The book begins with a
grown up Pi narrating the story. No particular background of the story is set
since he is reflecting back on his life, and we are only reading his thoughts
for the first few chapters. Then when Pi's real name, Piscine Molitor Patel, is
introduced, the story goes way back to when he was a pre-teen.
The story begins in India, when it was just seven
years old when it became bigger by a small territory- Pondicherry. Pondicherry
entered the Union of India on November 1st, 1945. a portion of the ground of
the Pondicherry Botanical garden was made available for rent-free for an
exciting business opportunity. Pi’s father is the one to take this
opportunity and create a brand new zoo. He ran a large hotel in Madras before,
but his interest in animals led him to the zoo business and led his family to
move to Pondicherry. The zoo is designed and run according to the most modern,
biologically sound principles. It is huge, spread over numberless acres, big
enough to have a train to explore it. It is hot, humid, bathed in sunshine and
bright colors. Flowers are incessant, and there are threes, shrubs, and
climbing plants and profusion. There are also a variety of animals, such as
giraffes, elephants, Indian rhinoceroses, lions, lamas, flamingos, and many
more. If you’re wondering why I’m describing a zoo as the setting of the story,
it would be because this is where Pi grew up. This is where Pi describes as
paradise on earth, and still pictures it in his head even when he’s almost 40.
His childhood is practically weaved with this zoo, and it is a significant
reason of why he takes zoology in university. Growing up with this zoo, Pi
establishes his identity, and faces his first challenge for his religion from
his teacher Mr. Kumar at this zoo. However, this setting is only for the
beginning of the story, leading up to when Pi’s adventure on the boat with
Richard Parker, as well as his move to Canada.
(346 words)
(346 words)
hahah I like how you shared the number of words you have. Very Good.
ReplyDeleteSuch a well-written and moreover, intriguing, introduction of the novel “The Life of Pi”! I almost regretted for not choosing it. To be honest, the title of this book caught my attention when I was first introduced to it. I wondered what kind of story it tells. The very first definition that came to my mind when I saw the word “Pi” is the mathematical constant. Then, I thought of those delicious pies. I could not refrain from guessing the content of the novel. Is it a mathematical novel or does it talk about a fantasy world of pies? Unfortunately, I did not reach any conclusions. My conjectures seemed to be so “imaginative” that they are almost ridiculous after my reading of your post on the settings of the story. Thankfully, your blog post answered all my previous questions; however, it also evoked more curiosities inside me. What is it like to own a huge zoo full of all kinds of animals? How could someone manage to spend his entire childhood in a zoo? Last but not least, how does Pi’s unique childhood influence his future? In the meantime, I am very looking forward to have my questions solved by you. Nevertheless, I will definitely read through this novel on my own in the near future.
ReplyDeletethank you for your comment Ying,you should definitely look into reading the book, as I've never read a similar book to this,it's quite unique :)
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