Life of Pi
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What's the idea behind the island?
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Adam
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Mar 15, 2013 08:11PM
the island represents pi's father, the tooth however represents his brother and how is father has already molded him into the same man as his father and pi realizes that he needs to be his own person and not such of his father. The food that pi takes from the island represents the lessons taught by his father and leaves the island. Richard parker is also more of a symbol of pi's soul. pi arrives in Mexico and the tiger leaves into the jungle, which is pi going into the real world. p.s look at the island shot when at night after pi discovers the tooth, it is the shape of his fathers deceased body.
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Sinjinn wrote: "i just found this site and reviewed this book , and then found the comments and see that everyone agrees.to me , the middle third was the best because of the adventure , but even that third kind ..."
Pi is a vegetarian. The carnivorous island has everything to do with that. He didn't even want the meerkats on his bed. He ran to the boat and fled.
Given the Christian symbolism (at least it was prevalent in the film version - can't remember if it's in the book), the island could be a version of the Garden of Eden - tranquil on one level, but containing the seeds of destruction, or the fall of mankind, if you will.
I just finished reading this wonderful book and loved finding this site. I also didn't know what to make of the island scene, because it is a departure from strange but somewhat credible material to uneasy fantasy. I found the material and the transition jarring and difficult. Meerkats live in extremely arid conditions and so the imagery didn't hold for me. The strangely wrapped fruit had a suggestion of human effort. The algae somehow showed plant life to be destructive and carnivorous. A trick of his brain, perhaps, as human and animal survival had already been shown to be so violent in these conditions. The algae dissolve even the rope with their acid - now the plant world has become dangerous. It will consume and incarcerate one. I kept coming back to the idea of a story that would make one believe in God. That is the real story here, clearly not the second version, which contains nothing transcendent. Ultimately faith is a choice, just as the version of the story is. I choose Richard Parker, whom I miss already and it's only been an hour or so.
I was hoping everyone would enjoy my simple reply. :) I am a vegetarian and being forced to eat "by way of the rat" is the worst thing. Pi would leave an island where he would be eating animals. Richard Parker had already eaten the zebra, orange juice, and Gerard Depardeui. BTW, Gerard was the perfect chef. I wanted to see flashbacks of Pi's second story, just to see more of Gerard. I love the story. I can't get my kids to watch it. They are 13 & 6. I told them the story will change their life. I love reading all the comments here.
I think the island symbolizes his own journey into cannibalism for survival. He was taken in by the nourishment and then awoke to the horror of the reality of it and he did not want to live in that horror anymore.
I love following all the comments. I was interested to find that there was at least some scientific basis to the island's qualities. Here is an extract from wikipedia on the subject and there is more if you click on the link:" Gambierdiscus toxicus, which feeds on algae and produces a toxin that causes ciguatera fish poisoning when ingested,[7] and Pfiesteria and related species such as Luciella masanensis, which feed on diverse prey including fish skin and human blood cells.[8][9] Predatory dinoflagellates can kill their prey by releasing toxins or phagocytize small prey directly.
"Some predatory algae have evolved extreme survival strategies. For example, Oxyrrhis marina can turn cannibalistic on its own species when no suitable non-self prey is available,[11] and Pfiesteria and related species have been discovered to kill and feed on fish, and since have been (mistakenly) referred to as carnivorous "algae" by the media."
Here is the link and there are some great pics of carnivorousalgae on the web:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnivorous_pro...
Enid wrote: "I just finished reading this wonderful book and loved finding this site. I also didn't know what to make of the island scene, because it is a departure from strange but somewhat credible material t..."Ultimately, the choice is to not believe and have an ugly truth (cannibalism) or to believe and have an inspirational story. To me it is a cynical view of believing in God -- believe in God or suffer knowing the ugly truth.
Can anyone tell me or provide some example of the cultural significance of Life of Pi? I read and saw the movie, but I’m having a hard time figuring out the cultural significance of the novel or movie
I would say that the cultural significance includes contrasting some aspects of Indian culture with aspects of Western culture as the story starts in India and ends up in Canada. There is also a contrast of religions associated with these cultures; Hindu, Muslim and Christian. There is also a contrast of cultural aspects such as attitude to food, with the Indian cultures seeing cows as sacred and not eating them or in some cases, upholding vegetarianism. This is sharply contrasted with French culture in the scene with the cook where he talks of eating a variety of foods and offal. In a broader sense, you could say that animal culture is contrasted with human culture throughout the book. Culture refers to any any social behavior or norms of a group, including animals.
Enid wrote: "I would say that the cultural significance includes contrasting some aspects of Indian culture with aspects of Western culture as the story starts in India and ends up in Canada. There is also a co..."Thanks Enid, this really helps me out alot, I knew that the three religions has some significance as they represent different cultures, but didn't think that anything else stood out. Again thank you.
I don't what it really symbolizes but I have one thing in my mind, that YOU LIVE or YOU DIE. you can't have peace in you when you're living. The ULTIMATE REST is DEATH. The island symbolizes rest and death, end of journey, end of life.
Rakesh wrote: "I don't what it really symbolizes but I have one thing in my mind, that YOU LIVE or YOU DIE. you can't have peace in you when you're living. The ULTIMATE REST is DEATH. The island symbolizes rest a..."no peace when you are living????? harsh!
My initial thoughts were that the island was designed to be something that was beyond belief. In contrast we hear of the Japanese insurance investigator's uncles Bonzai trees which perversely Pi says he finds hard to believe because he has never seen one ( even though we all know they exist). This is to demonstrate the absurdity of needing concrete proof of the existence of something to be able to believe in it and allows us to take the" leap of faith" if we wish.Having read other postings I can see that there are many other valid meanings which it is possible to attach , which expands the theme that we may all interpret things slightly differently and that it is possible for more than one right answer, in the same way that Pi is able to appreciate more than one religion.
The island could represent Pi's need to believe that life is not all pain and loss. Whether or not he hallucinated all of it or not, at least for a little while he was at peace - a respite from the horror that had become his existance.
I am blown away by this book. Amazing. I think the island is symbolic of rigid inflexible religion as opposed to the journey of self discovery and faith leading to a truer more authentic self ie.land. The island gives him nourishment and strengthens him but to stay in its narrow shores ultimately means death and stagnation. He is tamed by it but does not grow.
for the discussion that arises: 'you should move on to stay alive'; & its the same for the world we live
Laura wrote: "I am blown away by this book. Amazing. I think the island is symbolic of rigid inflexible religion as opposed to the journey of self discovery and faith leading to a truer more authentic self ie.la..."well said!!
Shan wrote: "My initial thoughts were that the island was designed to be something that was beyond belief. In contrast we hear of the Japanese insurance investigator's uncles Bonzai trees which perversely Pi ..."I like the tie in to the bonzai trees. Clever.
I think the island represents the love for the girl he has left behind that he still holds on to. He has had everything forcibly removed from him, his family and his home. This time at the Island he must choose to leave and let her go. He knew he would never see his love again, even though he never said goodbye (just like Richard Parker never said goodbye, and all Pi wanted to hear was Richard Parker say "I will always be with you, even though I cant be with you...I love you")At the island he can eat and drink all day, have his fill of her, perhaps a metaphor for sex. However, he needs more than sex, he needs love. That's why at night the island and his thought become toxic and eat at him like a parasite. Richard Parker knows he has to leave at night and waits in the boat while Pi sleeps in the trees.
He finds the tooth in the lotus flower, while he is emotionally lost in the forest. a reference to a conversation he has with her, "why would a lotus flower be lost in the forest?" after asking her why she did a certain movement in a dance. The tooth inside the lotus flower is perhaps showing that this type of longing, will eat away at a man, until nothing is left.
So he chooses to say farewell to his love and move on in life.
I think the island story is part hallucination and part reality. Memory is a funny thing. It can get all jumbled up.
I have no idea what the island is for. but I think it let down the book. I loved the story and up until the island I actually thought that Pi's story may have been true. (my friends and I even had arguments about if this was a real life story or not) I think the island was a great idea but just not in this book. it ruined the whole story for me, and I may even be bold enough to wish that it hadn't been part of the story at all.
I think the island is symbolic of our ability to trust and how we react to our intuition.
I think the island is symbolic of all sort of wonderful synergies and disappointments .I,sure as hell, would have been happier without it.
I've read the book and just finished watching the movie. I have to say I really didn't like the movie, however; I really loved the book. Despite its short comings the movie helped me validate the role of the island when seen in the context of the whole story. In the first half of the book Pi explores different religions and finds aspects of them all to be beautiful. When the three religious figures come together, angry that Pi has been seeing all of them at the same time, they tell him he is not able to believe in multiple religions... he must choose one and each believe that he should choose their story because their story is the only truth.
After the ship sinks and he finds himself adrift with a tiger, a zebra, an orang-utan, and a hyena. These represent aspects of human nature that can challenge one's faith but in the book it is totally plausible because the ship had all these animals on it and is an example of the symbology used throughout the book using real and credible story lines. The island is a similar false God that shows us that some times we put our faith in things that look good at the time but ultimately lead to our demise. All that glitters is not gold, but the island is an essential part of the story and not at all out of context. Put yourself in Pi's shoes. What would seem more like salvation when stranded at sea than an island... and one made of palatable vegetation with a constant supply of meat and freshwater at that! He realises that for the moment it offers the promise of a sanctuary and respite from his suffering (that one often feels when their faith is challenged), but the discovery of the tooth reveals that others had put their faith in this false prophet once before, who had since died and been consumed unceremoniously and without remorse by the island, their identity long forgotten. He understands this and decides to leave, as hard and irrational as this seems (and with Richard Parker who was his cross to bear), to continue his journey and again regain his faith that God has a plan for him and this wasn't it.
In the end, when he was being interviewed by the insurance investigators the initial account was all true and was the real story. However, like telling someone that you gave your only Son to save mankind, who was crucified on the cross to be resurrected again by an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God, the story was hard to believe. So he gave them an alternative story that was easier to believe, based on a plot containing characters that people could associate with. In the end, in both versions of the story, the result was the same. The boat still sunk and his family still died and which ever version of the story you preferred it still ends the same way with him being the only survivor and rescued after spending a long time at sea in a life boat. It is the same with religion. It doesn't matter which story you believe, in the end the result is the same. Each is a way to achieve peace and helps to give meaning to our existence; the malady of the human condition.
I loved the island the most, it's symbolic representation is so deep. It may represent how humans are fooled by beauty and therefore they don't consider it seriously. It may also represent how selfish we are and how ungrateful we can be; we never accept the mere fact. We always aim to change it in any possible way. Pi wanted to get rid of his natural habitat within the meerkats and find solace on an abandoned tree, however, it turned out to symbolize death. It may also show how the natural relationship between Pi and Richard Parker could lead to death if it wasn't due to Pi's natural instinct. Gosh, I need to put that in an essay or something.
Broomhilda tink dat book was good and richard parker had monkey dinner and zebra= lunch coz island = lemur frenzy and poop
my name is brromhilda, i am a homey, i liek to eat my , macaroni
Life of pi is Despite its short comings the movie helped me validate the role of the island when seen in the context of the whole story. In the first half of the book Pi explores different religions and finds aspects of them all to be beautiful. When the three religious figures come together, angry that Pi has been seeing all of them at the same time, they tell him he is not able to believe in multiple religions... he must choose one and each believe that he should choose their story because their story is the only truth. After the ship sinks and he finds himself adrift with a tiger, a zebra, an orang-utan, and a hyena. These represent aspects of human nature that can challenge one's faith but in the book it is totally plausible because the ship had all these animals on it and is an example of the symbology used throughout the book using real and credible story lines. The island is a similar false God that shows us that some times we put our faith in things that look good at the time but ultimately lead to our demise. All that glitters is not gold, but the island is an essential part of the story and not at all out of context. Put yourself in Pi's shoes. What would seem more like salvation when stranded at sea than an island... and one made of palatable vegetation with a constant supply of meat and freshwater at that! He realises that for the moment it offers the promise of a sanctuary and respite from his suffering (that one often feels when their faith is challenged), but the discovery of the tooth reveals that others had put their faith in this false prophet once before, who had since died and been consumed unceremoniously and without remorse by the island, their identity long forgotten. He understands this and decides to leave, as hard and irrational as this seems (and with Richard Parker who was his cross to bear), to continue his journey and again regain his faith that God has a plan for him and this wasn't it.
In the end, when he was being interviewed by the insurance investigators the initial account was all true and was the real story. However, like telling someone that you gave your only Son to save mankind, who was crucified on the cross to be resurrected again by an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God, the story was hard to believe. So he gave them an alternative story that was easier to believe, based on a plot containing characters that people could associate with. In the end, in both versions of the story, the result was the same. The boat still sunk and his family still died and which ever version of the story you preferred it still ends the same way with him being the only survivor and rescued after spending a long time at sea in a life boat. It is the same with religion. It doesn't matter which story you believe, in the end the result is the same. Each is a way to achieve peace and helps to give meaning to our existence; the malady of the human condition.
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Jewmaster wrote: "can i marry you broomhilda?"can u plz wisper an song tu meh
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I think the Island itself was symbolic of Pi's struggles to when he saw it. Had he been more sane and stronger in the body when he first was thrown into the ocean, he would have been shocked. Now, with his last vestiges of humanity gone and acceptance of the strange, the island shows pi's growth into something new and different.
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