pi too. All these details together convince the readers that Pi is real and Martel does a great job expressing that idea.
Pi Patel is a character that Martel crafted very carefully. He seems to almost be “real” to the readers. His writing style in “Life of Pi” makes Pi seem very lifelike. His thoughts as well as his background story are very intricately written. I believe that the fact that he is telling us the story of his past really brings Pi to life. That alone gives him greater depth as a character than most. We get a really solid grasp on what kind of person Pi is and was through his story-telling. He can be seen as an outsider compared to his peers and even his family. Not only do we learn about his past but we are given a complete physical description as well. With all of this information, it is hard to not have a picture painted in our heads as to who Pi is and what he looks like too. Pi is given his unique characteristics by the extensive characterization Martel uses. This characterization is used all the way down to even how he got the name Piscine Molitor Patel. On page 8 Pi says, “I was named after a swimming pool.” We also get more information on this later. The Piscine Molitor was not any pool. It was one of the premier pools in France that “Mamaji” swam in. Yann Martel perfectly executes the characterization of Pi Patel using carefully thought-out, extensive stories and descriptions of him.
Martel helps the reader get to know Pi Patel by telling the story mostly from Patel’s point of view with the occasional insight of how Martel’s experiences with Patel. From Patel’s point of view, he describes his childhood and the events leading up to his family moving from India to Canada. He vividly describes how he was named Piscine after a swimming pool because of Mamaji and how he came up with his nickname of Pi to avoid being ridiculed by his classmates at his new school. “I double underlined the first two letters of my given name.” (Martel 22) He then goes on to describe his father’s zoo and all the animals that resided in it. He provides insight as to how the animals are not just caged up and mistreated but the zoo is like a luxury hotel for them instead. However, it is the zoo’s downfall that causes them to have to move to Canada when Patel is only 16 years old. Patel also has many interesting experiences with different religions. He is introduced to Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity through his upbringing, a local baker, and a priest while on vacation. He experiments with all three religions and begins to practice all three at the same time while keeping it secret from his parents until one fateful day when his religious mentors all meet. However, he continues to practice all three religions even after being ridiculed by his brother Ravi. From Martel’s point of view, he describes Patel’s life when gathering information to write this novel.
In the novel, Life of Pi, Yann Martel goes to great lengths to provide readers with a sufficient amount of background information on Pi Patel to make the story relatable and make Pi seem like a real character. Readers grow a connection with Pi throughout the course of reading the novel and they understand the novel more because they have a better understanding of the characters themselves and the plot. The plot in the author’s note is also very realistic and helps you understand what is happening even more. The setting is set at an Indian Coffee House in Pondicherry, India. This moves the story along because, in the real world, it is easy to strike a conversation with others in a coffee shop, which is precisely what happened to Martel in this instance, a “spry, bright-eyed elderly man with great shocks of pure white hair was talking to me.” (pg. x) This man tells Martel that he has a story for him that will make him believe in God, which intrigues Martel. This is how they transition into the actual novel of the book. Martel also uses a lot of descriptive language in his writing, which also draws a connection between you and Pi Patel. When using more descriptive language, the readers are able to visualize and comprehend what a certain character, place, or situation looks like or what the situation would feel like to Pi Patel.
In the novel, Life of Pi, Yann Martel goes into great detail about the facetious character: Pi Patel. Yann goes into such great detail that it makes it hard to believe that Pi is not a real person. I believe Yann is a literary genius for being able to effectively write about every small, important detail about Pi. He has to have a great imagination and I assume he would be good at coming up with a believable cover-up story. Yann comes with very believable circumstances that make the story sound so realistic. For example, how he explains that he found a man at a coffee shop that wants to chat with him about his life story, and how it will make him believe in God, which intrigues Yann. He also explains to the readers Pi's fascination with religion as well as zoology. In the text, it says, "After one year of high school, I attended the University of Toronto and took a double-major Bachelor's degree. My majors were religious studies and zoology" (Martel 3). He is obviously a genius if only went to high school for one year and went straight to college. Overall, the readers are able to easily comprehend Martel's writing because he is very specific and lets you know about pretty much everything about Pi's intriguing life.
Martel is a gifted writer that crafts every single sentence to convey a specific message or meaning. Martel is not only able to bring Pi Patel to life through vivid character descriptions, but also because Martel can identify parts of himself with the character. Martel places the reader directly into Pi’s mind, allowing us to experience the same emotions and thoughts that Pi is. At first, I thought the idea of practicing multiple religions was extremely outlandish, but as Martel walks us through Pi’s thought process, I begin to understand why, as Pi explains everything in a way that makes sense. His in-depth stories of Pi’s childhood help us identify with Pi, as we may share similar childhood experiences. Pi has many lines that resonate with readers due to their philosophical impact--these lines are great at connecting the reader to Pi and Pi to the real world. One such line is, “All living things contain a measurable amount of madness that moves them in strange, sometimes inexplicable ways” (Martel, 41). Lines such as the one mentioned connect Pi to the “real world” as these ideas are things that we realize as we experience more, making Pi seem more real to the reader. Martel goes a step further and expresses parts of himself in the characters, especially the author that is writing Pi’s story. The author's note, lack of detail about the author, and description of Pi make it seem like the author is real, which reinforces the idea that Pi is also real.
I think what makes it so easy to visualize this character is the way Yann Martel writes about Pi Patel as if he were a living, breathing human being. For the longest time, while reading this story, I believed Pi was completely nonfictional. Throughout the entire novel, we are completely absorbed in Pi’s wonders and the smallest adventures he endures. He explains to us in the finest details how he got his name from a French pool and his stories behind his uncle giving him swimming lessons. He tells us about being teased in school for his name and how he reinvented himself. He expresses his curiosities and philosophies. Everything about him seems true. Martel writes this character in a very modest fashion—nothing about Pi is crazy unbelievable or out of the ordinary (in part one at least). I also appreciate the different perspectives this novel is told in. The cuts from Pi telling stories from his childhood to the interviewer’s present-day perspective gives it more of a personal feel. We also gain more insight into how Pi’s personality has changed from before his childhood—which offers room for interpretation on how the shipwreck could have changed him. Overall, Pi’s life has been described in a very relatable format making it easy to get to know him.
Yann Martel has made me understand what is going on in the book right away without having to stop and analyze what might be going on. Sometimes when I read books, I don't know who is speaking due to the lack of information and it throws me off. In One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, for example, it took me quite a long time to stop and analyze that Chief Bromden is saying what he imagines, not about what is actually happening. I believe that when Martel gives Pi's life story right away in the book, it creates a complete understanding throughout the rest of the book. Some events might happen, but, the reader knows how Pi is going to react to it and how he will feel about it. Martel even goes as far as telling where Pi's parents got his name from, how he got made fun of, and how he dealt with it. He also talks about what religions he believes in and why. He talks about what his parents do for a living even. I think the detail and descriptions are tremendous in full understanding of the book by any reader. It makes me want to keep reading it constantly.
I think that Martel does such a good job making Pi Patel seem real to the readers because he has so much background information on him. As a writer, if you skim through his life and interests, it doesn't seem real. A short biography on a character that doesn't go into much depth does not seem believable. When Martel tells where he went to school, how he got bullied for his name, how he switched his name, what college he attended, it makes it all seem much more real to the reader. Also telling us about where he grew up adds more details. Martel explains how he grew up in a zoo, surrounded by animals, loving every moment of it. The emotion that Martel expresses gives Pi that extra realistic trait about him. The part that really got me at first was actually in the author's note section of this book, on page 11. While talking to Adirubasamy, he says "You must talk to him, I knew him very very well. He's a grown man now. You must ask him all the questions you want." Martel adds this into the book to really make the readers think that Pi is actually a real person and this happened to him. Why else would he go talk to someone about this story if that person wasn't real? Martel does an outstanding job making Pi seem like a real person through thorough detail about his life and interests.
Yann Martel has made it very easy to know Pi through great character development during the beginning of the novel. He goes all the way back into Pi's childhood at his father's zoo and how growing up was for him. Yann leaves no details out and gives vivid imagery with his great descriptions. It has been easy for me to follow the book because it is staying on the same storyline, unlike One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest which had my brain doing circles trying to comprehend what was going on in some parts of the novel. Right off the rip, Yann catches your attention; talking about how Pi got his name from a famous French swimming pool, how he was made fun of at school for having the name Piscing, the boat ride, and many more crazy adventures that keep us flipping pages. We learn the Pi is very prestigious when it comes to school; in a quote said by Pi, "After one year of high school, I attended the University of Toronto and took a double-major Bachelor's degree. My majors were religious studies and zoology"(Martel 3).
The progression of Pi Patel in the first chapter alone is enough to make him true. Yann Martel uses the background of Pi to make him feel real. Even the small, one off sections humanize Pi in a way that makes him feel real to the reader. I think it all boils down to be a testament to the format and style that Yann Martel writes with. The interview style of writing we get makes the whole situation feel very real. Yann putting himself directly into the story makes go straight from fiction to the opposite. Hearing the words come straight from Pi’s mouth makes him the “truest” character he can be. Aside from this point, I think it is important to recognize how much Pi is humanized to the reader. Making him just seem like an ordinary guy makes him not feel like this high and mighty hero character that some authors, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it makes the story feel more personal and in touch with reality. He isn’t a prince, like in The Lion King, or this borderline psychopathic rebel like Randle McMurphy in One Flew of the Cuckoo’s Nest. He’s just genuinely interesting and that is cultivated by the vast background that is given by Yann and the style this is written. “He's a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion. Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner. Expressive face. Speaks, quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (Martel 7).
Martel has done a very good job at describing the background of Pi Patel's life. He explains lots of little details, details that are meant to enhance the complex personality of Pi. One of the specific parts of the book is when he was explaining how he hated the nickname he was given by his peers. One day, he stood up at the board and wanted to change it. Martel could have just said that when Pi moved to a new school, he asked people to call him his new name instead of explaining how he went up to the board when the teacher called on him to explain what pi is. In the book, it says "I got up from my desk and hurried to the blackboard. Before the teacher could say a word, I picked up a piece of chalk and said as I wrote: My name is Piscine Molitor Patel, known to all as—I double-underlined the first two letters of my given name—Pi Patel." (Martel 13) It was just very interesting to me how Martel chose not to skip over these details so that we could see he is just a regular human who got bullied in school too.
Martel allows the reader to explore the character Pi in-depth throughout this novel. As far as I have read, I have been given ample background information about Pi; this character and his story are being brought to life. Having two different narrators in this novel contributes to its realisticness because of the use of two perspectives. Multiple perspectives create a larger image that Martel has been successful with. This style of writing has kept me engaged—even throughout the introduction. I often struggle with starting books because the beginnings are hard to get through and have unnecessary information in my opinion. I honestly have not had any issues with this book, however, because Pi’s background story is more intriguing than most. Relating to Pi and imagining his story inside my head has been natural so far. I believe many other readers will also find that they can relate with Pi either in his experiences or ideas. Religion is always an interesting conversation topic, as many people have different beliefs and viewpoints, so I have been lucky to find this within the novel. As Pi discusses his issue with agnostics, he states, “To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation” (Martel, 28). This statement truly has allowed me to dive deeper into Pi’s mind because what you believe surely says a lot about your morals and what you are like. Martel has helped me to become familiar with Pi through his extraordinary use of imagery.
Yann Martel has brought Pi to life by adding background information into the story and being consistent with the opinion of how he spoke. By including things such as memory and feelings they create a more personal feeling helping the reader get a better picture of who Pi is and how he acts. When Pi talked about how ‘“Religion will save us’ I said. Since I could remember, religion had been very close to my heart” (pg 27) it shows a good depiction of his memory. How the dialog is done helps to create a realistic person as the topics and words spoken aren’t in an overly complicated way that makes them feel made up or like the conversation was pre-planed. The information about how he learned to swim from Mamaji with how his parents felt about it creates a display of parental worry. The sibling banter that is incorporated shown helps to a family dynamic “Ravi was a merciless teaser. The first time he called Mamaji ‘Mr. Fish’ to my face I left a banana peel in his bed” (pg 8). The use of adding Pi’s thoughts about different interactions and how he interacted with the different situations with the correct emotion such as being confused when talking with Mr. Kumar at the zoo, about religion which Mr. Kumar doesn't believe in but Pi’s known about and believed in for as long as he could remember.
The approach Yann Martel takes in writing this novel is much different than the previous literature we have analyzed. Martel is telling the story in order. He isn't just starting from the beginning of the real "story" but is giving Pi's life story in order. This differs from Ken Kesey's writing in Cuckoo's Nest; he gives a slight back story of McMurphy but then jumps into the main plot of the book. I prefer Martel's take on storytelling. We first learn about Pi's education and interests along with the story of his name. By gaining knowledge of Pi as a character from the beginning, we as readers can possibly predict what Pi will do in certain situations or understand why he acts in certain ways. One example that forms Pi as a character from an early age is his conversation with his teacher, Mr. Kumar on page 27. The teacher explains to Pi why he is an atheist, "Religion is darkness." After listening to Mr. Kumar's spiel Pi is taken aback and admits, "This was all a bit much for me" and continues later saying, "I was more afraid that in a few words thrown out he might destroy something I loved." This is just one example of a way that Yann Martel makes Pi into a "true" character.
The way that Yann Martel has made it seem like this novel is a nonfiction novel is through the interview-like style that he has written the novel in. Roughly every other chapter is in the view of either Pi Patel or Yann Martel. The chapters that are written in the perspective of Yann Martel are often shorter and provide some insight in how he sees Pi Patel “his cupboards are jam-packed. Behind every door, on every shelf, stand mountains of neatly stacked cans packages. A reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad.” Not only is this interview style of writing effectively in creating this nonfiction style but it also creates a sense of friendship between Pi Patel and Yann Martel. It sounds like the two are friends who are learning more about one another. This sense of closeness to each other makes it extremely personal and more intriguing to read. Thus, progressing the turning of each page in the novel. Yann Martel helps create this sense of closeness by thanking Pi Patel for his services each time along with describing his experiences after each chapter. Both of these observations lend to Yann Martel’s extremely interesting and unique writing style that helps the reader how truly amazing and intelligent Yann Martel is.
Martel is not an ordinary author. He has chosen a different style of writing that will keep his readers more on an edge. Especially in the novel Life of Pi. He even managed to make this nonfiction character come to life just by the way he set up his style of writing, and this style is like an interview. Asking questions and answering them type deal. I love how in the novel, Martel always puts in his own little side notes of him asking questions of just things in his head while conversating with the "interviewee". In these particular sections when the author is talking, he always seems so fascinated. "His house is a temple. He is the lord overcomer of obstacles, the god of good luck, the god of wisdom, the patron of learning. Simpatico in the highest. He brings a smile to my lips." (Martel 45) Throughout the novel so far, you learn how close Pi Patel and Yann Martel really are. Their new friendship will leave the reader wondering as to what is going to happen next. Or how Martel will put his thoughts in the book to give you another view of looking at different situations, not just Pi himself. This style of writing is very interesting and new to me, but more books that I read, I hope to read one that also has Martel's style of writing as well.
I think Martel has done a great job at explaining who Pi Patel is to us. One of the best quotes that I found that fits this is on page 69. "Bapu Gandi said, 'all religions are true' I just want to love God." (Martel 69). This quote is one that has meaning beyond just the surface. It also tells us a lot about Pi. He is someone who wants to just "love God." His family is non-religious, even to the extent of making fun of him at the dinner table for trying to be in all three religions at the same time. This one quote also can stand for Pi's pursuit of excellence. He took up a double major in religious studies and Zoology. That right there shows just how much he wants to learn. He happens to be a simple man who loves God and wants to continue to pursue high education. Pi is just a curious man looking for information. Take when he entered the Church for the first time. His first words were "why." He strives to read and learn throughout all of his life and continuing in his career in Religious studies and Zoology. This is why I believe that Martel has done a fantastic job at explaining and building the character Pi.
Yann Martel is doing a great job at making Pi Patel seem like a real character. At the beginning of the novel, he goes into depth about what Pi looks like describing his appearance as a kid, a teen and, an adult. He also describes how he was raised as a child, and how his house is arranged. This makes it really hard for the character to seem fake when the description of the character is so precise. Yann Martel wrote "His overheated house is always smelling of something delicious. His spice rack looks like an apothecary's shop" (Martel 24). He creates an image of Pi that while we are reading we can picture. Another thing that Yann Martel did that made the character seem real is the way he wrote his book. He wrote the novel in an interview-style that would lead to a flashback of Pi's life. He incorporated his own experiences in the world and related them to Pi. When he writes he writes to make us feel something whether it is a good feeling or a sad feeling Martel writes these sentences well. It connects us with the character he has created we can relate to what he is feeling sometimes.
If I were writing a novel, I would be tempted to rush through all of the background information on a character and jump to the main conflict of the story; however, Yann Martel spends chapter after chapter describing the character, resulting in the main conflict not happening until well into the book. Why? Because all the background information about Pi forms who he is, which is a paramount part of understanding the book. By spending so much of the book developing Pi, Martel makes the character seem real to the reader. From what I have read so far, I think Martel does this through connecting Pi to the thoughts, feelings, experiences, etc. of real people. Even through Pi being a practicing muslim, hindu, and christian, he becomes more real to a wide range of audiences. One of my favorite sections I have read so far in the book is when Pi talks about his feelings towards each religion he practices. For example, he first talks about how skeptical of Christianity he was, followed by a deep love for the practice. He then discusses the overwhelming peace he felt when he began practicing Islam. This makes it real for many readers because I think many people experience the same feelings when they begin practicing a religion. Overall, I think Pi narrates as if he is just having everyday conversation. The author describes how Pi talks to him, “Speaks quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth” (8). He talks about his experiences like he is sitting across from you at lunch giving an interesting story about his day. Taking so much time discussing his past experiences, such as his struggles with his name in school and his practice of each of his religions, helps the reader understand Pi and why he will do what he does in the novel. How he presents himself to the reader—in a conversation-like manner—makes him feel real.
I think Yann Martel is helping us believe in Pi more because of the extensive amount of background knowledge he provides us with about Pi. Martel could have just jumped straight into the action with Pi stranded on a boat with a tiger just like how Lord of the Flies jumped straight into them on an island. Martel instead chooses to have Pi narrate what his life was like before his experience. There are so many background details about Pi that make him a very believable character and make you understand him more and know what he is about. The part to me that stands out is on page 9 when Pi is tossed in the water left to learn to swim on his own. "I must have looked like a child throwing a peculiar, slow-motion tantrum." This piece of his background makes Pi seem like a real person. So many people have been taught how to swim this way and Pi is no exception. Martel chose something simple that we can relate to making Pi all that more believable.
Yann Martel has introduced us to Pi Patel in such a unique way. He writes it from his point of view so that you can see Pi through his eyes, and take in his perspective of him, but he also writes it from Pi's perspective so you can see what he's like from his own story. It is a fascinating technique that I don't think I've seen in any other books I have read. Yann Martel also writes vividly about Pi's young childhood, especially about his experiences growing up, and his dive into religions. I like how much detail he puts into this because it gives the reader a feel of what kind of character Pi is and, it makes it more interesting to compare your faith (or lack of it) to what the people around Pi believe. Pi's belief that "all religions are true. I just want to love God"(pg 69) makes him feel really open-minded introduces the reader to other religions in a positive light. I am really happy that they talk about all kinds of gods in the book, for a book that promises to make you believe in god, I thought it would be about just one religion. The writing in this book is phenomenal, personally, it feels very easy to pick up and visualize the scenes in the story.
I love the way that Yan Martel introduces Pi because it is so realistic, and he does it in such a way that it makes you think he is sitting right across from you. One of the main reasons is that he goes out of the way to bring in as many details as possible, and this gives a much clearer picture of Pi's early life and background. Martel is able to get away with his by using a narrator. This unique perspective allows him to include things that would make a normal introduction overly wordy and boring. Another tool that Martel uses to describe Pi is that he actually describes the things around Pi. He puts extensive detail into bringing the animals and people around him into reality. This helps us understand Pi by seeing what affects him and how he interacts and relates with other characters and objects. The first two sentences of chapter three, "I was named after a swimming pool. Quite particular considering my parents never took to water.", are a terrific example because it incorporates significant amounts of detail and it also describes others around him. Not only does Martel's style of introducing Pi make him easily understood, but it also gives us many ways to relate to him and his life.
I think the best way, Yann Martel uses mimesis to make Pi Patel seem like a real person is through the switching between his story and the author asking him his story. The intercutting stories bring an almost documentary style to the book. The description of Pi Patel’s house is specific and accurate enough for you to believe that he is a real person. “When he opens his refrigerator or his cupboards, there are many brand names I don’t recognize” using descriptions like this really makes him seem real. As the “author” interviews Pi he often talks about his mood and his reactions to certain things that he thinks about. This brings a sense of realism to the story because when someone is truly recounting their story, especially a traumatic one, they would not remain calm and collected the whole time. His story is not one of a traditional adventure-style book. His childhood is not wrought excitement and fantasy like a traditional book but is filled with the splendor and wonder of someone looking back on their childhood. His memories emphasize very basic things that a child his age would think and often resonates with me because it is the same way most of us remember our childhood. Another sense of realism is the historical timeline that is kept. Yann Martel has gone to great lengths to research in-depth
Yann Martel introduces Pi by telling us the nature of how he grew up. I think this helps us relate to Pi because even though we did not all grow up in a zoo, we can relate to little things in his life. I also like how the author speaks to us in short chapters to see what is going on during the telling of the story, the mainline I like is, "Expressive face. Speaks quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (8). This line alone tells just how expressive Pi is in telling his story. When Pi tells the reader of when he decides to change his name, I think some of us can relate to that instance. He was sick of being picked on and took matters into his own hands. That allows the reader to get a feel of Pi's character at the beginning of the book and can carry it out through the story of the novel. The writing in this book is outstanding because we get little pieces of information about the narrator throughout the novel while the story is playing out on the next page.
Yann Martel uses very different methods to make a fictional character come to life. He utilizes a strategy using two authors to write a book. Having himself recall events and then also have Pi narrate events makes him that much more alive. Yann talks about his previous books failing, which they did, in order to make us believe in his book now. He sits down and talks about Pi and also interviewing him, kinda how he talks about Richard Parker like he is a real person too. Another way Pi comes to life is how he himself talks about the events, and Yann talks about him like he is alive. Yann describes his physical qualities, "He's a small, slim man- no more than five foot five". Using physical qualities, and talking about him as an old man recalls his best friend from childhood, makes Pi that much more believable.
Martel is helping the reader know Pi Patel by interviewing the character. The back and forth style of writing make the reader think that everything that is said is the truth. It makes it even more believable when it goes into Martel's perspective. At some points in the novel, Martel describes what he sees and what he eats. It makes Martel and therefore Pi very relatable people. It also is written from Pi's perspective. This makes the reader follow through with everything that Pi is doing. It shows how human and almost mundane his life is. Pi's father also teaches his kids lessons that will benefit them such as, "'I'm going to show you how dangerous tigers are,' he continued. I want you to remember this lesson for the rest of your lives." While it is a harsh lesson, it's relatable to people who have ever been taught something by their parents. Everything in his life from being made fun of to being taught a lesson is so human. It allows the reader to see themselves through Pi making him seem real or true. So far the basis of the book is so realistic that it's sometimes hard to believe that it might be an imitation of the real world.
“I have nothing to say of my working life, only that a tie is a noose, and inverted though it is, it will hang a man nonetheless if he's not careful.” This quote from page 5 really helps bring Pi to life for me. I believe that with this statement it is so much easier to relate to this character. Since most desk jobs usually require that you wear a tie to work every day he is obviously referring to that type of lifestyle. He is saying that the lifestyle of sitting at a desk working til 5 going home and wait for the day to take a vacation is too similar to the life of everyone else that wears a tie to work. He says that with a tie around your neck if you leave it there and let it overtake you you are no longer a person but just someone that wears a tie. It is the death of the individuality each person posses that will die from the tie around the neck and that is basically death in itself. Yann has this come from the mouth of Pi and that makes him seem even more real than he would be without it.
Yan Martel helps the reader get to know Pi Patel through the use of mimesis. Mimesis is imitating the real world through literature. Yan Martel makes Pi seem realistic by including the interview scenes between chapters. The italicized sections of the novel indicate a change in point of view. The interview scenes are from Martel's point of view. Not only do readers experience Pi's perspective of himself, but we also get to know Pi through someone else's eyes! Learning about a person with two perspectives leads to complete understanding of a character. We get to know Pi more as Martel explains his surroundings during their meetings at Pi's house. For example, Martel explains to the reader that religion is very important to his everyday life as he describes what his house looks like on page 45: "His house is a temple. In the entrance hall hangs a framed picture of Ganesha, he of the elephant head..." In addition, the reader gets to fully understand Pi as Martel explains how his story ends. The reader makes assumptions about Pi's experiences and characteristics based on what he is like after them. To explain, on page 93, Martel writes, "This story has a happy ending." The reader can infer that whatever Pi is about to go through in the novel, he is resilient and strong as he made it through life and was able to settle down to have a family. Understanding his ending helps the reader get to know Pi further and makes him more realistic.
Yann Martel does an exceptional job at bringing to life Pi as a character. You truly feel as if you know the guy and exactly what he looks like. He leaves his little excerpts and thoughts on Pi in his italicized chapters he includes. These chapters really expand your outlook on Pi Patel and help you know him even more, almost as if you have met him yourself. Yann Martel makes sure everything about Pi Patel is very real, except for the fact that he isn't real. "He's a small, slim man–no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples."(7) Yann Martel adds pieces of information like these to almost further try and convince us Pi Patel is real. Yann Martel does this many times throughout the chapters as well, it is not a one-time deal. Martel also includes parts where he is telling some of his own life stories. This creates an even more realistic feel. By Martel basically conversating to himself it creates a sense of him having a normal conversation with another real human. Yann Martel even thanks Pi Patel in his author's note. The story has not begun and he's already acting as if he has met Pi and collected the story from Pi himself.
I think that the best way that Martel is bringing Pi to life is by giving us these vivid descriptions of what his home and his days are like. He doesn't just say that Pi's dad owns a zoo, he gives us a description of the amazing birds and all of the big animals. He doesn't just say that Mamaji was built to be a swimmer, he says "My brother Ravi once told me that when Mamaji was born he didn't want to give up on breathing water and so the doctor, to save his life, had to take him by the feet and swing him above his head round and round" (Martel 8). He says that is why his chest is so thick and his head is so skinny. Another reason why Martel does such a good job at bringing Pi to life is that he can relate to the character that he has created. He uses the italicized chapters to give insight into what is happening. He connects things happening in a somewhat fictional story to the real world and also connects things happening to Pi to the reader.
The phrase “The Devil’s in the details” easily applies to Yann Martel’s writing style and method. Yann Martel has an uncanny ability to bring fictional characters to life, developing relationships with the reader through their shared experiences. In Life of Pi, Piscine Patel’s story is built right from the base up. The first segment of the novel is spent learning about Pi’s history, all of which helps establish Pi as a person rather than a fictional character. Martel’s use of diction, imagery, and plot development help establish the mimesis of the story. There are smaller details throughout that add a sense of reality that could not be made up—details that are too human to be made up. A strong example of the narrator-reader relationship can be found in Chapter 25; Pi is describing, to the audience, his personal views on religion by saying “these people fail to realize that it is on the inside that God must be defended, not on the outside,” referring to the judgment faced by the community regarding his 3 religions (Martel 71). Pi also is brought to life through the novel's narrator’s description. The narrator includes descriptions of not only Pi but his environment. Chapter 6 is spent describing Pi’s relationship to the kitchen; the narrator describes his cupboards as “a reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad”—foreshadowing the story that is to be shared later in the book (24). The small details such as Pi's passion for observing the animals in the afternoon add to his authenticity and realness. Overall, Martel’s specific choice of childhood stories, descriptive passages, and character interactions develop Pi beyond just another character in a book; it is as if Martel is daring Pi to come to life and step right out of the pages of our books. A natural gift for literature can not begin to describe Martel’s ability to characterize and humanize.
Yann Martel uses a lot of descriptive languages to describe the characters. Without the description of characters, the novel would lack key information that creates the story. The amount of detail brings the Pi Patel to life. Starting in the author’s note the depth that Matel applied the story to his own life through his religion. The information that we gain through the actual story and the author that speaks throughout the novel allows readers to make more connections with the characters. The more both portions of the book go in-depth the more the connections are able to be made. In the interactions, the reader might think that Pi Patel was an actual person instead of a fictional character. In the book they describe Pi Patel being bullied by other kids. This gives the character a more humanized description because there were social interactions that he had that might be similar to some of the readers. This creates more ability for various readers to connect to Pi Patel instead of just one type of audience being targeted by the novel. He eventually finds a way to address the bullies in a positive way. He memorizes the digits of Pi and shares them with the class. This changes the viewpoint of his classmates and gains respect from them in a healthy way. He could have tried to take a negative way and use a more violent form of interaction with his bullies.
Yann Martel does an exceptional job of helping the reader get to "know" Pi through the way the story is written. As a reader, it is very easy to start to understand a character when someone else is telling you about them. In, Life of Pi, Martel has written this story in an interview type of way which allows us to see how someone else views Pi as well as Pi's own perspective of the story. We get to hear about more than just the story through the interview such as what Pi eats in Canada and other things about Pi that we just wouldn't know without the interview. It is the simple things that help us, the readers, understand characters like Pi, "He makes the most zesty yet subtle macaroni and cheese I've ever had" (Martel 24). A simple statement like that has a tremendous impact on how the reader feels about a character. This statement is effective in many ways. One, everyone likes mac and cheese and two it makes an incredible character seem very human. The interview really allows us to connect with Pi on a more personal level. Being allowed to see inside the mind of a character really enhances the relationship between the reader and the character.
Yann Martel is helping me know Pi Patel by devoting an entire part of the book to introducing him. The first part of the book is purely about Pi. It is about who he is now and who he was before the main part of the story. Martel tells who Pi is in two ways: through Pi's perspective and through his own perspective. The first way, Pi's own perspective, is pretty self-explanatory. Martel "met up" with Pi and had Pi talk about his past. Pi's past was kind of split into four groups: the origin of his name, the zoo, how he came to be a Hindu, Christian, and Muslim, and how he got on that fateful boat. Within Pi's narration of his early life, Martel randomly interjects with chapters that he narrates himself. In these chapters, Martel describes the "current" Pi Patel. Martel describes how Pi looks, how his house looks, his family, and the food Pi cooks him (and how spicy it is). Martel also incorporates the author's note into the story. Martel describes his story of how he "came upon" Pi through his uncle. Martel, in the author's note, says "I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel" (XII). Martel thanks Pi for helping him with the story as if Pe was a real person. This is how Martel is helping me know Pi and connect with him.
The first part of the book is Pi’s entire childhood before the main plot of the book. The mini chapters where Yann is talking about Pi like he met him in real life. It’s like a journal entry, like Martel was recounting his daily life in a diary and Pi is a part of that. It seems as though Martel was given the story from Pi himself and added in how he felt about Pi’s story throughout the first part of the book. He set up Pi’s world before jumping into his story. It feels like Pi is telling us this story. He addresses the audience and goes into details about himself that an actual person would. The Author's Note also gives the reader real-life background and it makes the story feel more real. The details don’t seem exaggerated. Like when a person is trying to tell a convincing lie and they add unnecessary detail to make it seem more believable even though it makes no sense to talk about every little thing you were doing beforehand. “He’s[Pi] an excellent cook. His overheated house is always smelling of something delicious.” (Martel 24) It’s like Martel was actually there with Pi, at his home while Pi tells the story that we’re reading about.
Even though Pi is a fictional character Yann Martel makes it seem like he is real or makes the reader forget this is a fictional book. In my opinion, the best way Martel has done this is by having Pi face similar challenges that many of the readers may have faced. The example that sticks out to me the most is when all his schoolmates are making fun of his name. “I kept silent. Because whatever mocking was to come, it was to come. There was no avoiding it” (pg. 24) he is getting picked on about something that he can not control. I feel that a lot of readers could relate to this at some point in their life. So by having Pi face similar things to what the readers have experienced creates this connection between the two and makes it seem like Pi is a true character even more. Another thing that Martel did very well is he created a very detailed and realistic life for Pi. Since Martel has been to India he knew how to describe it to make it seem realistic. He talks about his family and how his father is a zookeeper, he follows three religions, and just the depth of the detail about his childhood. All of these characteristics make it kind of hard to believe that Pi is not a real person because of how detailed and personal they are.
"He's an excellent cook. His overheated house is always smelling of something delicious." (pg.24) This is one of the many sentences that Yann Martel uses to make the character Pi Patel seem as though he is a real character. Although Pi Patel is a fake character Martel goes to the lengths of describing what Pi's house looks like and even what the smell of the food is like. He makes us readers believe that Patel is a normal person. The first thing we learn about him is his name and how he got bullied in school because of it. Instead of keeping these details out, he wants us to know that he did not have the best school experiences to keep him similar to what readers have also experienced. He describes what Pi Patel's daily life was like before he left India and how his family had treated him and his brother. All these experiences make you want to believe that there is no way that Pi was made up because of all these experiences that seem so realistic. Yann Martel did a great job describing every detail, especially with the zoo. It seems as though a zoo is an actual place in Pondicherry but Yann Martel made up every part of it. This a crazy thought just to think how in-depth he got with it talking about how Pi Patel was walking on the path of the zoo and said "it might be birds that caught my attention: pink flamingoes or black swans or one-wattled cassowaries, or something smaller, silver diamond doves" pg(14). With such detail, Yann Martel is able to create something real out of things that do not exist.
The book Life of Pi by Yann Martel manages to create the imagery and the scenarios that allow Pi Patel to enter our reality. Yann Martel does this by using real places in the world, but implementing a fictional character into these places. Lots of fictional stories use made-up places and worlds, not Yann Martel, he uses real-life places such as Pondicherry, Canada, and the University of Toronto. By using these places he makes it seem like Pi Patel is a real person because he has been in these places. He also does an amazing job at bringing Pi to life because of his implantation of an author, much like himself in the book. He does not just start the story by beginning Pi’s story, but by starting with a struggling author who needs to search out this Pi person and hear his story, and by implementing this author character it makes it seem that Pi is telling his story to this author, to Yann Martel, instead of it being a work of fiction. Martel uses this author character, and the imagery that we can picture, and the things that we can relate to, to bring Pi to our reality and not just the reality that is the book. The character of the author is implemented to bring Pi to life, talking about his stature, or in chapter 6. Chapter 6 talks all about Pi, and his house, and his cooking. The author is so descriptive in describing his dishes saying, “He makes the most zesty yet subtle macaroni and cheese I’ve ever had. And his vegetarian tacos would be the envy of all Mexico.”(Martel 25)
Yann Martel, the author of Life of Pi, allows us to get to know the protagonist of the book before Pi’s actions and words are utilized only for survival. We learn how Pi grows and struggles through childhood and adolescence and how animals like Richard Parker affected his aging before his traumatic experience... Martel informs us about Pi using an interview-style; a man in the book records Pi’s story as he tells it, and we listen in. This style allows the reader to understand Pi and Martel. Martel is observant and polite. His character seems well-spoken and we can trust his narrations. In Chapter 2, Pi is described physically. He’s a “slim man… dark hair, dark eyes”(7). The description allows the reader to invent an image of Pi to imitate his actions. It is also important for the reader to understand that Pi is not a Hercules. He’s not this big, strong God who captured a three-headed dog in order to enter Hades. Apart from his belief in three different religions, Pi seems particularly normal. This holds importance when trying to achieve trueness for a character. Pi is a representation of a man from the real world.
Martel is helping me know Pi Patel through the fact that the novel was written interview-style. The author includes excerpts where he shares what he himself has learned about Pi which makes Pi more personable, rather than just a character in a book. My favorite of these excerpts is on page 86 when the author is looking through a photo album with Mr. Patel. There are many photos from his recent history, including his wedding, his honeymoon, his years in college. But there are only four pages from his childhood on the other side of the Pacific. I feel that this really highlights the loss and tragedy that Pi had to face as a young man. One of my greatest fears is to suddenly be without my family and so my heart really connects to the fictional character here. I am a pretty empathetic person and so the sentence that really struck my heart was “A smile every time, but his eyes tell another story.” His trauma has affected his personality, his happiness, his sense of self, his wholeness. He is experiencing all of the major milestones in his life, but without the people he was closest to by his side and it has left him empty, missing a piece of his heart.
Martel is very thorough and descriptive when setting up his main character. I think that he does a wonderful job including aspects of Pi's life that seem unimportant at first thought. These details help make a character and his surroundings real. Specifically, the author's narration in italics is what brings the story to life for me. One could make a story just of Pi, but I think it would lack the realness of Martel's and Patel's fictional interactions. The best part of these segments is the food and cooking in my opinion. Religion, while interesting because of Pi Patel's multiple beliefs, still seems like a "gimme" for character development and imagery in Pi's house. More impressive is the abundance of food in his house. I imagine that surviving a traumatic event like being stranded with very little food would cause just about anyone to stock up on the stuff, just for reassurance. Martel describes Patel's collection as, "A reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad," which lasted 872 days. The other side of this is his cooking. Martel accurately describes eating it with his reactions, saying, "my taste buds shrivel up and die, my skin goes beet red, my eyes well up with tears," and so on. I have personal experience with Indian food. In second grade, I still lived in Spokane, Washington and we had an Indian student transfer into my brother's class. They became good friends, and eventually, his parents invited our family over and prepared a variety of Indian foods so we could try them. I don't know if they purposely cooled them down and overestimated us or sadistically made them spicier, but it was far more than I could handle, especially at age 7. This book wonderfully reminded me of this and added credibility to its pages, at least for me. Martel's knowledge and research seep from the typed words.
Yann Martel gives us a great description of Pi Patel and makes him a true character by introducing him and personifying him throughout the book. He does a great job at connecting the character with the reader and truly giving us an idea of who Pi Patel is. The di-narration of the novel gives us a great understanding of Pi because we can get an internal and external look at our character which is very unique. Pi says "I was a very good student, if I may say so myself." This provides insight into his character and nature. The narrator also describes him as a very small man. We see that the longer we read that Pi is a natural and normal human being. He does not have forced or unrealistic reactions or thoughts. In this way Martel does a great job at making Pi "true." Pi's character flows well and seems very natural. This is further compounded when the narrator provides extra little details and tidbits that fully tie his persona together. Through this di-narration, the author, Martel, weaves a story that often seems like it is not a book but a true story.
Yann Martel helps readers learn about the "fictional" character, Pi Patel by inserting little segments of them together when Yann Martel first hears Pi's story. All of these segments are in italics and sever a great purpose to show their personalities, in both Yann Martel and the character Pi. For example; in chapter 12 when Yann Martel is having a meal with Pi, "He's a sweet man. Every time I visit he prepares a South Indian vegetarian feast." (Martel 42) This quote gives quite the insight into who Pi is as a person, the reader finds that he is a vegetarian and a nice man. Earlier in the paragraph, it also says, "At times he gets agitated. It's nothing I say (I say very little. It's his own story that does it. Memory is an ocean and he bobs on its surface. I worry that he'll want to stop. But he wants to tell me his story. He goes on."(Martel 42) Within this segment, the reader also finds out that Pi is full of will-power and perseverance. He is strong to share such a heart-felt story with so many people. In the end, the italicized segments add great character growth and humor throughout the book.
Yann Martel is helping me know Pi Patel from the way the novel is written. Yann talks about how he failed at his first book and knew he had to take a trip to India to write the new book. As a reading, we build a connection right away because we know it should be genuine if he’s going to India where the main character is from. He uses interview-style writing to put himself in the book interviewing Pi Patel who is made-up in Yann’s head. The amount of detail Yann goes into about Pi's life growing will help us understand the book down the road. Although I want to know what happened during Pi’s story that will make you believe in god. It's good to get background information on him to help you understand the contexts better. Yann describes Pi as “ Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can’t be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-colored complexion.” ( Martel pg.7) The way he describes Pi gives the reader a good description of what the main character looks like. Helping us better understand Pi’s appearance and background. “I felt I was in the presence of upside-down yogis deep in meditation or hermits deep in prayer, wise beings whose intense imaginative lives were beyond the reach of my scientific probing.” (Martel pg.5). Yann gives us so much detail about sloths but not to the point that is overwhelming.
Yan Martel does an excellent job of bringing a fictional book to feel more like a nonfiction book. At the beginning of the book, he gives a lot of descriptions of Pi. The background that Martel gives of Pi is very thorough and I think will be using a lot further into the book. One thing that Martel does to really bring this character to life is by having two narrators. He has the narrator of Pi's story and then there is an author-like figure who will narrate some chapters and this will be italicized so that the reader can differentiate who is narrating at what time. My favorite example of this so far is on page forty-three. He is narrating his daily encounters with Pi and how he serves him an Indian vegetarian meal every time he visits. This meal in particular Pi asked him if he like spicy food. He said yes, but he didn't realize what he had gotten himself into. He explains that he can feel his "digestive tract twist and groan in agony like a boa constrictor that has swallowed a lawnmower." I feel that these little snippets of information a crucial to making Pi seem like a real character. Yes, the book would still be great even without these, but they just add that much more spice to the book in the end.
Yann Martel helps us to learn more about Pi Patel in the italicized chapters in between Pi’s story. In the book, it is supposed to be Martel talking about Pi and his thoughts and observations. It is an interesting way of writing and telling a story in that Martel makes the fictional character of Pi sound like a real person that he is interviewing in the book. It helps us learn more because the character Pi since Martel tells us stuff that Pi himself doesn’t plainly state such as observations about how Pi looked while he was telling the story or the way he acted. It also goes on to tell about how the food is that Pi prepares and how his house looks. A good example of this is in Chapter 15 page 45 where Yann Martel describes the various different pictures and symbols of varying religions that are found all around his house. The book directly states, “His house is a temple. In the entrance hall hangs a framed picture of Ganesha.” and “In the living room, on a table next to the sofa, there is a small framed picture of the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe.” That helps us see Pi’s uncommon religious views and how he lives with all of those religions in harmony.
Yann Martel’s interjections as the narrator of the story add so much information about Pi that we just wouldn’t see otherwise. Changing from one narrator to another allows Martel to jump to and from different times easily and creates a smooth transition as it does so. On page 86 of Life of Pi, Martel himself says “A smile every time, but his eyes tell another story”. In these scenes where Martel is actually speaking to a fictional character, puts us readers in a place where we can better understand Pi and relate to him. In these parts we learn that Pi now has a family, he still struggles with the events that happened to him, he misses his mother and hardly remembers his childhood anymore. We learn stuff about Pi but at the same time we are urged to keep reading to see how he ended up in this place. Martel uses this as almost a way to foreshadow events and speak to the readers at the same time. When he looks around Pi’s house he says he sees things that were there all along but he hadn’t noticed them because he wasn’t looking for them. This is a lesson we can take directly from the author even if it is through a fictional conversation.
Yan Martel does an amazing job to bring everything in this book to life. One thing he is really good at is changing the point of view. He places himself in the story to make it seem a lot more real. By using himself to lead into Pi's story, Yann Martel gave the book a sense of reality. Also, instead of having Pi dive right into the story, it is split into different parts of Pi explaining every portion of his life instead of just a description of a character. Martel uses this instead of just describing Pi and giving the reader a general sense of description because it gives a better sense of reality. Another way Martel gives Pi a sense of being a 'true' character is the way Pi is created. He isn't a character that has an extreme issue, he doesn't have superpowers, he isn't 6'8 like Bromden, he is just an average person that goes through issues like other people. From the text, "He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." This shows that he isn't an extraordinary person and it gives the reader a sense that Pi is an average person. From the way Martel changes the narrators to the description of the character, it all makes Pi seem like a much more real or true person.
Personally, I think that the best way that Martel is helping me know Pi Patel as a real person is how he wrote the narrator. As we have discussed in class that this narrator is like Martel. I like how it goes into these little blurbs of what they are doing and how Pi is in the present every so often in the novel so far. It makes it seem like the narrator is writing this as Pi is telling his story. Just like a journalist would write about a real event. That is what the narrator makes me think of. I also think that it helps that when Pi is talking and says that Mr. Kumar and Mr. Kumar are two of the reasons he studies religion and zoology in college. It makes it seem more real than he is talking about his mentors that affected life for the better. It is also talking about the future like he is interjecting that information in the conversation. So it makes the novel so far seem like a conversation and interview between friends. I think the part that helps the most with this is how he ties the author's note in the novel when the narrator, Martel, says, “I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel.” (Martel XII). This truly makes this seem as if Pi is a real person because most author's notes thank their friends, family, publishers, and editors; but, he uses it to make us believe that this story is real and not a work of fiction.
Yann Martel does an amazing job of introducing us to the main character, Pi Patel. The interview format of the first part of the book allows us to really get to know about Pi's past. By doing this, Yann Martel makes Pi seem like a real person. If I had not known Pi was a fictional character, I would have thought the novel was a true story. The chapters from the author's point of view give us a greater understanding of Pi's character as well. While we get a detailed background of his past from Pi himself, the author's observations of Pi's life and his interactions allow us to get multiple perspectives on his character and his day-to-day activities. In the Author's Note, Yann Martel refers to Pi as a real person. When he lists people he wants to thank for the story, he says, "I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel. My gratitude to him is as boundless as the Pacific Ocean and I hope that my telling of his tale does not disappoint him" (Martel XII). I am excited to keep reading and hear the story of Pi Patel, a fictional character portrayed as a character who is "true."
Yann Martel introduces the readers to a character known to us as Pi Patel, even though he does not actually exist. Introducing a fictional character is much more difficult than a real character because no reader will have pre-determined knowledge of Pi. The detailed and descriptive words Martel uses to describe Patel almost make me believe that he is a real character. Using different perspectives throughout the book also helps me and other readers understand more about Pi's personality and his motives. Not only does Patel help us understand Pi's motives, but he also goes into detail about why he has his certain motives or how he developed them. A great example of why I almost believe Pi is real is found on page 28. Pi is thinking about his teacher when he says, "It was my first clue that atheists are my brothers and sisters of a different faith, and every word they speak speaks of faith." This shows that Pi has the intellectual capability of understanding other people's perspectives, even if he disagrees with his teacher. Pi openly states that he has been a believer of many religions clearly believing in a God or a million of them, but he still sees atheists as a brother and a sister and I think that really proves how genuine and sincere Pi's personality really is. For the first time in a while, I actually enjoy reading a book, and I am very much looking forward to seeing where Pi Patel's life will go.
I believe that so far in the novel Yann Martel has allowed me to get to know Pi in a variety of ways. Some of those ways being his childhood background and even some personality traits Pi possesses. Since Pi Patel is a “fictional character” I believe that Martel wants to make him seem as real as possible to the reader. He does this by demonstrating the “real” encounters he’s had with Pi. For example, on pages 24-25, Martel is having supper at Pi’s house because he is such a good cook. This can be supported by the line on pg. 25 that says, “He makes me the most zesty yet subtle macaroni and cheese I've ever had”. Part one of this novel is full of moments like these. Martel, I believe, is trying to make the readers question who this Pi character is or even what he represents. Due to Yann Martel’s clever and unique way of writing this novel we are almost given an interview feel. We feel as if all the information we are given is valid because it is coming from a character that the author is trying to portray as real. Yann Martel’s italicized writing makes all the rest of the novel seem validated to be true.
Yann Martel does a remarkable job of making Pi feel real. First of all, Yann Martel really digs deep into Pi’s background and makes him feel like a character who has lived a real life instead of a typical fictional character who we know little about. Pi feels like a real guy, too. If I were to meet characters from any other novel, it would seem surreal; I feel like I could sit down with Pi and have a conversation with him. The interview-like setting is what really sells it in my opinion—Pi seems like just a normal person who is telling a story, and Yann Martel is just passing it along. Yann Martel intentionally pretends that Pi is an actual person and that he met Pi, and this makes the reader go along with his guise. Furthermore, Yann Martel uses real places and believable events while explaining Pi’s past. I think every place, even down to the Piscine Molitor pool, exists in real life. Also, Pi’s recollection of his past does not include anything unbelievable or impossible. An example of this occurs when Pi is telling about his first encounter with religion. One would think that this encounter would be grandiose and life-changing based on Pi’s religious state while he is telling the story. But no, Pi says that he has “no conscious memory of this first go-around in a temple, but some smell of incense, some play of light and shadow…” (Martel 47) This is much more realistic and believable than some supernatural encounter would be. Pi seems like he could be any of us.
I believe what makes Pi Patel seem so real is the way that Yan Martel decided to write this book. He chose to write it almost like it's a biography, making Pi seem all that more real. He used the idea of an interview, inserting himself in the book as a character interviewing Pi himself. Pi gives such detailed stories of his background and childhood too. For example, the way he got his name or the life lessons taught by his father. All of these things just seem like stuff normal kids would go through -- nothing too outlandish or out of the ordinary. Honestly, I forgot for a while that Pi is completely made up. It's easy to immerse yourself in Marel's writing style, making it easier o believe all of this is a true story.
Yann Martel does an amazing job bringing Pi Patel to life. Not only through the depth, Martel goes into Pi’s past, but the interview style the book is presented in. Writing the book as if it was an interview adds to the effect of making it a real story. Instead of seeing and going through the events with Pi as they happen, you get to relive them with him as he retells the story to us and the journalist. Martel allowing us to see inside of the interviewer's mind shows us other perspectives of Pi now that he’s an adult “I notice something else: his cupboards are jam-packed.” Pg. 25 Pi having his cupboards packed with enough food “...to last the siege of Leningrad.” might allude to the lack of food as the book progresses, a foreshadow to what is to become. Martel also digs deep into the past life of Pi and before he got to Canada. Going as far as to explain his full name, Piscine, and how it caused him years of bullying. The more interesting part of his past was his fascination of different religions and determination to practice as many as he could.
One of the biggest reasons Pi feels like such a real character is because Martel wrote the entire book as if it were a non-fictional story. He truly makes it feel like you are following the author's journey to discover the untold story of a shipwreck survivor, when in reality, the story is entirely fictional. He builds the world of his novel by including such minute details that it seems it must be true; the way he describes Pi's thoughts must have come from his own mind because all of them feel as if they were the queries of a real person. Pi repeats multiple times throughout the story “Bapu Gandhi said, 'All religions are true.' I just want to love God.” (Martel 69). This quote shows the true nature of Pi, he doesn’t care how his actions are perceived as long as he knows they are true, and this is one of the biggest instances of mimesis in my opinion. The way the whole book is written in an interview style and how the author's note is a part of the story is very interesting and misleading at the same time, but it allows us, the readers, to hear and understand his thoughts in a clear-cut way that makes you forget you are not being told a story by someone.
Yann Martel is helping the readers know Pi Patel through the extensive description of Pi’s childhood and his journey upon how he became a Muslim, Christian, and Hindu. Yann Martel is telling the story of Pi Patel’s as if he is being told the story by him. Oftentimes it is easy to forget that Pi is not a real person because of how well Martel portrays Patel. Martel describes at points in the story what Patel is doing or looks like in person. Martel even describes Patel’s cooking, which is spicy. There are italicized chapters throughout the book that indicate a change in perspective, the italicized being Yann Martel. Being able to read the book with two perspectives really allows the characters Pi describes to come to life as well as Pi himself. Yann Martel even starts to describe Pi Patel’s house and family. Yann Martel is a real person and through the use of the interview style of telling the story, it makes the reader think that everything that is being said has actually happened. We get to hear about how Pi’s name came to be, how he felt about his name, his relationship with his family, lessons learned such as the one about the lion, as well as the exploration of religion. “He’s a shy man. Life has taught him not to show off what is most precious to him.” (Page 80) I found this quote was significant into how Pi Patel was raised and who he is now as a person. With Yann Martel—an actual person—describing this, it felt like Pi Patel was undoubtedly a real person.
Yann Martel does an amazing job of making Pi Patel seem like a real character in the book. It makes you feel as if someone actually went through these events when it switches from the first person of Pi when he was younger to the “writer” who is interviewing Pi Patel. I think that the author’s note is what really made me feel as though Pi is a “real” character. Since the writer in the book goes on a whole adventure and ran into a guy that knew Pi in a coffee shop made it seem so believable I forgot that it wasn’t true at all. Martel gives so much detail into the little things about how and why these two characters came to meet. It is an extraordinary thing for a writer to do and not many can successfully. There are so many examples of Yann Martel’s genius throughout part 1. I like how Martel even gave Pi the background of his name and how it gave him trouble in school with the other kids. Martel also showed how clever he was when he wrote, “-I doubled underline the first two letters of my given name-Pi Patel” (Martel 22). He also went and wrote about how Pi was an amazing student that got lots of awards and graduated with 2 degrees that contradict each other perfectly to match the plot and experience Pi goes through.
I believe that Yann Martel's ability to set the novel in an interview format has brought the character of Pi Patel to life for me. I think that Martel's fictional conversations allow the reader deeper insight as to how Pi would interact if I were the one asking questions; wondering about his wonderful life story. I think that a moment from the book that Pi came to life for me was when Martel was describing the food that Pi prepared for him as well as the conversation that was mostly one-sided between the two of them. I believe that this quote best describes the quintessence of Pi Martel and who he is, "I worry that he'll want to stop. But he wants to tell me his story. He goes on. After all these years, Richard Parker still preys on his mind. He's a sweet man. Every time I visit he prepares a South Indian vegetarian feast/ I told him I like spicy food. I don't know why I said such a stupid thing. It's a complete lie. I add dollop of yogurt after dollop of yogurt. Nothing doing. Each time it's the same: my taste buds shrivel up and die. . ." I think that this part of the novel brings Pi alive for me because I can relate to having a conversation with someone who allows a few of my words in. I can also relate to experiencing different family's culture and cooking and the awkwardness of not being able to handle spice. I think that the way Martel describes Pi's cooking and conversation brings him to life. There is something so human in the way one prepares food for their guests and I think it brings an element to Pi's story and culture.
Yann Martel does a great job at not only creating characters but making them believable. Often times in books we see bigger-than-life characters that are strong-willed, intelligent, and entirely unbelievable. Pi Patel is a very intelligent character, but he certainly has flaws and problems that most of us can relate to. In addition, Pi is relatable because of his yearning for something bigger. Pi is known for practicing three religions at once, and while most people do not practice religions simultaneously, they can relate to that yearning for something bigger and better. Most people truly want to believe in something. Beyond the aspects of personality, Yann Martel makes Pi more believable by giving him experiences that we can all relate to. Pi lost his family and faces a new challenge, saying, "It's very sad not to remember what your mother looks like" (Martel 87). Pi may be an individual with a great mental capacity, but even he is struggling to remember important memories. In addition, the losses that Pi faces make him more relatable in the sense that almost everyone has lost somebody important to them. When a reader is able to relate to a character, it humanizes the character and makes the story more effective. Yann Martel also makes Pi more relatable by having him do certain things—like ordering a pizza with friends—that almost everyone can relate to. Even though Pi is a strange character with many peculiarities, Yann Martel ensures that everyone can relate to him in some way.
Yann Martel, the author of Life of Pi, does an exceptional job making the fictional character, Pi Patel, feel as though he is nonfictional. The sense of nonfiction comes from the details Yann places into his writing. In my opinion, it all begins with the author's note, Yann says, "It seemed natural that Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person—in his voice and through his eyes. But any inaccuracies or mistakes are mines" (xI-xII). With this Yann Martel places the belief that Pi is a real person by stating this his story could be inaccurate when in reality, Yann's story is fictional, so whatever he says is true to the story. I find Yann's attention to detail even more compelling as the story goes on because it really feels as though Pi is a real person. He does this through the mixing of Pi's perspective and Yann's own thoughts. Particularly from Yann's point of view, he talks about Pi's hoarding of food, "...his cupboards are jam-packed. Behind every door, on every shelf, stand mounts of neatly stacked cans and packages. A reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad" (25). This shows that Pi could possibly be a nonfiction character. It also shows that his near-death experience has changed the way Pi goes about life. This adds a non-fiction element to the story as Pi is fiction but his life could very well be nonfictional.
Yann Martel does an amazing job at bringing Pi Patel to life by the intro of the book. By starting as the narrator in a different country and giving us an introductory story of how he came to find Pi really makes him seem like an actual person. Then, by switching the point of view from Pi to narrator it helps reinforce our belief that Pi isn’t some made-up person in a book but an actual guy telling events that happened to him. We then learn more about Pi in the first group of chapters which helps us understand the characters and where they are coming from. When Pi starts his story he goes way back into his past to tell how his upbringing was and showing us how he came to believe in all his religions. This helps us understand him and his past and then with the help of the narrator section of person we hear him say “ He’s a small, slim man-- no more than five foot five Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can’t be older than forty” (Martel,7).”, this, in turn, provides a description of the man we are listening to which leads us to believe he is even more real. With the sporadic interventions of the author talking about Pi and his emotions when telling the story it is enough to make any reader believe this is a biography instead of a fiction book.
Martel did the research. He knows the story inside and out. This is why he can tell us "This story has a happy ending."(Martel 93) Martel is able to use his knowledge of what is true in order to shape it in a way that lets us learn so much of this fictional character. He uses a lot of detail when describing people, especially Pi Patel. He is able to do this because of how much he knows about the situation. He went to the real-life "Pi" and was given the story. Now he can use the story to bring light to the fictional character that is Pi, using the real-life character as a key to his new character. He writes in a way that intrigues the reader and wants us to know more and more about Pi. He writes himself, typically talking about Pi, and how he tells the story. Then he can switch and tell us the story from Pi's perspective. He can switch back and forth until the story is over, but each time Martel is talking, he reveals more and more information about Pi. This is what makes Martel a masterful writer and is what keeps allowing us to read on a learn more about this fictional character.
Martel uses the interview and story to show what Pi is like. With this method, he can tell two stories at once; He uses what Pi said as the main story and he uses imagery to describe what Pi's house and appearance is like. His imagery is very useful too. Vivid images are able to be imagined because of how well he describes the scenes. Martel also goes deep into Pi's past and describes childhood lessons, family dynamics, and Pi's religious endeavors. His description of Pi's past brings a fictional character to life. It is very believable that Pi is a real person because of the description of his childhood. Martel uses small details to build his Pi character up. An example of this is, "He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." The small details in the story amount to a lot of imagery. Another example of this is Martel's description of the house during the interview. He uses small subtle details to build a perfect image of the house. Between the interview/story method and the use of imagery and small details, Pi is made more and more real. It would be very hard to tell if Pi was a real person or a fictional character if you had no prior knowledge of the book.
The author of Life of Pi, Yann Martel, did such a good job at laying out Piscine Molitor Patel's life that it is hard to believe he isn't real. He seems to have written the entire book as if it were a non-fictional story; Martel even says "My gratitude to him is as boundless as the Pacific Ocean and I hope that my telling of his tale does not disappoint him" (Page XII) which just further tricks my mind into thinking Pi is real, it is just brilliant. Martel writes in an interview-type style, and how he includes the author's note as part of the story is interesting. His writing makes you forget that you're being told a fictional story. Martel writes in such a way that shows us the past and current Pi. There are things we would never know about Pi without Martel's narration. He writes in-depth about Pi's storyline with things like how he got his name and his walks through the zoo that get you attached to the character and his background. Martel's use of this plot development and imagery work to establish the mimesis of the story—mimesis is imitating the real world through literature. I can see how this author is incredibly smart, his writing—which exudes brilliance—has fooled me multiple times so far.
Yann Martel brings Pi to life in many different ways. I think the biggest way he brings him to life is by connecting him to reality. Yann Martel includes italicized pieces throughout the book that show him in real life sense. Martel includes a piece even before the book begins on XII, “I have a few people to thank. I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel.” Martel talks about Mr. Patel as if he were real. Seeing a real person (the author) talk about a fictitious character as a real person before the book even begins, we already believe he is real. In the book he mentions that Pi has two children, he also talks about how his house is set up; including a picture of Gasha, a picture of the virgin mary, a wooden cross, a shrine, and a bible on his bedside table. By mentioning these things he creates imagery to make more and more real world connections. Martel uses a lot of detail and shows his childhood for ninety-three pages. An author wouldn’t normally show this much background unless he wanted to really create a character as Martel has. He makes Pi an interesting character and shares many stories about how he got his name, life lessons, and his religious interest.
Pi Patel comes to life in Life of Pi because of Martel's lengthy exposition. Martel's goal in this exposition is to make the character as real as possible, which he does in many ways. One of the most potent forms of this is when he uses his faith to define his life. Pi Patel practices several types of religion and uses them to justify things in the world. "Religions will save us," I said. Since when I could remember, religion had been very close to my heart (Martel 27). When he speaks with Mr. Kumar (who is a devout atheist) about religion, he is very open to his arguments and even takes them to heart (not letting them change his own faith but instead they make him think about it more. This makes him a relatable and likable fictional character that uses everyday life situations to make him grow as a person. He also feels true in his love for animals. Almost everyone has a love for animals in some way, but the way Pi describes the animals of his zoo (and the world in general) really shows how true he is about his love for all living things in nature. This will later add to his character when he is forced to survive on a boat with many animals (eventually just one) and use his knowledge and love for animals to help him survive.
I believe that Yann Martel helps his readers believe that Pi is a real person by making him relatable. As a teenager I have a natural state to almost always rebel against my parents. From listening to different music than them all the way to staying up late just out of spite. Pi’s rebellious nature is far more intelligent than I could ever be. His father is an out right atheist that tries to teach his children that religion is a joke. He does not believe that religion is worth his time. So in defiance of his father, Pi decides not to completely immerse himself in one religion but to immerse a large portion of his life with three religions. Another aspect of his rebellious nature is his love for animals and seeing the good in them. His father tried showing him how violent animals are naturally when he feeds the tiger a goat right in front of his eyes, along with his brother. Although it does not come out as much in the first part of the book, Pi does spend a majority of the novel with animals in a small boat. One of the ways he gets through that is because of how he treats the animals.
If I did not know that this was fiction, I would have thought that Pi was a real character. His character is so down-to-Earth and honest that I have no choice BUT to believe the story. I find his character relatable in the ways that he is still trying to figure himself out, spiritually, but still maintains a good idea of mental sanity. I find this relatable because I feel detached from religion, but still, have a fear of now knowing what comes after death. What makes Martel's character so excellent is that he respects and knows all religions, and can sort of finding some peace within himself, I just wish it was that easy for me. Obviously, in the real world, you can not really practice three religions. He does an excellent example of this in chapter 23, where he meets with three very religious figures arguing back and forth about the differences in their religions. I have conflicting moral views that I do not share with the church that I come from, in fact, I find those views hypocritical and hateful. What Pi does is he finds solace and peace in all of them and I feel as though I can't. I think this character is an excellent way of symbolism of trying to figure out and examine the human condition.
Martel helps us know Pi by giving us the origin of his name. Usually, an author will just tell the reader the character's name but Martel uses Pi's name to add to the book. Pi's real name Piscine and he hates it because it sounds like "piss" so as he goes to a new school, he tells everyone his name is Pi. This is found on page 13 and it says, "My name is Piscine Molitor Patel, known as -I underlined the first two letters of my given name- Pi Patel." This backstory gives insight into the kind of person that Pi is. He wasn't the super popular kid; instead, he probably got made fun of to some extent. Pi is also "true" because Martel has him talk about the zoo and how intriguing each animal is to him. Pi has detailed thoughts that can relate to so many people. Pi is just a regular kid trying to find his own way but gets stuck in a very bad situation without anyone but a tiger. Martel shows Pi's thoughts in the book and what he was thinking during every situation. We are brought into Pi's past and we learn about his uncle and how he was taught to swim.
Yann Martel makes Pi Patel seem like a real person through many ways of confusing us to not be able to see what is real and what is not. He begins in the Authors note describing Pi as a real person. He introduces us to Pi at the beginning "It seemed natural that Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person" (Martel XI). This makes it seem as though the author is Pi instead of Yann himself. He Also uses 2 separate fonts throughout the book to make us believe 2 people have written the book. The way Yann relates Pi to religion over and over through the entire book makes him seem too real not to be a person. Humans associate religion as something only we as a species have so how could a none human believe in 3 religions and write a book about it. The book takes us through Pi's experiences with Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. Yann Martel makes us believe that Pi Patel is in fact a friend he met. He describes a real trip to India and talks about a man that is almost identical to a real person he did meet. The part that confuses people is that he then says he meets Pi which we know can not possibly be true.
Martel is helping readers to know his character Piscine “Pi” Patel by fully animating every detail regarding him to such an extraordinary extent as to allow readers’ minds to fool themselves into believing Pi to be a “true” or “real” person. This allows the reader to feel more able to connect with Pi and therefore better get to know him. Martel supplementarily includes his own interjections of and about his character. Martel’s interjections, which he supplies readers with every few chapters, also contribute to an understanding of Pi. In these purposeful chapters, Martel speaks of Pi as if he were a “true” person and even goes so far as to describe personal “interactions” with him. While readers are aware Pi is nothing more than a fictionary character, Martel’s written “interactions” with him leave you feeling otherwise. Through Martel’s encounters with Pi, we learn details about Pi’s present habits and life. Martel documents everything from Pi’s flavorful, vegetarian cooking to the way he bundles up even in Canada’s “warm” weather. These little details, while insignificant viewed from the surface, are key to a full understanding of Pi. By providing these “observed” details, Martel has helped me to get to know Pi.
Yann Martel makes Pi “real” by the fact that he encounters many difficult situations much like you and I. We all go through our hardships and I feel by hearing Pi’s struggles we relate to him as if he were real. Most books you read skip past the history of the main character and go straight to the plot. I enjoy how much of an intro Martel gives about Pi’s life from when he was a little boy and choosing his religion to his life experiences with living in a zoo. Another way Martel persuades us into thinking Pi is a real character is with the interview style of the book. By having the chapters alternate from Pi talking about himself to Martel talking more in depth about Pi, it makes us believe that he is really analyzing Pi’s life as if he knew nothing about it. It makes you look through two different perspectives, how Pi’s life was and how the author viewed Pi’s life, At first it was confusing with them switching back and forth as I have never read a book like this before. I caught on quickly though and ended up really liking this method as it is way more detailed and Martel does more than just skim through to the end, making you want to keep reading.
Yann Martel is helping the reader get to know Pi Patel in many ways. Even though he is a fictional character, the interview style of the narration gives a realistic aspect to the story that also makes us feel more connected to Pi and his story. In chapter 33, Martel starts to describe Pi's possessions that make him seem even more real. He says, "[Pi] shows me family memorabilia. Wedding photos first... They went to Niagara Falls for their honeymoon. Had a lovely time... Photos from his student days at U of T: with friends; in front of St. Mike's; in his room". By Martel showing us this real human aspect of a character he made up to tell a fantastic story, it gives the reader emotional connection, background, and a sense of relation. He is hoping that the reader could see Pi as a friend, brother, old college classmate, etc., so we grow more connected to the story and keep reading. This also makes you more on edge when dangerous things happen to Pi because you feel like a close friend of yours is in imminent danger. Martell uses this style called "mimesis" as a way to make the reader personally involved with the characters and events in the novel.
In the story Life of Pi the author, Yan Martel, does many different things to make the reader believe that what they are reading true. The way he describes Pi's adventures and challenges in life they are much like the ones an average person battles. Martel developed Pi to be a person just like any other person and made it so any kind of reader can relate to Pi on one level or another. To me, that is huge when an author is able to reach many different audiences with a piece. It is all about the connections that people can make that then suck them in. Another way I think Martel is able to make the reader believe Pi is true is by the way the story is told. It is not told from Pi's point of view, it is told by a different narrator. That develops the plot and main character significantly more than if Pi was describing himself. Pi went through some things as a kid a lot has a struggle with. For example, bullying. Pi was bullied because of his name. In the story, it says, "It's alright with me, brother. Antrhings better than 'Pissing'. Even 'Lemond Pie'" (page 24). This helps adds to the fact that he grew up pretty much just like any other kid.
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I think that the best way that Martel has brought Pi to life and made him seem real in our world is through the interview-style that the novel is written in. Martel places himself inside the story, claiming that in order to author this novel, he interviewed Pi himself and was introduced to Pi by another person, even though Pi is a figment of Martel’s imagination. The fact that he mentions his previous book failing and other parts of his life that actually happened bring a sense of realism to the story too. When Martel writes about his “interview” with Pi and writes chapters from both his and Pi’s perspective, it gives me the sense that Pi is an old man recounting an adventure from his past that actually happened in this reality. In addition to the perspective of the story, an additional factor that makes Pi “true” is his imperfections. Sure, he’s a genius that finishes high school in a year and then double majors in two unrelated subjects in college, but apart from this, he does not have a ton of endearing qualities. He isn’t a superhero or a mega-athlete or a royal prince. He isn’t 6’8” like Chief Bromden or heir to an entire kingdom like Simba. There isn’t much about him physically or situationally that sets him apart from an average person. All of his unique traits—his intelligence and the fact that he follows three religions at once—are comprehensible and could even be mimicked by a reader if they really wanted to, making him one of the “truest” novel protagonists you can have.
As the writer of this novel, Yann Martel does an amazing job of going into depth about Pi's past. While most authors would want to rush through and get to the main point (I know I would). Martel instead decides to take us deep into the memories and thoughts of the character. I believe that this will be extremely beneficial to myself as the reader, as it will help me connect with Pi and understand him as the story goes on. Martel makes it so much easier to understand Pi as he brings us along for every little detail that takes place inside of his head. He includes all of the past memories and events that are most important to Pi. This will help us understand the way he reacts and the decisions he makes in the future. I think that his description also helps the reader connect with the character and find similarities. Pi's religious practices can help many reads relate to him and understand his thinking. Not only can they relate to him, but this will also help them have sympathy for the character throughout this novel. Martel shares this about the character, "He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." This shows that Pi's physical appearance leaves him as a very average and maybe below-average individual. He in no way represents the heroic or brave protagonist physically. I think that his emotional characteristics will challenge this stereotype many times as the book goes on. We will find that his true strength and strong suits come from within him.
Yann Martel does a great job at making Pi Patel seem like a “true” character especially at the beginning of the book in the author’s note. Martel is in a coffee shop in the town of Pondicherry located in French India. The coffee shop is a good place for conversation with anyone. Martel ended up talking to Francis Adirubasamy, an elderly man who tells Martel “‘I have a story that will make you believe in God.’” (page x). This story that was supposed to make a person believe in God was the story about Pi Patel. Adirubasamy then brought up the train tracks and how they used to stop at the zoo where Pi lived. Martel and Adirubasamy continue to carry the conversation about Pi and Martel takes notes on Pi’s life for the sake of his new book he plans to write. Martel then looks up Pi’s number in the phone book and proceeds to call him and set up times to meet. In the concluding paragraph of the author’s note, Martel begins to say thank you to a few people. The first person he thanks is Pi Patel himself. By thanking Pi, it makes it easier for the reader to believe that Pi and his story are both “true.” Martel does a great job at making Pi’s story seem so “true” because of all the realistic events, including meetings in coffee shops and phone calls, that lead up to them meeting so Martel can interview Pi and write his story.
Yann Martel has a very fascinating way of writing that is very unique but also extremely intelligent. Having Pi Patel as a "real character" is insane and weird (but in a good way). I honestly would not have known that he wasn't real, or fictional. Pi Patel is someone fictional but the feeling given to him is someone like Kobe, if you will, he needs to be given the honor he deserves. Having Pi given that feeling makes him seem or feel very real. Yann Martel gives Pi respect which makes it all believable. In the author's note, Yann shows how he is giving Pi the respect he deserves. "It seemed natural that Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person-in his voice and through his eyes, But any inaccuracies or mistakes are Yann's. The choice of descriptive words to describe Pi is showing so. Calling him Mr. Patel equals respect. Saying that anything inaccurate or mistaken is Yann's fault shows again how much respect Yann has for Pi. This is all creating a fictional character who is believed or thought to be real, all with descriptive words and the intelligent ability to deceive readers into believing the unbelievable.
As far as I've gotten into the novel, the bulk of what I know about Pi Patel is from his past. I'm starting to understand what his life as a child was like, and why it was like that. As a reader, though, none of that information is really relevant to me unless I see the aftereffects of that childhood. I want to know how Pi lives his life now. Martel does an excellent job of putting himself in the reader's perspective and trying to write in a way that will give us what we want to know. Martel writes in an almost "interview" style that allows us to see the "past" Pi and "current" Pi. Martel's interview allows us to understand Pi's character now, and why it is important. There are things that we would never know without Martel's narration. We would never know that "At times he gets agitated. It's nothing I say (I say very little). It's his own story that does it." unless Martel tells us that about his character (Martel 42). I also think that Martel is helping us get to know Pi Patel by giving us a reason to get to know Pi. We really would never get to hear about Pi's story if it weren't for Martel's narration. This interview-like format sets a tone for the information that Pi gives us in general. As readers, we might take in the information a bit differently if this wasn't the case. Lastly, Martel gives us the opportunity to feel close to Pi through his narration. We get to understand him on a seemingly more personal level, and it hooks us into the novel a bit more. Pi isn't a random guy that has a cool story anymore; he's a friend who is sharing their life with you.
Though I have just started the book Life of Pi, it is clear to see several things about the main character. Firstly, he has had a traumatic experience in his life. This can be seen by the way he talks of small encounters with people bothering him. A very good example of this is when he recalls a story about a waiter who saw him eating with his hands and asks if he is fresh off the boat. Little does the waiter know that this is exactly the case, and he has just offended the main character deep down. The second thing to see is that the main character has been wounded by this person named Richard Parker. While we know this is not actually a person—rather he is a tiger—the main character still describes him as a person because of the close attachment he felt when he was on the raft with the tiger. He also describes Richard Parker as a person because the tiger left him even though the main character felt close with the tiger. After reading some stuff about the character's inner conflicts, we get a physical description of him, "He's a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion. Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner. Expressive face. Speaks, quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (Martel 7).
When I began reading, I noticed how in detail Yann Martel writes. He depicts such a clear image of Pi Patel due to how much he writes. I feel like in the first couple of chapters, I was actually getting to know Pi. Not just what he looks like and his hobbies, but actually how Pi thinks and works. You learn about what his passions are, how he feels about the zoo, and what he thinks of his dad. We, as readers, feel like we are living his past through his eyes. When he talks about the pool and the zoo, we can read what he sees, but what he thinks of everything. It's more than just the basic information and insights. It's way more in-depth. "They froze like criminals caught in the act. I didn't dare lick them. I wiped them guiltily on my napkin. He had no idea how deeply those words wounded me"(Martel 7). This sentence not only shows the deep emotion of embarrassment but each physical action that came over Pi.
Piscine Molitor Patel is described in Life Of Pi in such detail that it can be hard to tell that he is not real. Yann Martel does a phenomenal job of pacing the story and making the character feel real. Pi has real emotions and real experiences. When everybody thinks of Life of Pi, they think of the man on the boat with the tiger. In reality, the book is a good way in before he even gets to that point. Martel goes into such detail at the beginning that I forgot what book I was reading. The way that Pi narrates exudes brilliance. Anyone can tell that this is a very smart person without even knowing about him. “I felt I was in the presence of upside-down yogis deep in meditation or hermits deep in prayer, wise beings whose intense imaginative lives were beyond the reach of my scientific probing” (Martel 5). He talks in such a studious way and puts meaning into every word that he says. Yann Martel did amazingly at showing the acuteness of Pi through his narration.
Yann Martel helps us to get to know Pi Patel and to build this character from the very first page of the author's note. By Yann Martel telling us about his failed novel and how he needed to go to India for inspiration about his novel, we build a sort of connection with Martel and through this, we meet Pi's uncle. In his author's note, Yann meets Mamaji who tells Yann about Pi. Since this is in the author's note instead of the novel and it is through Yann's point of view it creates a sense of realism and helps tell us that Pi is actually a real person. Once the novel starts the interview style writing and switching between current and past it adds to the idea that this is all actually happening and coming directly from Pi's mouth. To further enforce this idea Yann Martel also talks a ton about Pi's past. By building Pi's character and telling his origin story such as who his favorite teacher is and his religious background this helps bring to life the character of Pi in this novel. Most books wouldn't include this much back story and skip straight to the interesting part such as Pi on the boat but by not doing this it helps make this book and make Pi real.
In the Authors note, Yann Martel is in the representation of a fictional Canadian author who just traveled to India. Within the Authors Note, Martel shows us an idea that will show how Pi's survival applied to his own religion. The fictional version of Martel, the Canadian author, interviews Pi when he is older to talk about his childhood and the context allows the reader to understand his past better due to the fact that he has already been through it and learned from it. I think that when Mamaji says to the author that Pi has a story that "will make you believe in God." This sets the grounds for the story and how valuable religion is to Pi and how it helped him survive. Martel also states the Pi became sad and gloomy when he arrived home from his horrible experience, but once he surrounded himself with his religious practices and zoological studies and he soon became happy again. That is a perfect example of how much Pi values religion. When we watched a snippet of the film, when the author sat down for a meal with Pi and Pi shared the story, that setting really set an expectation of how realistic and rememberable this story was going to be. Yet this is a fictional story, the way it is told is almost so believable that one would consider this a true, non-fictional story. Due to this, Martel goes above and beyond to set the tone for the main character as some authors do not.
In Life of Pi, Yann Martel goes into great detail about Pi Patel as a character. He describes in depth the background of him and his life as a child. He does a great job at giving the reader details about him as a character and developing Pi in the very first part of the book. Having this background information about Pi, the main character, it will make it easier for us to relate to him as the story progresses and understand where he is coming from. Without the narration of Yann Martel there are many things that we would miss about Pi as a character. Having two narrators can be confusing at times but it also allows for two perspectives and different interpretations from both. In the text “"He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." This shows the amount of detail that he uses in describing the character. We can really start to visualize and see him in our minds. It is also shows that he is just an average guy and there is nothing physically big about him. This can help you relate to him and see where he is coming from. Yann Martel does a great job in the first part of the book describing and giving background information.
As the writer of Life of Pi, Yann Martel does an excellent job from the beginning of the novel of going into detail about Pi Patel and his background. As Matel goes into great detail about Pi it helps readers make a connection right from the start of the novel. He is not like most authors and gets to the point of the story. Instead, he talks about Pi, which could be very beneficial to many readers, including me. With Martel talking about Pi it helps me connect with the story and make it a more interesting read. Without the details about Pi, I would not have the same connection with the book. I feel like I was almost starting to get to know Pi as a person. I was starting to get to know what he looks like, how he feels about things, or what he is most passionate about. I start to get to know a little bit more about his life. “He’s a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can’t be older than forty” (Martel,7). This description of Pi from the beginning of the story helps me visualize what he looks like.
Martel makes you think Pi is a real person by the interviewing that he does in the beginning. When it looks like the author is telling you how he heard about the story from Pi it makes you think it is a real person he is getting this story from. The author notes at the beginning telling us how he found Pi and the in-depth story of how he went through all these people makes it seem real. The way he wrote the story like Pi is talking to someone about his life makes it seem like Pi is a real person. The in-depth storyline showing how Pi got his name and certain random facts that he gives you is very detailed and seems real. I personally for a second changed my thought that it was fake before realizing it is fiction so it can’t be real. Martel really likes to play with mimesis by how he wrote the story he makes the reader think twice about the story being fiction. In the author's note, he says “My gratitude to him is as boundless as the Pacific Ocean and I hope that my telling of his tale does not disappoint him”(pg XII). This quote he says thanks to Mr. Patel and talks about the telling of his story doesn’t disappoint him. Hearing him say this can make you suspect that he heard the story from an actual person.
Through Part 1 of the novel, I believe Martel is doing a wonderful job helping me get to know Pi Patel. At first, it was semi-difficult attempting to wrap my head around the fact that Yann Martel Is writing about Pi Patel, a fake character. Yet, Pi Patel in the story has a very similar life to Yann Martel, for example indulging in three separate unique religions. His father owns a zoo, and they moved from India to Canada. Almost everything we are learning about Pi is in his way past and how he was raised. I believe he is giving great insight to show how smart Pi is. I also have found it interesting how he is given so much description and so many stories, yet he isn't a true person. When Pi and his parents are discussing his religious issues with the religious leaders, I thought it was interesting when he said, "Bapu Gandi said, 'all religions are true' I just want to love God." (Martel 69). I felt like there was nothing better he could have said in that situation. It put all of the leaders and his parents in their place, and they realized what the point of arguing with him is. It is his choice if he would like to practice three religions; who are you to say that he is unable to do such a thing.
If I were not told otherwise, I would have believed this was a true story. There is still a part of my brain I have to convince that this is fictional. Like a brain-teaser where you have to deduce what is real or fake. Yann Martel is incredibly talented with his writing and makes you believe that what he is saying is true. He includes himself as one of his characters which makes the book seem even more realistic. The addition of him and his interactions with the main character, Pi, give this book a deeper sense of reality. In the Author's note, Martel tells of a journey he made to India, as the cost was cheaper than Portugal, to write his new book. During this expedition, he came across a man in a coffee shop. This man told him of a story that would "make him believe in God." Martel then returns to Canada where he meets with Pi Patel and listens to his story. Towards the end of the Author's note, Martel includes a line explaining that "Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person," which adds to the sense of Pi being an actual being. Because of Martel's inclusion and wise choice of words, Life of Pi would be indistinguishable from a biography if set next to one.
Yann Martel does an exceptional job at the expedition of the book at bringing to life the character of Pi. In the midst of Pi opening the book, we get small little notes from Martel describing Pi's physical and emotional traits that allow the reader to understand his story more. First, when describing his appearance, Martel writes, "He's a small slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty" (Martel 7). Readers receive a vivid picture in their head of what the narrator of the book looks like at the time of his presentation. Furthermore, some characteristics are provided after the physical description. “Mild fall weather, yet he puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner" (Martel 8). Not only are we provided with physical traits that allow us to picture the character better, we are gifted with a character event that to some may seem ordinary, but really is beyond brilliant. Pi is used to the hot climate in India, but when he moved to a milder climate like Canada, he was in a different world. Midwesterners and those in Canada picture a mild fall day as 50-degree weather, where most people would be comfortable wearing shorts and a sweatshirt. But to Pi, this weather is most deserving of winter wear. I found this interesting and comical because it provides insight into the fact that Pi loves his new home, but he is still used to and accustomed to life back in India. This can be relatable to a lot of people, which is where Martel is a genius. He provides a relatable situation where people can relate to it, thus making the character of Pi more true in our minds.
Due to Yann Martel's mastery of literature, you feel as if while you read the novel that you could reach out and touch Piscine Molitor Patel. Martel accomplishes this by instead of diving straight into the plot or beginning with the conflict of the story early. Martel puts on the brakes of the story and describes Pi in painstaking detail. Martel describes Pi both physically and how he thinks. Physically he is described as a "...small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion. Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner. Expressive face. Speaks, quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (Martel 7). Even though the lengths that Martel went to describe Pi are extremely impressive they are easily surpassed by the emotional description of him. From the lengths that Pi goes to describe the zoo to how he got his name from a swimming pool in France and how he obtained his new name the amount of description of his character is staggering. Both elements work hand in hand together to make you feel (and essentially know) that Pi Patel is "true."
Yann Martel does a great job at making Pi seem like a real-life character. Martel goes into exceptional detail when talking about the main character Pi leading the readers to believe that Pi is indeed a real-life character and this is a true story about his life. This really comes out on page 7 when Martel describes Pi. "He lives in Scarborough. He's a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion"(Martel 7). By describing what Pi looks like in detail from his age to his height to his complexion Martel creates a perfect image of what Pi looks like. Any author can describe their main characters in such detail, but Martel takes it a step farther stating, "Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to diner. Expressive face. Speaks quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk"(Martel 8). By going into details about the weather and adding funny quirks like the fact he is wearing such a big coat on a nice day makes the reader fully relate to Pi and see him as more and more realistic. Explaining to the reader how Pi talks and expresses his face and hands show readers what it is like to be having a conversation with him and going into very precise detail about how and what he does, allowing the reader to feel like they themselves are talking with Pi too. All these details together convince the readers that Pi is real and Martel does a great job expressing that idea.
Pi Patel is a character that Martel crafted very carefully. He seems to almost be “real” to the readers. His writing style in “Life of Pi” makes Pi seem very lifelike. His thoughts as well as his background story are very intricately written. I believe that the fact that he is telling us the story of his past really brings Pi to life. That alone gives him greater depth as a character than most. We get a really solid grasp on what kind of person Pi is and was through his story-telling. He can be seen as an outsider compared to his peers and even his family. Not only do we learn about his past but we are given a complete physical description as well. With all of this information, it is hard to not have a picture painted in our heads as to who Pi is and what he looks like too. Pi is given his unique characteristics by the extensive characterization Martel uses. This characterization is used all the way down to even how he got the name Piscine Molitor Patel. On page 8 Pi says, “I was named after a swimming pool.” We also get more information on this later. The Piscine Molitor was not any pool. It was one of the premier pools in France that “Mamaji” swam in. Yann Martel perfectly executes the characterization of Pi Patel using carefully thought-out, extensive stories and descriptions of him.
Martel helps the reader get to know Pi Patel by telling the story mostly from Patel’s point of view with the occasional insight of how Martel’s experiences with Patel. From Patel’s point of view, he describes his childhood and the events leading up to his family moving from India to Canada. He vividly describes how he was named Piscine after a swimming pool because of Mamaji and how he came up with his nickname of Pi to avoid being ridiculed by his classmates at his new school. “I double underlined the first two letters of my given name.” (Martel 22) He then goes on to describe his father’s zoo and all the animals that resided in it. He provides insight as to how the animals are not just caged up and mistreated but the zoo is like a luxury hotel for them instead. However, it is the zoo’s downfall that causes them to have to move to Canada when Patel is only 16 years old. Patel also has many interesting experiences with different religions. He is introduced to Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity through his upbringing, a local baker, and a priest while on vacation. He experiments with all three religions and begins to practice all three at the same time while keeping it secret from his parents until one fateful day when his religious mentors all meet. However, he continues to practice all three religions even after being ridiculed by his brother Ravi. From Martel’s point of view, he describes Patel’s life when gathering information to write this novel.
In the novel, Life of Pi, Yann Martel goes to great lengths to provide readers with a sufficient amount of background information on Pi Patel to make the story relatable and make Pi seem like a real character. Readers grow a connection with Pi throughout the course of reading the novel and they understand the novel more because they have a better understanding of the characters themselves and the plot. The plot in the author’s note is also very realistic and helps you understand what is happening even more. The setting is set at an Indian Coffee House in Pondicherry, India. This moves the story along because, in the real world, it is easy to strike a conversation with others in a coffee shop, which is precisely what happened to Martel in this instance, a “spry, bright-eyed elderly man with great shocks of pure white hair was talking to me.” (pg. x) This man tells Martel that he has a story for him that will make him believe in God, which intrigues Martel. This is how they transition into the actual novel of the book. Martel also uses a lot of descriptive language in his writing, which also draws a connection between you and Pi Patel. When using more descriptive language, the readers are able to visualize and comprehend what a certain character, place, or situation looks like or what the situation would feel like to Pi Patel.
In the novel, Life of Pi, Yann Martel goes into great detail about the facetious character: Pi Patel. Yann goes into such great detail that it makes it hard to believe that Pi is not a real person. I believe Yann is a literary genius for being able to effectively write about every small, important detail about Pi. He has to have a great imagination and I assume he would be good at coming up with a believable cover-up story. Yann comes with very believable circumstances that make the story sound so realistic. For example, how he explains that he found a man at a coffee shop that wants to chat with him about his life story, and how it will make him believe in God, which intrigues Yann. He also explains to the readers Pi's fascination with religion as well as zoology. In the text, it says, "After one year of high school, I attended the University of Toronto and took a double-major Bachelor's degree. My majors were religious studies and zoology" (Martel 3). He is obviously a genius if only went to high school for one year and went straight to college. Overall, the readers are able to easily comprehend Martel's writing because he is very specific and lets you know about pretty much everything about Pi's intriguing life.
Martel is a gifted writer that crafts every single sentence to convey a specific message or meaning. Martel is not only able to bring Pi Patel to life through vivid character descriptions, but also because Martel can identify parts of himself with the character. Martel places the reader directly into Pi’s mind, allowing us to experience the same emotions and thoughts that Pi is. At first, I thought the idea of practicing multiple religions was extremely outlandish, but as Martel walks us through Pi’s thought process, I begin to understand why, as Pi explains everything in a way that makes sense. His in-depth stories of Pi’s childhood help us identify with Pi, as we may share similar childhood experiences. Pi has many lines that resonate with readers due to their philosophical impact--these lines are great at connecting the reader to Pi and Pi to the real world. One such line is, “All living things contain a measurable amount of madness that moves them in strange, sometimes inexplicable ways” (Martel, 41). Lines such as the one mentioned connect Pi to the “real world” as these ideas are things that we realize as we experience more, making Pi seem more real to the reader. Martel goes a step further and expresses parts of himself in the characters, especially the author that is writing Pi’s story. The author's note, lack of detail about the author, and description of Pi make it seem like the author is real, which reinforces the idea that Pi is also real.
I think what makes it so easy to visualize this character is the way Yann Martel writes about Pi Patel as if he were a living, breathing human being. For the longest time, while reading this story, I believed Pi was completely nonfictional. Throughout the entire novel, we are completely absorbed in Pi’s wonders and the smallest adventures he endures. He explains to us in the finest details how he got his name from a French pool and his stories behind his uncle giving him swimming lessons. He tells us about being teased in school for his name and how he reinvented himself. He expresses his curiosities and philosophies. Everything about him seems true. Martel writes this character in a very modest fashion—nothing about Pi is crazy unbelievable or out of the ordinary (in part one at least). I also appreciate the different perspectives this novel is told in. The cuts from Pi telling stories from his childhood to the interviewer’s present-day perspective gives it more of a personal feel. We also gain more insight into how Pi’s personality has changed from before his childhood—which offers room for interpretation on how the shipwreck could have changed him. Overall, Pi’s life has been described in a very relatable format making it easy to get to know him.
Yann Martel has made me understand what is going on in the book right away without having to stop and analyze what might be going on. Sometimes when I read books, I don't know who is speaking due to the lack of information and it throws me off. In One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, for example, it took me quite a long time to stop and analyze that Chief Bromden is saying what he imagines, not about what is actually happening. I believe that when Martel gives Pi's life story right away in the book, it creates a complete understanding throughout the rest of the book. Some events might happen, but, the reader knows how Pi is going to react to it and how he will feel about it. Martel even goes as far as telling where Pi's parents got his name from, how he got made fun of, and how he dealt with it. He also talks about what religions he believes in and why. He talks about what his parents do for a living even. I think the detail and descriptions are tremendous in full understanding of the book by any reader. It makes me want to keep reading it constantly.
I think that Martel does such a good job making Pi Patel seem real to the readers because he has so much background information on him. As a writer, if you skim through his life and interests, it doesn't seem real. A short biography on a character that doesn't go into much depth does not seem believable. When Martel tells where he went to school, how he got bullied for his name, how he switched his name, what college he attended, it makes it all seem much more real to the reader. Also telling us about where he grew up adds more details. Martel explains how he grew up in a zoo, surrounded by animals, loving every moment of it. The emotion that Martel expresses gives Pi that extra realistic trait about him. The part that really got me at first was actually in the author's note section of this book, on page 11. While talking to Adirubasamy, he says "You must talk to him, I knew him very very well. He's a grown man now. You must ask him all the questions you want." Martel adds this into the book to really make the readers think that Pi is actually a real person and this happened to him. Why else would he go talk to someone about this story if that person wasn't real? Martel does an outstanding job making Pi seem like a real person through thorough detail about his life and interests.
Yann Martel has made it very easy to know Pi through great character development during the beginning of the novel. He goes all the way back into Pi's childhood at his father's zoo and how growing up was for him. Yann leaves no details out and gives vivid imagery with his great descriptions. It has been easy for me to follow the book because it is staying on the same storyline, unlike One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest which had my brain doing circles trying to comprehend what was going on in some parts of the novel. Right off the rip, Yann catches your attention; talking about how Pi got his name from a famous French swimming pool, how he was made fun of at school for having the name Piscing, the boat ride, and many more crazy adventures that keep us flipping pages. We learn the Pi is very prestigious when it comes to school; in a quote said by Pi, "After one year of high school, I attended the University of Toronto and took a double-major Bachelor's degree. My majors were religious studies and zoology"(Martel 3).
The progression of Pi Patel in the first chapter alone is enough to make him true. Yann Martel uses the background of Pi to make him feel real. Even the small, one off sections humanize Pi in a way that makes him feel real to the reader. I think it all boils down to be a testament to the format and style that Yann Martel writes with. The interview style of writing we get makes the whole situation feel very real. Yann putting himself directly into the story makes go straight from fiction to the opposite. Hearing the words come straight from Pi’s mouth makes him the “truest” character he can be. Aside from this point, I think it is important to recognize how much Pi is humanized to the reader. Making him just seem like an ordinary guy makes him not feel like this high and mighty hero character that some authors, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it makes the story feel more personal and in touch with reality. He isn’t a prince, like in The Lion King, or this borderline psychopathic rebel like Randle McMurphy in One Flew of the Cuckoo’s Nest. He’s just genuinely interesting and that is cultivated by the vast background that is given by Yann and the style this is written. “He's a small, slim man—no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can't be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-coloured complexion. Mild fall weather, yet puts on a big winter parka with fur-lined hood for the walk to the diner. Expressive face. Speaks, quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (Martel 7).
Martel has done a very good job at describing the background of Pi Patel's life. He explains lots of little details, details that are meant to enhance the complex personality of Pi. One of the specific parts of the book is when he was explaining how he hated the nickname he was given by his peers. One day, he stood up at the board and wanted to change it. Martel could have just said that when Pi moved to a new school, he asked people to call him his new name instead of explaining how he went up to the board when the teacher called on him to explain what pi is. In the book, it says "I got up from my desk and hurried to the blackboard. Before the teacher could say a word, I picked up a piece of chalk and said as I wrote:
My name is Piscine Molitor Patel, known to all as—I double-underlined the first two letters of my given name—Pi Patel." (Martel 13) It was just very interesting to me how Martel chose not to skip over these details so that we could see he is just a regular human who got bullied in school too.
Martel allows the reader to explore the character Pi in-depth throughout this novel. As far as I have read, I have been given ample background information about Pi; this character and his story are being brought to life. Having two different narrators in this novel contributes to its realisticness because of the use of two perspectives. Multiple perspectives create a larger image that Martel has been successful with. This style of writing has kept me engaged—even throughout the introduction. I often struggle with starting books because the beginnings are hard to get through and have unnecessary information in my opinion. I honestly have not had any issues with this book, however, because Pi’s background story is more intriguing than most. Relating to Pi and imagining his story inside my head has been natural so far. I believe many other readers will also find that they can relate with Pi either in his experiences or ideas. Religion is always an interesting conversation topic, as many people have different beliefs and viewpoints, so I have been lucky to find this within the novel. As Pi discusses his issue with agnostics, he states, “To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation” (Martel, 28). This statement truly has allowed me to dive deeper into Pi’s mind because what you believe surely says a lot about your morals and what you are like. Martel has helped me to become familiar with Pi through his extraordinary use of imagery.
Yann Martel has brought Pi to life by adding background information into the story and being consistent with the opinion of how he spoke. By including things such as memory and feelings they create a more personal feeling helping the reader get a better picture of who Pi is and how he acts. When Pi talked about how ‘“Religion will save us’ I said. Since I could remember, religion had been very close to my heart” (pg 27) it shows a good depiction of his memory. How the dialog is done helps to create a realistic person as the topics and words spoken aren’t in an overly complicated way that makes them feel made up or like the conversation was pre-planed. The information about how he learned to swim from Mamaji with how his parents felt about it creates a display of parental worry. The sibling banter that is incorporated shown helps to a family dynamic “Ravi was a merciless teaser. The first time he called Mamaji ‘Mr. Fish’ to my face I left a banana peel in his bed” (pg 8). The use of adding Pi’s thoughts about different interactions and how he interacted with the different situations with the correct emotion such as being confused when talking with Mr. Kumar at the zoo, about religion which Mr. Kumar doesn't believe in but Pi’s known about and believed in for as long as he could remember.
The approach Yann Martel takes in writing this novel is much different than the previous literature we have analyzed. Martel is telling the story in order. He isn't just starting from the beginning of the real "story" but is giving Pi's life story in order. This differs from Ken Kesey's writing in Cuckoo's Nest; he gives a slight back story of McMurphy but then jumps into the main plot of the book. I prefer Martel's take on storytelling. We first learn about Pi's education and interests along with the story of his name. By gaining knowledge of Pi as a character from the beginning, we as readers can possibly predict what Pi will do in certain situations or understand why he acts in certain ways. One example that forms Pi as a character from an early age is his conversation with his teacher, Mr. Kumar on page 27. The teacher explains to Pi why he is an atheist, "Religion is darkness." After listening to Mr. Kumar's spiel Pi is taken aback and admits, "This was all a bit much for me" and continues later saying, "I was more afraid that in a few words thrown out he might destroy something I loved." This is just one example of a way that Yann Martel makes Pi into a "true" character.
The way that Yann Martel has made it seem like this novel is a nonfiction novel is through the interview-like style that he has written the novel in. Roughly every other chapter is in the view of either Pi Patel or Yann Martel. The chapters that are written in the perspective of Yann Martel are often shorter and provide some insight in how he sees Pi Patel “his cupboards are jam-packed. Behind every door, on every shelf, stand mountains of neatly stacked cans packages. A reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad.” Not only is this interview style of writing effectively in creating this nonfiction style but it also creates a sense of friendship between Pi Patel and Yann Martel. It sounds like the two are friends who are learning more about one another. This sense of closeness to each other makes it extremely personal and more intriguing to read. Thus, progressing the turning of each page in the novel. Yann Martel helps create this sense of closeness by thanking Pi Patel for his services each time along with describing his experiences after each chapter. Both of these observations lend to Yann Martel’s extremely interesting and unique writing style that helps the reader how truly amazing and intelligent Yann Martel is.
Martel is not an ordinary author. He has chosen a different style of writing that will keep his readers more on an edge. Especially in the novel Life of Pi. He even managed to make this nonfiction character come to life just by the way he set up his style of writing, and this style is like an interview. Asking questions and answering them type deal. I love how in the novel, Martel always puts in his own little side notes of him asking questions of just things in his head while conversating with the "interviewee". In these particular sections when the author is talking, he always seems so fascinated. "His house is a temple. He is the lord overcomer of obstacles, the god of good luck, the god of wisdom, the patron of learning. Simpatico in the highest. He brings a smile to my lips." (Martel 45) Throughout the novel so far, you learn how close Pi Patel and Yann Martel really are. Their new friendship will leave the reader wondering as to what is going to happen next. Or how Martel will put his thoughts in the book to give you another view of looking at different situations, not just Pi himself. This style of writing is very interesting and new to me, but more books that I read, I hope to read one that also has Martel's style of writing as well.
I think Martel has done a great job at explaining who Pi Patel is to us. One of the best quotes that I found that fits this is on page 69. "Bapu Gandi said, 'all religions are true' I just want to love God." (Martel 69). This quote is one that has meaning beyond just the surface. It also tells us a lot about Pi. He is someone who wants to just "love God." His family is non-religious, even to the extent of making fun of him at the dinner table for trying to be in all three religions at the same time. This one quote also can stand for Pi's pursuit of excellence. He took up a double major in religious studies and Zoology. That right there shows just how much he wants to learn. He happens to be a simple man who loves God and wants to continue to pursue high education. Pi is just a curious man looking for information. Take when he entered the Church for the first time. His first words were "why." He strives to read and learn throughout all of his life and continuing in his career in Religious studies and Zoology. This is why I believe that Martel has done a fantastic job at explaining and building the character Pi.
Yann Martel is doing a great job at making Pi Patel seem like a real character. At the beginning of the novel, he goes into depth about what Pi looks like describing his appearance as a kid, a teen and, an adult. He also describes how he was raised as a child, and how his house is arranged. This makes it really hard for the character to seem fake when the description of the character is so precise. Yann Martel wrote "His overheated house is always smelling of something delicious. His spice rack looks like an apothecary's shop" (Martel 24). He creates an image of Pi that while we are reading we can picture. Another thing that Yann Martel did that made the character seem real is the way he wrote his book. He wrote the novel in an interview-style that would lead to a flashback of Pi's life. He incorporated his own experiences in the world and related them to Pi. When he writes he writes to make us feel something whether it is a good feeling or a sad feeling Martel writes these sentences well. It connects us with the character he has created we can relate to what he is feeling sometimes.
If I were writing a novel, I would be tempted to rush through all of the background information on a character and jump to the main conflict of the story; however, Yann Martel spends chapter after chapter describing the character, resulting in the main conflict not happening until well into the book. Why? Because all the background information about Pi forms who he is, which is a paramount part of understanding the book. By spending so much of the book developing Pi, Martel makes the character seem real to the reader. From what I have read so far, I think Martel does this through connecting Pi to the thoughts, feelings, experiences, etc. of real people. Even through Pi being a practicing muslim, hindu, and christian, he becomes more real to a wide range of audiences. One of my favorite sections I have read so far in the book is when Pi talks about his feelings towards each religion he practices. For example, he first talks about how skeptical of Christianity he was, followed by a deep love for the practice. He then discusses the overwhelming peace he felt when he began practicing Islam. This makes it real for many readers because I think many people experience the same feelings when they begin practicing a religion. Overall, I think Pi narrates as if he is just having everyday conversation. The author describes how Pi talks to him, “Speaks quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth” (8). He talks about his experiences like he is sitting across from you at lunch giving an interesting story about his day. Taking so much time discussing his past experiences, such as his struggles with his name in school and his practice of each of his religions, helps the reader understand Pi and why he will do what he does in the novel. How he presents himself to the reader—in a conversation-like manner—makes him feel real.
I think Yann Martel is helping us believe in Pi more because of the extensive amount of background knowledge he provides us with about Pi. Martel could have just jumped straight into the action with Pi stranded on a boat with a tiger just like how Lord of the Flies jumped straight into them on an island. Martel instead chooses to have Pi narrate what his life was like before his experience. There are so many background details about Pi that make him a very believable character and make you understand him more and know what he is about. The part to me that stands out is on page 9 when Pi is tossed in the water left to learn to swim on his own. "I must have looked like a child throwing a peculiar, slow-motion tantrum." This piece of his background makes Pi seem like a real person. So many people have been taught how to swim this way and Pi is no exception. Martel chose something simple that we can relate to making Pi all that more believable.
Yann Martel has introduced us to Pi Patel in such a unique way. He writes it from his point of view so that you can see Pi through his eyes, and take in his perspective of him, but he also writes it from Pi's perspective so you can see what he's like from his own story. It is a fascinating technique that I don't think I've seen in any other books I have read. Yann Martel also writes vividly about Pi's young childhood, especially about his experiences growing up, and his dive into religions. I like how much detail he puts into this because it gives the reader a feel of what kind of character Pi is and, it makes it more interesting to compare your faith (or lack of it) to what the people around Pi believe. Pi's belief that "all religions are true. I just want to love God"(pg 69) makes him feel really open-minded introduces the reader to other religions in a positive light. I am really happy that they talk about all kinds of gods in the book, for a book that promises to make you believe in god, I thought it would be about just one religion. The writing in this book is phenomenal, personally, it feels very easy to pick up and visualize the scenes in the story.
I love the way that Yan Martel introduces Pi because it is so realistic, and he does it in such a way that it makes you think he is sitting right across from you. One of the main reasons is that he goes out of the way to bring in as many details as possible, and this gives a much clearer picture of Pi's early life and background. Martel is able to get away with his by using a narrator. This unique perspective allows him to include things that would make a normal introduction overly wordy and boring. Another tool that Martel uses to describe Pi is that he actually describes the things around Pi. He puts extensive detail into bringing the animals and people around him into reality. This helps us understand Pi by seeing what affects him and how he interacts and relates with other characters and objects. The first two sentences of chapter three, "I was named after a swimming pool. Quite particular considering my parents never took to water.", are a terrific example because it incorporates significant amounts of detail and it also describes others around him. Not only does Martel's style of introducing Pi make him easily understood, but it also gives us many ways to relate to him and his life.
I think the best way, Yann Martel uses mimesis to make Pi Patel seem like a real person is through the switching between his story and the author asking him his story. The intercutting stories bring an almost documentary style to the book. The description of Pi Patel’s house is specific and accurate enough for you to believe that he is a real person. “When he opens his refrigerator or his cupboards, there are many brand names I don’t recognize” using descriptions like this really makes him seem real. As the “author” interviews Pi he often talks about his mood and his reactions to certain things that he thinks about. This brings a sense of realism to the story because when someone is truly recounting their story, especially a traumatic one, they would not remain calm and collected the whole time. His story is not one of a traditional adventure-style book. His childhood is not wrought excitement and fantasy like a traditional book but is filled with the splendor and wonder of someone looking back on their childhood. His memories emphasize very basic things that a child his age would think and often resonates with me because it is the same way most of us remember our childhood. Another sense of realism is the historical timeline that is kept. Yann Martel has gone to great lengths to research in-depth
Yann Martel introduces Pi by telling us the nature of how he grew up. I think this helps us relate to Pi because even though we did not all grow up in a zoo, we can relate to little things in his life. I also like how the author speaks to us in short chapters to see what is going on during the telling of the story, the mainline I like is, "Expressive face. Speaks quickly, hands flitting about. No small talk. He launches forth" (8). This line alone tells just how expressive Pi is in telling his story. When Pi tells the reader of when he decides to change his name, I think some of us can relate to that instance. He was sick of being picked on and took matters into his own hands. That allows the reader to get a feel of Pi's character at the beginning of the book and can carry it out through the story of the novel. The writing in this book is outstanding because we get little pieces of information about the narrator throughout the novel while the story is playing out on the next page.
Yann Martel uses very different methods to make a fictional character come to life. He utilizes a strategy using two authors to write a book. Having himself recall events and then also have Pi narrate events makes him that much more alive. Yann talks about his previous books failing, which they did, in order to make us believe in his book now. He sits down and talks about Pi and also interviewing him, kinda how he talks about Richard Parker like he is a real person too. Another way Pi comes to life is how he himself talks about the events, and Yann talks about him like he is alive. Yann describes his physical qualities, "He's a small, slim man- no more than five foot five". Using physical qualities, and talking about him as an old man recalls his best friend from childhood, makes Pi that much more believable.
Martel is helping the reader know Pi Patel by interviewing the character. The back and forth style of writing make the reader think that everything that is said is the truth. It makes it even more believable when it goes into Martel's perspective. At some points in the novel, Martel describes what he sees and what he eats. It makes Martel and therefore Pi very relatable people. It also is written from Pi's perspective. This makes the reader follow through with everything that Pi is doing. It shows how human and almost mundane his life is. Pi's father also teaches his kids lessons that will benefit them such as, "'I'm going to show you how dangerous tigers are,' he continued. I want you to remember this lesson for the rest of your lives." While it is a harsh lesson, it's relatable to people who have ever been taught something by their parents. Everything in his life from being made fun of to being taught a lesson is so human. It allows the reader to see themselves through Pi making him seem real or true. So far the basis of the book is so realistic that it's sometimes hard to believe that it might be an imitation of the real world.
“I have nothing to say of my working life, only that a tie is a noose, and inverted though it is, it will hang a man nonetheless if he's not careful.” This quote from page 5 really helps bring Pi to life for me. I believe that with this statement it is so much easier to relate to this character. Since most desk jobs usually require that you wear a tie to work every day he is obviously referring to that type of lifestyle. He is saying that the lifestyle of sitting at a desk working til 5 going home and wait for the day to take a vacation is too similar to the life of everyone else that wears a tie to work. He says that with a tie around your neck if you leave it there and let it overtake you you are no longer a person but just someone that wears a tie. It is the death of the individuality each person posses that will die from the tie around the neck and that is basically death in itself. Yann has this come from the mouth of Pi and that makes him seem even more real than he would be without it.
Yan Martel helps the reader get to know Pi Patel through the use of mimesis. Mimesis is imitating the real world through literature. Yan Martel makes Pi seem realistic by including the interview scenes between chapters. The italicized sections of the novel indicate a change in point of view. The interview scenes are from Martel's point of view. Not only do readers experience Pi's perspective of himself, but we also get to know Pi through someone else's eyes! Learning about a person with two perspectives leads to complete understanding of a character. We get to know Pi more as Martel explains his surroundings during their meetings at Pi's house. For example, Martel explains to the reader that religion is very important to his everyday life as he describes what his house looks like on page 45: "His house is a temple. In the entrance hall hangs a framed picture of Ganesha, he of the elephant head..." In addition, the reader gets to fully understand Pi as Martel explains how his story ends. The reader makes assumptions about Pi's experiences and characteristics based on what he is like after them. To explain, on page 93, Martel writes, "This story has a happy ending." The reader can infer that whatever Pi is about to go through in the novel, he is resilient and strong as he made it through life and was able to settle down to have a family. Understanding his ending helps the reader get to know Pi further and makes him more realistic.
Yann Martel does an exceptional job at bringing to life Pi as a character. You truly feel as if you know the guy and exactly what he looks like. He leaves his little excerpts and thoughts on Pi in his italicized chapters he includes. These chapters really expand your outlook on Pi Patel and help you know him even more, almost as if you have met him yourself. Yann Martel makes sure everything about Pi Patel is very real, except for the fact that he isn't real. "He's a small, slim man–no more than five foot five. Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples."(7) Yann Martel adds pieces of information like these to almost further try and convince us Pi Patel is real. Yann Martel does this many times throughout the chapters as well, it is not a one-time deal. Martel also includes parts where he is telling some of his own life stories. This creates an even more realistic feel. By Martel basically conversating to himself it creates a sense of him having a normal conversation with another real human. Yann Martel even thanks Pi Patel in his author's note. The story has not begun and he's already acting as if he has met Pi and collected the story from Pi himself.
I think that the best way that Martel is bringing Pi to life is by giving us these vivid descriptions of what his home and his days are like. He doesn't just say that Pi's dad owns a zoo, he gives us a description of the amazing birds and all of the big animals. He doesn't just say that Mamaji was built to be a swimmer, he says "My brother Ravi once told me that when Mamaji was born he didn't want to give up on breathing water and so the doctor, to save his life, had to take him by the feet and swing him above his head round and round" (Martel 8). He says that is why his chest is so thick and his head is so skinny. Another reason why Martel does such a good job at bringing Pi to life is that he can relate to the character that he has created. He uses the italicized chapters to give insight into what is happening. He connects things happening in a somewhat fictional story to the real world and also connects things happening to Pi to the reader.
The phrase “The Devil’s in the details” easily applies to Yann Martel’s writing style and method. Yann Martel has an uncanny ability to bring fictional characters to life, developing relationships with the reader through their shared experiences. In Life of Pi, Piscine Patel’s story is built right from the base up. The first segment of the novel is spent learning about Pi’s history, all of which helps establish Pi as a person rather than a fictional character. Martel’s use of diction, imagery, and plot development help establish the mimesis of the story. There are smaller details throughout that add a sense of reality that could not be made up—details that are too human to be made up. A strong example of the narrator-reader relationship can be found in Chapter 25; Pi is describing, to the audience, his personal views on religion by saying “these people fail to realize that it is on the inside that God must be defended, not on the outside,” referring to the judgment faced by the community regarding his 3 religions (Martel 71). Pi also is brought to life through the novel's narrator’s description. The narrator includes descriptions of not only Pi but his environment. Chapter 6 is spent describing Pi’s relationship to the kitchen; the narrator describes his cupboards as “a reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad”—foreshadowing the story that is to be shared later in the book (24). The small details such as Pi's passion for observing the animals in the afternoon add to his authenticity and realness. Overall, Martel’s specific choice of childhood stories, descriptive passages, and character interactions develop Pi beyond just another character in a book; it is as if Martel is daring Pi to come to life and step right out of the pages of our books. A natural gift for literature can not begin to describe Martel’s ability to characterize and humanize.
Yann Martel uses a lot of descriptive languages to describe the characters. Without the description of characters, the novel would lack key information that creates the story. The amount of detail brings the Pi Patel to life. Starting in the author’s note the depth that Matel applied the story to his own life through his religion. The information that we gain through the actual story and the author that speaks throughout the novel allows readers to make more connections with the characters. The more both portions of the book go in-depth the more the connections are able to be made. In the interactions, the reader might think that Pi Patel was an actual person instead of a fictional character. In the book they describe Pi Patel being bullied by other kids. This gives the character a more humanized description because there were social interactions that he had that might be similar to some of the readers. This creates more ability for various readers to connect to Pi Patel instead of just one type of audience being targeted by the novel. He eventually finds a way to address the bullies in a positive way. He memorizes the digits of Pi and shares them with the class. This changes the viewpoint of his classmates and gains respect from them in a healthy way. He could have tried to take a negative way and use a more violent form of interaction with his bullies.
Yann Martel does an exceptional job of helping the reader get to "know" Pi through the way the story is written. As a reader, it is very easy to start to understand a character when someone else is telling you about them. In, Life of Pi, Martel has written this story in an interview type of way which allows us to see how someone else views Pi as well as Pi's own perspective of the story. We get to hear about more than just the story through the interview such as what Pi eats in Canada and other things about Pi that we just wouldn't know without the interview. It is the simple things that help us, the readers, understand characters like Pi, "He makes the most zesty yet subtle macaroni and cheese I've ever had" (Martel 24). A simple statement like that has a tremendous impact on how the reader feels about a character. This statement is effective in many ways. One, everyone likes mac and cheese and two it makes an incredible character seem very human. The interview really allows us to connect with Pi on a more personal level. Being allowed to see inside the mind of a character really enhances the relationship between the reader and the character.
Yann Martel is helping me know Pi Patel by devoting an entire part of the book to introducing him. The first part of the book is purely about Pi. It is about who he is now and who he was before the main part of the story. Martel tells who Pi is in two ways: through Pi's perspective and through his own perspective. The first way, Pi's own perspective, is pretty self-explanatory. Martel "met up" with Pi and had Pi talk about his past. Pi's past was kind of split into four groups: the origin of his name, the zoo, how he came to be a Hindu, Christian, and Muslim, and how he got on that fateful boat. Within Pi's narration of his early life, Martel randomly interjects with chapters that he narrates himself. In these chapters, Martel describes the "current" Pi Patel. Martel describes how Pi looks, how his house looks, his family, and the food Pi cooks him (and how spicy it is). Martel also incorporates the author's note into the story. Martel describes his story of how he "came upon" Pi through his uncle. Martel, in the author's note, says "I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel" (XII). Martel thanks Pi for helping him with the story as if Pe was a real person. This is how Martel is helping me know Pi and connect with him.
Madeleine Pearce
The first part of the book is Pi’s entire childhood before the main plot of the book. The mini chapters where Yann is talking about Pi like he met him in real life. It’s like a journal entry, like Martel was recounting his daily life in a diary and Pi is a part of that. It seems as though Martel was given the story from Pi himself and added in how he felt about Pi’s story throughout the first part of the book. He set up Pi’s world before jumping into his story. It feels like Pi is telling us this story. He addresses the audience and goes into details about himself that an actual person would. The Author's Note also gives the reader real-life background and it makes the story feel more real. The details don’t seem exaggerated. Like when a person is trying to tell a convincing lie and they add unnecessary detail to make it seem more believable even though it makes no sense to talk about every little thing you were doing beforehand. “He’s[Pi] an excellent cook. His overheated house is always smelling of something delicious.” (Martel 24) It’s like Martel was actually there with Pi, at his home while Pi tells the story that we’re reading about.
Even though Pi is a fictional character Yann Martel makes it seem like he is real or makes the reader forget this is a fictional book. In my opinion, the best way Martel has done this is by having Pi face similar challenges that many of the readers may have faced. The example that sticks out to me the most is when all his schoolmates are making fun of his name. “I kept silent. Because whatever mocking was to come, it was to come. There was no avoiding it” (pg. 24) he is getting picked on about something that he can not control. I feel that a lot of readers could relate to this at some point in their life. So by having Pi face similar things to what the readers have experienced creates this connection between the two and makes it seem like Pi is a true character even more. Another thing that Martel did very well is he created a very detailed and realistic life for Pi. Since Martel has been to India he knew how to describe it to make it seem realistic. He talks about his family and how his father is a zookeeper, he follows three religions, and just the depth of the detail about his childhood. All of these characteristics make it kind of hard to believe that Pi is not a real person because of how detailed and personal they are.
"He's an excellent cook. His overheated house is always smelling of something delicious." (pg.24) This is one of the many sentences that Yann Martel uses to make the character Pi Patel seem as though he is a real character. Although Pi Patel is a fake character Martel goes to the lengths of describing what Pi's house looks like and even what the smell of the food is like. He makes us readers believe that Patel is a normal person. The first thing we learn about him is his name and how he got bullied in school because of it. Instead of keeping these details out, he wants us to know that he did not have the best school experiences to keep him similar to what readers have also experienced. He describes what Pi Patel's daily life was like before he left India and how his family had treated him and his brother. All these experiences make you want to believe that there is no way that Pi was made up because of all these experiences that seem so realistic. Yann Martel did a great job describing every detail, especially with the zoo. It seems as though a zoo is an actual place in Pondicherry but Yann Martel made up every part of it. This a crazy thought just to think how in-depth he got with it talking about how Pi Patel was walking on the path of the zoo and said "it might be birds that caught my attention: pink flamingoes or black swans or one-wattled cassowaries, or something smaller, silver diamond doves" pg(14). With such detail, Yann Martel is able to create something real out of things that do not exist.
The book Life of Pi by Yann Martel manages to create the imagery and the scenarios that allow Pi Patel to enter our reality. Yann Martel does this by using real places in the world, but implementing a fictional character into these places. Lots of fictional stories use made-up places and worlds, not Yann Martel, he uses real-life places such as Pondicherry, Canada, and the University of Toronto. By using these places he makes it seem like Pi Patel is a real person because he has been in these places. He also does an amazing job at bringing Pi to life because of his implantation of an author, much like himself in the book. He does not just start the story by beginning Pi’s story, but by starting with a struggling author who needs to search out this Pi person and hear his story, and by implementing this author character it makes it seem that Pi is telling his story to this author, to Yann Martel, instead of it being a work of fiction. Martel uses this author character, and the imagery that we can picture, and the things that we can relate to, to bring Pi to our reality and not just the reality that is the book. The character of the author is implemented to bring Pi to life, talking about his stature, or in chapter 6. Chapter 6 talks all about Pi, and his house, and his cooking. The author is so descriptive in describing his dishes saying, “He makes the most zesty yet subtle macaroni and cheese I’ve ever had. And his vegetarian tacos would be the envy of all Mexico.”(Martel 25)
Yann Martel, the author of Life of Pi, allows us to get to know the protagonist of the book before Pi’s actions and words are utilized only for survival. We learn how Pi grows and struggles through childhood and adolescence and how animals like Richard Parker affected his aging before his traumatic experience... Martel informs us about Pi using an interview-style; a man in the book records Pi’s story as he tells it, and we listen in. This style allows the reader to understand Pi and Martel. Martel is observant and polite. His character seems well-spoken and we can trust his narrations. In Chapter 2, Pi is described physically. He’s a “slim man… dark hair, dark eyes”(7). The description allows the reader to invent an image of Pi to imitate his actions. It is also important for the reader to understand that Pi is not a Hercules. He’s not this big, strong God who captured a three-headed dog in order to enter Hades. Apart from his belief in three different religions, Pi seems particularly normal. This holds importance when trying to achieve trueness for a character. Pi is a representation of a man from the real world.
Martel is helping me know Pi Patel through the fact that the novel was written interview-style. The author includes excerpts where he shares what he himself has learned about Pi which makes Pi more personable, rather than just a character in a book. My favorite of these excerpts is on page 86 when the author is looking through a photo album with Mr. Patel. There are many photos from his recent history, including his wedding, his honeymoon, his years in college. But there are only four pages from his childhood on the other side of the Pacific. I feel that this really highlights the loss and tragedy that Pi had to face as a young man. One of my greatest fears is to suddenly be without my family and so my heart really connects to the fictional character here. I am a pretty empathetic person and so the sentence that really struck my heart was “A smile every time, but his eyes tell another story.” His trauma has affected his personality, his happiness, his sense of self, his wholeness. He is experiencing all of the major milestones in his life, but without the people he was closest to by his side and it has left him empty, missing a piece of his heart.
Martel is very thorough and descriptive when setting up his main character. I think that he does a wonderful job including aspects of Pi's life that seem unimportant at first thought. These details help make a character and his surroundings real. Specifically, the author's narration in italics is what brings the story to life for me. One could make a story just of Pi, but I think it would lack the realness of Martel's and Patel's fictional interactions. The best part of these segments is the food and cooking in my opinion. Religion, while interesting because of Pi Patel's multiple beliefs, still seems like a "gimme" for character development and imagery in Pi's house. More impressive is the abundance of food in his house. I imagine that surviving a traumatic event like being stranded with very little food would cause just about anyone to stock up on the stuff, just for reassurance. Martel describes Patel's collection as, "A reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad," which lasted 872 days. The other side of this is his cooking. Martel accurately describes eating it with his reactions, saying, "my taste buds shrivel up and die, my skin goes beet red, my eyes well up with tears," and so on. I have personal experience with Indian food. In second grade, I still lived in Spokane, Washington and we had an Indian student transfer into my brother's class. They became good friends, and eventually, his parents invited our family over and prepared a variety of Indian foods so we could try them. I don't know if they purposely cooled them down and overestimated us or sadistically made them spicier, but it was far more than I could handle, especially at age 7. This book wonderfully reminded me of this and added credibility to its pages, at least for me. Martel's knowledge and research seep from the typed words.
Yann Martel gives us a great description of Pi Patel and makes him a true character by introducing him and personifying him throughout the book. He does a great job at connecting the character with the reader and truly giving us an idea of who Pi Patel is. The di-narration of the novel gives us a great understanding of Pi because we can get an internal and external look at our character which is very unique. Pi says "I was a very good student, if I may say so myself." This provides insight into his character and nature. The narrator also describes him as a very small man. We see that the longer we read that Pi is a natural and normal human being. He does not have forced or unrealistic reactions or thoughts. In this way Martel does a great job at making Pi "true." Pi's character flows well and seems very natural. This is further compounded when the narrator provides extra little details and tidbits that fully tie his persona together. Through this di-narration, the author, Martel, weaves a story that often seems like it is not a book but a true story.
Yann Martel helps readers learn about the "fictional" character, Pi Patel by inserting little segments of them together when Yann Martel first hears Pi's story. All of these segments are in italics and sever a great purpose to show their personalities, in both Yann Martel and the character Pi. For example; in chapter 12 when Yann Martel is having a meal with Pi, "He's a sweet man. Every time I visit he prepares a South Indian vegetarian feast." (Martel 42) This quote gives quite the insight into who Pi is as a person, the reader finds that he is a vegetarian and a nice man. Earlier in the paragraph, it also says, "At times he gets agitated. It's nothing I say (I say very little. It's his own story that does it. Memory is an ocean and he bobs on its surface. I worry that he'll want to stop. But he wants to tell me his story. He goes on."(Martel 42) Within this segment, the reader also finds out that Pi is full of will-power and perseverance. He is strong to share such a heart-felt story with so many people. In the end, the italicized segments add great character growth and humor throughout the book.
Yann Martel is helping me know Pi Patel from the way the novel is written. Yann talks about how he failed at his first book and knew he had to take a trip to India to write the new book. As a reading, we build a connection right away because we know it should be genuine if he’s going to India where the main character is from. He uses interview-style writing to put himself in the book interviewing Pi Patel who is made-up in Yann’s head. The amount of detail Yann goes into about Pi's life growing will help us understand the book down the road. Although I want to know what happened during Pi’s story that will make you believe in god. It's good to get background information on him to help you understand the contexts better. Yann describes Pi as “ Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can’t be older than forty. Pleasing coffee-colored complexion.” ( Martel pg.7) The way he describes Pi gives the reader a good description of what the main character looks like. Helping us better understand Pi’s appearance and background. “I felt I was in the presence of upside-down yogis deep in meditation or hermits deep in prayer, wise beings whose intense imaginative lives were beyond the reach of my scientific probing.” (Martel pg.5). Yann gives us so much detail about sloths but not to the point that is overwhelming.
Yan Martel does an excellent job of bringing a fictional book to feel more like a nonfiction book. At the beginning of the book, he gives a lot of descriptions of Pi. The background that Martel gives of Pi is very thorough and I think will be using a lot further into the book. One thing that Martel does to really bring this character to life is by having two narrators. He has the narrator of Pi's story and then there is an author-like figure who will narrate some chapters and this will be italicized so that the reader can differentiate who is narrating at what time. My favorite example of this so far is on page forty-three. He is narrating his daily encounters with Pi and how he serves him an Indian vegetarian meal every time he visits. This meal in particular Pi asked him if he like spicy food. He said yes, but he didn't realize what he had gotten himself into. He explains that he can feel his "digestive tract twist and groan in agony like a boa constrictor that has swallowed a lawnmower." I feel that these little snippets of information a crucial to making Pi seem like a real character. Yes, the book would still be great even without these, but they just add that much more spice to the book in the end.
Yann Martel helps us to learn more about Pi Patel in the italicized chapters in between Pi’s story. In the book, it is supposed to be Martel talking about Pi and his thoughts and observations. It is an interesting way of writing and telling a story in that Martel makes the fictional character of Pi sound like a real person that he is interviewing in the book. It helps us learn more because the character Pi since Martel tells us stuff that Pi himself doesn’t plainly state such as observations about how Pi looked while he was telling the story or the way he acted. It also goes on to tell about how the food is that Pi prepares and how his house looks. A good example of this is in Chapter 15 page 45 where Yann Martel describes the various different pictures and symbols of varying religions that are found all around his house. The book directly states, “His house is a temple. In the entrance hall hangs a framed picture of Ganesha.” and “In the living room, on a table next to the sofa, there is a small framed picture of the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe.” That helps us see Pi’s uncommon religious views and how he lives with all of those religions in harmony.
Yann Martel’s interjections as the narrator of the story add so much information about Pi that we just wouldn’t see otherwise. Changing from one narrator to another allows Martel to jump to and from different times easily and creates a smooth transition as it does so. On page 86 of Life of Pi, Martel himself says “A smile every time, but his eyes tell another story”. In these scenes where Martel is actually speaking to a fictional character, puts us readers in a place where we can better understand Pi and relate to him. In these parts we learn that Pi now has a family, he still struggles with the events that happened to him, he misses his mother and hardly remembers his childhood anymore. We learn stuff about Pi but at the same time we are urged to keep reading to see how he ended up in this place. Martel uses this as almost a way to foreshadow events and speak to the readers at the same time. When he looks around Pi’s house he says he sees things that were there all along but he hadn’t noticed them because he wasn’t looking for them. This is a lesson we can take directly from the author even if it is through a fictional conversation.
Yan Martel does an amazing job to bring everything in this book to life. One thing he is really good at is changing the point of view. He places himself in the story to make it seem a lot more real. By using himself to lead into Pi's story, Yann Martel gave the book a sense of reality. Also, instead of having Pi dive right into the story, it is split into different parts of Pi explaining every portion of his life instead of just a description of a character. Martel uses this instead of just describing Pi and giving the reader a general sense of description because it gives a better sense of reality. Another way Martel gives Pi a sense of being a 'true' character is the way Pi is created. He isn't a character that has an extreme issue, he doesn't have superpowers, he isn't 6'8 like Bromden, he is just an average person that goes through issues like other people. From the text, "He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." This shows that he isn't an extraordinary person and it gives the reader a sense that Pi is an average person. From the way Martel changes the narrators to the description of the character, it all makes Pi seem like a much more real or true person.
Personally, I think that the best way that Martel is helping me know Pi Patel as a real person is how he wrote the narrator. As we have discussed in class that this narrator is like Martel. I like how it goes into these little blurbs of what they are doing and how Pi is in the present every so often in the novel so far. It makes it seem like the narrator is writing this as Pi is telling his story. Just like a journalist would write about a real event. That is what the narrator makes me think of. I also think that it helps that when Pi is talking and says that Mr. Kumar and Mr. Kumar are two of the reasons he studies religion and zoology in college. It makes it seem more real than he is talking about his mentors that affected life for the better. It is also talking about the future like he is interjecting that information in the conversation. So it makes the novel so far seem like a conversation and interview between friends. I think the part that helps the most with this is how he ties the author's note in the novel when the narrator, Martel, says, “I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel.” (Martel XII). This truly makes this seem as if Pi is a real person because most author's notes thank their friends, family, publishers, and editors; but, he uses it to make us believe that this story is real and not a work of fiction.
Yann Martel does an amazing job of introducing us to the main character, Pi Patel. The interview format of the first part of the book allows us to really get to know about Pi's past. By doing this, Yann Martel makes Pi seem like a real person. If I had not known Pi was a fictional character, I would have thought the novel was a true story. The chapters from the author's point of view give us a greater understanding of Pi's character as well. While we get a detailed background of his past from Pi himself, the author's observations of Pi's life and his interactions allow us to get multiple perspectives on his character and his day-to-day activities. In the Author's Note, Yann Martel refers to Pi as a real person. When he lists people he wants to thank for the story, he says, "I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel. My gratitude to him is as boundless as the Pacific Ocean and I hope that my telling of his tale does not disappoint him" (Martel XII). I am excited to keep reading and hear the story of Pi Patel, a fictional character portrayed as a character who is "true."
Yann Martel introduces the readers to a character known to us as Pi Patel, even though he does not actually exist. Introducing a fictional character is much more difficult than a real character because no reader will have pre-determined knowledge of Pi. The detailed and descriptive words Martel uses to describe Patel almost make me believe that he is a real character. Using different perspectives throughout the book also helps me and other readers understand more about Pi's personality and his motives. Not only does Patel help us understand Pi's motives, but he also goes into detail about why he has his certain motives or how he developed them. A great example of why I almost believe Pi is real is found on page 28. Pi is thinking about his teacher when he says, "It was my first clue that atheists are my brothers and sisters of a different faith, and every word they speak speaks of faith." This shows that Pi has the intellectual capability of understanding other people's perspectives, even if he disagrees with his teacher. Pi openly states that he has been a believer of many religions clearly believing in a God or a million of them, but he still sees atheists as a brother and a sister and I think that really proves how genuine and sincere Pi's personality really is. For the first time in a while, I actually enjoy reading a book, and I am very much looking forward to seeing where Pi Patel's life will go.
I believe that so far in the novel Yann Martel has allowed me to get to know Pi in a variety of ways. Some of those ways being his childhood background and even some personality traits Pi possesses. Since Pi Patel is a “fictional character” I believe that Martel wants to make him seem as real as possible to the reader. He does this by demonstrating the “real” encounters he’s had with Pi. For example, on pages 24-25, Martel is having supper at Pi’s house because he is such a good cook. This can be supported by the line on pg. 25 that says, “He makes me the most zesty yet subtle macaroni and cheese I've ever had”. Part one of this novel is full of moments like these. Martel, I believe, is trying to make the readers question who this Pi character is or even what he represents. Due to Yann Martel’s clever and unique way of writing this novel we are almost given an interview feel. We feel as if all the information we are given is valid because it is coming from a character that the author is trying to portray as real. Yann Martel’s italicized writing makes all the rest of the novel seem validated to be true.
Yann Martel does a remarkable job of making Pi feel real. First of all, Yann Martel really digs deep into Pi’s background and makes him feel like a character who has lived a real life instead of a typical fictional character who we know little about. Pi feels like a real guy, too. If I were to meet characters from any other novel, it would seem surreal; I feel like I could sit down with Pi and have a conversation with him. The interview-like setting is what really sells it in my opinion—Pi seems like just a normal person who is telling a story, and Yann Martel is just passing it along. Yann Martel intentionally pretends that Pi is an actual person and that he met Pi, and this makes the reader go along with his guise. Furthermore, Yann Martel uses real places and believable events while explaining Pi’s past. I think every place, even down to the Piscine Molitor pool, exists in real life. Also, Pi’s recollection of his past does not include anything unbelievable or impossible. An example of this occurs when Pi is telling about his first encounter with religion. One would think that this encounter would be grandiose and life-changing based on Pi’s religious state while he is telling the story. But no, Pi says that he has “no conscious memory of this first go-around in a temple, but some smell of incense, some play of light and shadow…” (Martel 47) This is much more realistic and believable than some supernatural encounter would be. Pi seems like he could be any of us.
I believe what makes Pi Patel seem so real is the way that Yan Martel decided to write this book. He chose to write it almost like it's a biography, making Pi seem all that more real. He used the idea of an interview, inserting himself in the book as a character interviewing Pi himself. Pi gives such detailed stories of his background and childhood too. For example, the way he got his name or the life lessons taught by his father. All of these things just seem like stuff normal kids would go through -- nothing too outlandish or out of the ordinary. Honestly, I forgot for a while that Pi is completely made up. It's easy to immerse yourself in Marel's writing style, making it easier o believe all of this is a true story.
Yann Martel does an amazing job bringing Pi Patel to life. Not only through the depth, Martel goes into Pi’s past, but the interview style the book is presented in. Writing the book as if it was an interview adds to the effect of making it a real story. Instead of seeing and going through the events with Pi as they happen, you get to relive them with him as he retells the story to us and the journalist. Martel allowing us to see inside of the interviewer's mind shows us other perspectives of Pi now that he’s an adult “I notice something else: his cupboards are jam-packed.” Pg. 25 Pi having his cupboards packed with enough food “...to last the siege of Leningrad.” might allude to the lack of food as the book progresses, a foreshadow to what is to become. Martel also digs deep into the past life of Pi and before he got to Canada. Going as far as to explain his full name, Piscine, and how it caused him years of bullying. The more interesting part of his past was his fascination of different religions and determination to practice as many as he could.
One of the biggest reasons Pi feels like such a real character is because Martel wrote the entire book as if it were a non-fictional story. He truly makes it feel like you are following the author's journey to discover the untold story of a shipwreck survivor, when in reality, the story is entirely fictional. He builds the world of his novel by including such minute details that it seems it must be true; the way he describes Pi's thoughts must have come from his own mind because all of them feel as if they were the queries of a real person. Pi repeats multiple times throughout the story “Bapu Gandhi said, 'All religions are true.' I just want to love God.” (Martel 69). This quote shows the true nature of Pi, he doesn’t care how his actions are perceived as long as he knows they are true, and this is one of the biggest instances of mimesis in my opinion. The way the whole book is written in an interview style and how the author's note is a part of the story is very interesting and misleading at the same time, but it allows us, the readers, to hear and understand his thoughts in a clear-cut way that makes you forget you are not being told a story by someone.
Yann Martel is helping the readers know Pi Patel through the extensive description of Pi’s childhood and his journey upon how he became a Muslim, Christian, and Hindu. Yann Martel is telling the story of Pi Patel’s as if he is being told the story by him. Oftentimes it is easy to forget that Pi is not a real person because of how well Martel portrays Patel. Martel describes at points in the story what Patel is doing or looks like in person. Martel even describes Patel’s cooking, which is spicy. There are italicized chapters throughout the book that indicate a change in perspective, the italicized being Yann Martel. Being able to read the book with two perspectives really allows the characters Pi describes to come to life as well as Pi himself. Yann Martel even starts to describe Pi Patel’s house and family. Yann Martel is a real person and through the use of the interview style of telling the story, it makes the reader think that everything that is being said has actually happened. We get to hear about how Pi’s name came to be, how he felt about his name, his relationship with his family, lessons learned such as the one about the lion, as well as the exploration of religion. “He’s a shy man. Life has taught him not to show off what is most precious to him.” (Page 80) I found this quote was significant into how Pi Patel was raised and who he is now as a person. With Yann Martel—an actual person—describing this, it felt like Pi Patel was undoubtedly a real person.
Yann Martel does an amazing job of making Pi Patel seem like a real character in the book. It makes you feel as if someone actually went through these events when it switches from the first person of Pi when he was younger to the “writer” who is interviewing Pi Patel. I think that the author’s note is what really made me feel as though Pi is a “real” character. Since the writer in the book goes on a whole adventure and ran into a guy that knew Pi in a coffee shop made it seem so believable I forgot that it wasn’t true at all. Martel gives so much detail into the little things about how and why these two characters came to meet. It is an extraordinary thing for a writer to do and not many can successfully. There are so many examples of Yann Martel’s genius throughout part 1. I like how Martel even gave Pi the background of his name and how it gave him trouble in school with the other kids. Martel also showed how clever he was when he wrote, “-I doubled underline the first two letters of my given name-Pi Patel” (Martel 22). He also went and wrote about how Pi was an amazing student that got lots of awards and graduated with 2 degrees that contradict each other perfectly to match the plot and experience Pi goes through.
I believe that Yann Martel's ability to set the novel in an interview format has brought the character of Pi Patel to life for me. I think that Martel's fictional conversations allow the reader deeper insight as to how Pi would interact if I were the one asking questions; wondering about his wonderful life story. I think that a moment from the book that Pi came to life for me was when Martel was describing the food that Pi prepared for him as well as the conversation that was mostly one-sided between the two of them. I believe that this quote best describes the quintessence of Pi Martel and who he is, "I worry that he'll want to stop. But he wants to tell me his story. He goes on. After all these years, Richard Parker still preys on his mind. He's a sweet man. Every time I visit he prepares a South Indian vegetarian feast/ I told him I like spicy food. I don't know why I said such a stupid thing. It's a complete lie. I add dollop of yogurt after dollop of yogurt. Nothing doing. Each time it's the same: my taste buds shrivel up and die. . ." I think that this part of the novel brings Pi alive for me because I can relate to having a conversation with someone who allows a few of my words in. I can also relate to experiencing different family's culture and cooking and the awkwardness of not being able to handle spice. I think that the way Martel describes Pi's cooking and conversation brings him to life. There is something so human in the way one prepares food for their guests and I think it brings an element to Pi's story and culture.
Yann Martel does a great job at not only creating characters but making them believable. Often times in books we see bigger-than-life characters that are strong-willed, intelligent, and entirely unbelievable. Pi Patel is a very intelligent character, but he certainly has flaws and problems that most of us can relate to. In addition, Pi is relatable because of his yearning for something bigger. Pi is known for practicing three religions at once, and while most people do not practice religions simultaneously, they can relate to that yearning for something bigger and better. Most people truly want to believe in something. Beyond the aspects of personality, Yann Martel makes Pi more believable by giving him experiences that we can all relate to. Pi lost his family and faces a new challenge, saying, "It's very sad not to remember what your mother looks like" (Martel 87). Pi may be an individual with a great mental capacity, but even he is struggling to remember important memories. In addition, the losses that Pi faces make him more relatable in the sense that almost everyone has lost somebody important to them. When a reader is able to relate to a character, it humanizes the character and makes the story more effective. Yann Martel also makes Pi more relatable by having him do certain things—like ordering a pizza with friends—that almost everyone can relate to. Even though Pi is a strange character with many peculiarities, Yann Martel ensures that everyone can relate to him in some way.
Yann Martel, the author of Life of Pi, does an exceptional job making the fictional character, Pi Patel, feel as though he is nonfictional. The sense of nonfiction comes from the details Yann places into his writing. In my opinion, it all begins with the author's note, Yann says, "It seemed natural that Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person—in his voice and through his eyes. But any inaccuracies or mistakes are mines" (xI-xII). With this Yann Martel places the belief that Pi is a real person by stating this his story could be inaccurate when in reality, Yann's story is fictional, so whatever he says is true to the story. I find Yann's attention to detail even more compelling as the story goes on because it really feels as though Pi is a real person. He does this through the mixing of Pi's perspective and Yann's own thoughts. Particularly from Yann's point of view, he talks about Pi's hoarding of food, "...his cupboards are jam-packed. Behind every door, on every shelf, stand mounts of neatly stacked cans and packages. A reserve of food to last the siege of Leningrad" (25). This shows that Pi could possibly be a nonfiction character. It also shows that his near-death experience has changed the way Pi goes about life. This adds a non-fiction element to the story as Pi is fiction but his life could very well be nonfictional.
Yann Martel does an amazing job at bringing Pi Patel to life by the intro of the book. By starting as the narrator in a different country and giving us an introductory story of how he came to find Pi really makes him seem like an actual person. Then, by switching the point of view from Pi to narrator it helps reinforce our belief that Pi isn’t some made-up person in a book but an actual guy telling events that happened to him. We then learn more about Pi in the first group of chapters which helps us understand the characters and where they are coming from. When Pi starts his story he goes way back into his past to tell how his upbringing was and showing us how he came to believe in all his religions. This helps us understand him and his past and then with the help of the narrator section of person we hear him say “ He’s a small, slim man-- no more than five foot five Dark hair, dark eyes. Hair greying at the temples. Can’t be older than forty” (Martel,7).”, this, in turn, provides a description of the man we are listening to which leads us to believe he is even more real. With the sporadic interventions of the author talking about Pi and his emotions when telling the story it is enough to make any reader believe this is a biography instead of a fiction book.
Martel did the research. He knows the story inside and out. This is why he can tell us "This story has a happy ending."(Martel 93) Martel is able to use his knowledge of what is true in order to shape it in a way that lets us learn so much of this fictional character. He uses a lot of detail when describing people, especially Pi Patel. He is able to do this because of how much he knows about the situation. He went to the real-life "Pi" and was given the story. Now he can use the story to bring light to the fictional character that is Pi, using the real-life character as a key to his new character. He writes in a way that intrigues the reader and wants us to know more and more about Pi. He writes himself, typically talking about Pi, and how he tells the story. Then he can switch and tell us the story from Pi's perspective. He can switch back and forth until the story is over, but each time Martel is talking, he reveals more and more information about Pi. This is what makes Martel a masterful writer and is what keeps allowing us to read on a learn more about this fictional character.
Martel uses the interview and story to show what Pi is like. With this method, he can tell two stories at once; He uses what Pi said as the main story and he uses imagery to describe what Pi's house and appearance is like. His imagery is very useful too. Vivid images are able to be imagined because of how well he describes the scenes. Martel also goes deep into Pi's past and describes childhood lessons, family dynamics, and Pi's religious endeavors. His description of Pi's past brings a fictional character to life. It is very believable that Pi is a real person because of the description of his childhood. Martel uses small details to build his Pi character up. An example of this is, "He's a small, slim man — no more than five foot five." The small details in the story amount to a lot of imagery. Another example of this is Martel's description of the house during the interview. He uses small subtle details to build a perfect image of the house. Between the interview/story method and the use of imagery and small details, Pi is made more and more real. It would be very hard to tell if Pi was a real person or a fictional character if you had no prior knowledge of the book.
The author of Life of Pi, Yann Martel, did such a good job at laying out Piscine Molitor Patel's life that it is hard to believe he isn't real. He seems to have written the entire book as if it were a non-fictional story; Martel even says "My gratitude to him is as boundless as the Pacific Ocean and I hope that my telling of his tale does not disappoint him" (Page XII) which just further tricks my mind into thinking Pi is real, it is just brilliant. Martel writes in an interview-type style, and how he includes the author's note as part of the story is interesting. His writing makes you forget that you're being told a fictional story. Martel writes in such a way that shows us the past and current Pi. There are things we would never know about Pi without Martel's narration. He writes in-depth about Pi's storyline with things like how he got his name and his walks through the zoo that get you attached to the character and his background. Martel's use of this plot development and imagery work to establish the mimesis of the story—mimesis is imitating the real world through literature. I can see how this author is incredibly smart, his writing—which exudes brilliance—has fooled me multiple times so far.
Yann Martel brings Pi to life in many different ways. I think the biggest way he brings him to life is by connecting him to reality. Yann Martel includes italicized pieces throughout the book that show him in real life sense. Martel includes a piece even before the book begins on XII, “I have a few people to thank. I am most obviously indebted to Mr. Patel.” Martel talks about Mr. Patel as if he were real. Seeing a real person (the author) talk about a fictitious character as a real person before the book even begins, we already believe he is real. In the book he mentions that Pi has two children, he also talks about how his house is set up; including a picture of Gasha, a picture of the virgin mary, a wooden cross, a shrine, and a bible on his bedside table. By mentioning these things he creates imagery to make more and more real world connections. Martel uses a lot of detail and shows his childhood for ninety-three pages. An author wouldn’t normally show this much background unless he wanted to really create a character as Martel has. He makes Pi an interesting character and shares many stories about how he got his name, life lessons, and his religious interest.
Pi Patel comes to life in Life of Pi because of Martel's lengthy exposition. Martel's goal in this exposition is to make the character as real as possible, which he does in many ways. One of the most potent forms of this is when he uses his faith to define his life. Pi Patel practices several types of religion and uses them to justify things in the world. "Religions will save us," I said. Since when I could remember, religion had been very close to my heart (Martel 27). When he speaks with Mr. Kumar (who is a devout atheist) about religion, he is very open to his arguments and even takes them to heart (not letting them change his own faith but instead they make him think about it more. This makes him a relatable and likable fictional character that uses everyday life situations to make him grow as a person. He also feels true in his love for animals. Almost everyone has a love for animals in some way, but the way Pi describes the animals of his zoo (and the world in general) really shows how true he is about his love for all living things in nature. This will later add to his character when he is forced to survive on a boat with many animals (eventually just one) and use his knowledge and love for animals to help him survive.
I believe that Yann Martel helps his readers believe that Pi is a real person by making him relatable. As a teenager I have a natural state to almost always rebel against my parents. From listening to different music than them all the way to staying up late just out of spite. Pi’s rebellious nature is far more intelligent than I could ever be. His father is an out right atheist that tries to teach his children that religion is a joke. He does not believe that religion is worth his time. So in defiance of his father, Pi decides not to completely immerse himself in one religion but to immerse a large portion of his life with three religions. Another aspect of his rebellious nature is his love for animals and seeing the good in them. His father tried showing him how violent animals are naturally when he feeds the tiger a goat right in front of his eyes, along with his brother. Although it does not come out as much in the first part of the book, Pi does spend a majority of the novel with animals in a small boat. One of the ways he gets through that is because of how he treats the animals.
If I did not know that this was fiction, I would have thought that Pi was a real character. His character is so down-to-Earth and honest that I have no choice BUT to believe the story. I find his character relatable in the ways that he is still trying to figure himself out, spiritually, but still maintains a good idea of mental sanity. I find this relatable because I feel detached from religion, but still, have a fear of now knowing what comes after death. What makes Martel's character so excellent is that he respects and knows all religions, and can sort of finding some peace within himself, I just wish it was that easy for me. Obviously, in the real world, you can not really practice three religions. He does an excellent example of this in chapter 23, where he meets with three very religious figures arguing back and forth about the differences in their religions. I have conflicting moral views that I do not share with the church that I come from, in fact, I find those views hypocritical and hateful. What Pi does is he finds solace and peace in all of them and I feel as though I can't. I think this character is an excellent way of symbolism of trying to figure out and examine the human condition.
Martel helps us know Pi by giving us the origin of his name. Usually, an author will just tell the reader the character's name but Martel uses Pi's name to add to the book. Pi's real name Piscine and he hates it because it sounds like "piss" so as he goes to a new school, he tells everyone his name is Pi. This is found on page 13 and it says, "My name is Piscine Molitor Patel, known as -I underlined the first two letters of my given name- Pi Patel." This backstory gives insight into the kind of person that Pi is. He wasn't the super popular kid; instead, he probably got made fun of to some extent. Pi is also "true" because Martel has him talk about the zoo and how intriguing each animal is to him. Pi has detailed thoughts that can relate to so many people. Pi is just a regular kid trying to find his own way but gets stuck in a very bad situation without anyone but a tiger. Martel shows Pi's thoughts in the book and what he was thinking during every situation. We are brought into Pi's past and we learn about his uncle and how he was taught to swim.
Yann Martel makes Pi Patel seem like a real person through many ways of confusing us to not be able to see what is real and what is not. He begins in the Authors note describing Pi as a real person. He introduces us to Pi at the beginning "It seemed natural that Mr. Patel's story should be told mostly in the first person" (Martel XI). This makes it seem as though the author is Pi instead of Yann himself. He Also uses 2 separate fonts throughout the book to make us believe 2 people have written the book. The way Yann relates Pi to religion over and over through the entire book makes him seem too real not to be a person. Humans associate religion as something only we as a species have so how could a none human believe in 3 religions and write a book about it. The book takes us through Pi's experiences with Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. Yann Martel makes us believe that Pi Patel is in fact a friend he met. He describes a real trip to India and talks about a man that is almost identical to a real person he did meet. The part that confuses people is that he then says he meets Pi which we know can not possibly be true.
Martel is helping readers to know his character Piscine “Pi” Patel by fully animating every detail regarding him to such an extraordinary extent as to allow readers’ minds to fool themselves into believing Pi to be a “true” or “real” person. This allows the reader to feel more able to connect with Pi and therefore better get to know him. Martel supplementarily includes his own interjections of and about his character. Martel’s interjections, which he supplies readers with every few chapters, also contribute to an understanding of Pi. In these purposeful chapters, Martel speaks of Pi as if he were a “true” person and even goes so far as to describe personal “interactions” with him. While readers are aware Pi is nothing more than a fictionary character, Martel’s written “interactions” with him leave you feeling otherwise. Through Martel’s encounters with Pi, we learn details about Pi’s present habits and life. Martel documents everything from Pi’s flavorful, vegetarian cooking to the way he bundles up even in Canada’s “warm” weather. These little details, while insignificant viewed from the surface, are key to a full understanding of Pi. By providing these “observed” details, Martel has helped me to get to know Pi.
Yann Martel makes Pi “real” by the fact that he encounters many difficult situations much like you and I. We all go through our hardships and I feel by hearing Pi’s struggles we relate to him as if he were real. Most books you read skip past the history of the main character and go straight to the plot. I enjoy how much of an intro Martel gives about Pi’s life from when he was a little boy and choosing his religion to his life experiences with living in a zoo. Another way Martel persuades us into thinking Pi is a real character is with the interview style of the book. By having the chapters alternate from Pi talking about himself to Martel talking more in depth about Pi, it makes us believe that he is really analyzing Pi’s life as if he knew nothing about it. It makes you look through two different perspectives, how Pi’s life was and how the author viewed Pi’s life, At first it was confusing with them switching back and forth as I have never read a book like this before. I caught on quickly though and ended up really liking this method as it is way more detailed and Martel does more than just skim through to the end, making you want to keep reading.
Yann Martel is helping the reader get to know Pi Patel in many ways. Even though he is a fictional character, the interview style of the narration gives a realistic aspect to the story that also makes us feel more connected to Pi and his story. In chapter 33, Martel starts to describe Pi's possessions that make him seem even more real. He says, "[Pi] shows me family memorabilia. Wedding photos first... They went to Niagara Falls for their honeymoon. Had a lovely time... Photos from his student days at U of T: with friends; in front of St. Mike's; in his room". By Martel showing us this real human aspect of a character he made up to tell a fantastic story, it gives the reader emotional connection, background, and a sense of relation. He is hoping that the reader could see Pi as a friend, brother, old college classmate, etc., so we grow more connected to the story and keep reading. This also makes you more on edge when dangerous things happen to Pi because you feel like a close friend of yours is in imminent danger. Martell uses this style called "mimesis" as a way to make the reader personally involved with the characters and events in the novel.
In the story Life of Pi the author, Yan Martel, does many different things to make the reader believe that what they are reading true. The way he describes Pi's adventures and challenges in life they are much like the ones an average person battles. Martel developed Pi to be a person just like any other person and made it so any kind of reader can relate to Pi on one level or another. To me, that is huge when an author is able to reach many different audiences with a piece. It is all about the connections that people can make that then suck them in. Another way I think Martel is able to make the reader believe Pi is true is by the way the story is told. It is not told from Pi's point of view, it is told by a different narrator. That develops the plot and main character significantly more than if Pi was describing himself. Pi went through some things as a kid a lot has a struggle with. For example, bullying. Pi was bullied because of his name. In the story, it says, "It's alright with me, brother. Antrhings better than 'Pissing'. Even 'Lemond Pie'" (page 24). This helps adds to the fact that he grew up pretty much just like any other kid.
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