Growth Through Adversity In The Life Of Pi By Yann Martel

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Growth through adversity

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GROWTH THROUGH ADVERSITY IN THE LIFE OF PI BY YANN MARTEL

Introduction

Adversity revolves around an individual conflicting with a problem. In a novel, adversity

is the rising climax or action that serves as obstacles that prevent the protagonist from reaching

his destiny. Therefore, adversity refers to the vast spectrum of severity that a time has drastic

effects on people. Of importance, is that when faced with adversities, individuals react

differently. For example, some will adapt to the adversity while others give up and are

overpowered by the adversity resulting in them losing the ability to carry on. In the Life of Pi

novel, Yann Martel explores a fantasy adventure that revolves around a young boy's reaction to

hardships of adversity. The novel revolves around a young adventurous tenacious young boy by

the name Piscine Patel as he experiences the struggles of surviving at the sea. Moreover, the

novel explores the struggles that Piscine as the main protagonist undergoes as he tries to cope

with tragic events in his life. Yann builds his novel, on the idea that adversities transform an

individual's identity and play a fundamental role in determining an individual's inner strength and

self-worth as well as shaping an individual's personal values. In the novel, Pi Patel faces many

adversities that transform him from a sheltered and confused boy to a mature man with a heart

hardened by physical and psychological hardships that he overcomes in his life. From the novel

the biggest conflicts that Pi face include a conflict of man versus, nature and a conflict of man

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versus his inner-self. From the essay, it becomes evident that adversities bring the best in people.

Therefore, the essay seeks to analyze the different adversities that shape and harden Pi into a

mature man in the Life of Pi novel while emphasizing the importance of experiences on men

growth.

In the novel, Yann outlines the struggle of man versus nature through the experience of

Pi. The novel shows that man is always struggling to survive against extreme of adverse natural

conditions. For example in the novel, Pi points out that he "was alone and orphaned, in the

middle of the Pacific, hanging onto an oar, an adult tiger in front of me, sharks beneath me, a

storm raging about me," (Martel, 118). The sentence introduces to the audience the external

adversities that Pi had to face perfectly. The adversities focus on outlining the conflict between

man and nature. Pi had to struggle to deal with being alone in the Pacific Ocean and to get used

to sharing a lifeboat with Richard Parker the tiger, (Glimelius, 1139). Apparently, he had to get

used to dealing with sharks in the Ocean and other unknown elements in the Ocean such as

weather and oceanic waves. Apparently, to face the adversity of sharing the lifeboat with

Richard, Pi had to draft a strategy that involved taming the beast thus overcoming his fears of the

Tiger. Pi was in constant fear on how to maintain control and manage Richard Parker, (Pendery,

70). However, his strive for survival made it possible for him to fight to tame the beast. For tame

the Tiger, Pi results to using the survival tactics his father taught him. Pi pointed out that he

"was so obviously outmatched by Richard Parker that it wasn't even worth worrying about,"

(Martel, 149). The sentence shows that he already knew that the Tiger sat above him in the food

chain meaning that if he had to survive this adversity he had to use every tactic his late father the

zookeeper used to let the tiger know where it stands in the food chain by establishing a social

rank, (Stratton, 6). According to his father, the social rank help dictate whom the tiger "can

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associate with and how; where and when it can eat; where it can rest; where it can drink; and so

on," (Martel, 153). Therefore, Pi's will to survive the tiger outline the traits that human beings

have such as willpower and cleverness. Seemingly, the man and nature adversities in the novel

also involved Pi's struggle with the cold at night, storms, waves and adverse weather.

Additionally, Pi also struggled with dehydration and hunger. However, he struggles to collect

fresh water using solar stills and to land a fish as food. In summation, in the novel Pi face

extensive external adversities that drive him to strive to live. He points out that "the lifeboat did

not sink. Richard Parker Kept out of sight. The sharks' prowled bat did not lunge. The waves

splashed me but did not pull me off," (Martel, 167). The quote indicates that he succeeded in

overcoming the external adversities that he faced throughout his journey.

Seemingly, in the novel, Pi struggles with internal adversities that display a conflict

between man and himself. Throughout the novel, Pi struggles with his inner demons and employ

the use of Richard Parker as a fictional character to mask his actions. Apparently, in his 227

days, isolation in the lifeboat Pi struggles to fight his doubts about surviving the incidence,

(Glimelius, 1139). Despite all his family perishing in the shipwreck, Pi finds it in him to strive to

survive. Hence, in the novel, Pi is constantly struggling with himself and creates a fictional

character in Richard to do things he cannot do by himself. For example, when he kills the chef as

a strategy to survive Pi forces himself to think that Richard the tiger that killed the chef. In the

novel, Pi faces mental, physical and spiritual adversities. For example, the lack of fresh water

and food weakens him physically forcing him to question his chances of survival. However, his

will to survive overcome his doubts and he face the adversity head-on by learning fishing fish

from the ocean as food and arresting fresh water using solar stills, (Pendery, 71). Reputedly, Pi

also faces spiritual adversities in his journey. For example, he becomes weak spiritually and

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loses faith in God in the sense that he becomes hopeless and has doubts about his chances of

survival, (Cole, 22). Pi questions God and battles internally the issue of why God could have let

such calamities to happen and the meaning of all these experiences. Finally, Pi also faces internal

mental adversities associated with day-to-day near-death experience in the lifeboat. He struggles

to convince himself to keep going on despite the challenging occurrences. Notably, the internal

adversities in Pi's life run through his entire life. For example, he practices different religions that

include Christianity, Hindu, and Islam. The diverse religious viewpoint gives him a moral

standard of dignity that plays a major role in his internal struggles while stranded at the Pacific

Ocean, (Cole, 26). For example, he faces a constant internal adversity about his will to live and

his belief and stands for what is morally right. Of importance, is that his will to survive while in

the lifeboat makes him sacrifice some of his beliefs as a strategy to stay alive. For example, to

survive he abandon his vegetarian lifestyle and kills a fish. However, the concept of sacrificing

in order to survive is not a comfortable transition. His emotions while killing the fish outline

mixed internal struggles of a person fighting to remain peaceful but also want to survive.

Apparently, Pi views himself as a "killer…now guilty… [with] a terrible burden to carry,"

(Martel, 183). Throughout the novel, Pi fights his internal conflicts, finds the desire, courage, and

will to continue his journey.

Throughout the novel, Pi's experiences play a major role in shaping the man he becomes.

In his struggle to survive, Pi as the main protagonist commits deeds that are both gruesome and

heroic. For example, he decides to live harmoniously with Richard in the lifeboat outlining a

heroic act, (Pendery, 70). When leaving the Algae Island, he waits for Richard to return to the

boat before living. However, in the French cook incident, he results into a gruesome act that

revolves around killing the chef as a strategy to survive. In the novel, Richard represents a

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personality side of Pi, which explains why he blames the chef's murder on the tiger. Apparently,

the survival instincts play a major role in shaping Pi's life throughout the journey and it

empowers him to grow and become stronger. From the novel, Pi use structures of scientific study

and religious rituals to survive, (Stratton, 6). The experience becomes part of his maturity.

Maturity comes with certain responsibilities that require people to have a willingness to change

and Pi was up to the challenge in the sense that he was willing to change even if it meant

abandoning some of his values. The willingness to change played a major role in shaping how

he grew to adulthood. While in the lifeboat, Pi maintained a well-stipulated daily routine. The

routine played an important role in his later life by making him more sensitive to his

surroundings. The experience of forming an imaginary unusual family on the lifeboat helped him

mature into a man and prepared him for getting along with people at a family and societal level

in his later life, (Pendery, 70). In the novel, Pi succeeds in facing his adversities and utilizing his

religious knowledge and scientific teachings, (Stratton, 6). The experience molds him into a man

by maturing him. Hence, from his journey, it becomes evident that adversities play a vital role in

growing boys into men. His childhood experiences and the teachings he learned in the

Pondicherry play a crucial role in his future endeavors and adult life in the sense that they shape

him and give him the necessary inner strength and skills to survive the 227 days at the Pacific

Ocean.

Conclusion

In conclusion, in the Life of Pi novel, Pi deals with his adversities in a calm manner and

starts to strategize on how to survive. Despite all his family members dying in the shipwreck, he

manages to stay calm and focus on the will to survive the external adversities that arise from his

227 journeys in the ocean. Apparently, Pi struggles to train the Richard to ensure that they live

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in harmony in the lifeboat and struggle to find food and fresh water. He faces all his misfortunes

both internal and external head on and learns how to deal and understand the issues he faces

along the way. Of importance, is that from the paper, it becomes evident that experiences play a

significant role in shaping an individual's beliefs and personality. For example, the adverse

experiences that Pi face shape his identity and help him determine his potential and capabilities

hence redefining his meaning of self. The experience redefines who be becomes and matures him

into adulthood. Therefore, from the essay, it becomes evident that adversaries play a fundamental

role in growing boys into men.

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Work cited

Cole, Stewart. "Believing in Tigers: Anthropomorphism and Incredulity in Yann Martel’s Life of

Pi." Studies in Canadian Literature/Études en littérature canadienne 29.2 (2004).

Glimelius, Bengt. "Life of pi." (2011): 1139-1141.

Martel, Yann. Life of pi. Canongate Books, 2002.

Pendery, David. "Life of Pi: Into the Divine, the Hard Way, or: Why the Tiger Didnt

Bite." International Journal of English and Literature 6.4 (2015): 67-75.

Stratton, Florence. "“Hollow at the core”: Deconstructing Yann Martel’s Life of Pi." Studies in

Canadian Literature/Études en littérature canadienne 29.2 (2004).

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