Life of Pi chapter one jornal - Book Report/Review Example

November 28, Yann Martel’s Life of Pi – Chapter I The first chapter of Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, en d Toronto and Pondicherry, offers a glimpse of the main character’s identity and his experiences so far and unveils some of the themes of the novel. Despite being very short, several inferences can be made about the main aspects of the novel. First of all, narrative voice in the first chapter is obviously that of the main character. This can be inferred by looking at the focus of the narrative, which is the narrator’s life so far.

The first person point of view is here limited and subjective, as the storyteller seems to relate from direct experience. The abrupt opening peers straight into the narrator’s intimate life. He states: “My suffering left me sad and gloomy”(Martel 7). This sentence alone creates expectations related to the possible nature and theme of the story. Further in the story there are other intimations of great sufferance in the life of the main character. It is obvious that something extraordinary occurred to the narrator because he briefly speaks of the hospital where he recovered from an undisclosed illness or affliction, which left him weak to the point of fainting at the mere sight of water gushing from the tap.

Another indication of sufferance or near-to-death experience is given in an earlier passage, where the narrator describes his own life as a “memento mori” about the “folly of human ambition”(Martel 9). The other things the narrator reveals about his life at this point are mostly related to his studies, a Bachelor’s Degree in Religious Studies and one in Zoology. It is known that he was an exceptional student and that, at present, he is living and working in Toronto. The strategies that the author uses to introduce his main character are interesting because the narrative does not follow a strict logic but seems fraught with random details of the narrator’s experiences.

The first chapter for instance shifts the focus from the narrator’s yet unknown sufferance to his academic background and then to a lengthy and detailed description of the three-toed sloth, the object of his scientific research, only to return once more to the sufferance and the recovery in the hospital. Moreover, the descriptions are alternated with meditative and very profound observations on life. The character’s identity is shaped therefore not by direct statements but mostly through his thoughts, memories and random statements, all of which seem to be given arbitrarily.

Thus, the language used by the author is very important, because it is alternately descriptive, narrative and expressive. Martel seemingly lets his character speak freely and loosely of his life but the authorial intention is still detectable and the general theme of the novel can be established. For instance, the description of the sloth and its behavior and characteristics seem irrelevant and especially when done so soon into the narrative, but they clearly convey meaning and hint to the theme of the story.

The sloths are here compared to “yogis deep in meditation or hermits deep in prayer”, therefore alluding to their contemplative powers. This observation is out of place in the scientific context it is included in, since it refers to spirituality and imagination. The narrator’s studies, which were a curious mix of science and religion, along with his unnamed sufferings, indicate that the general theme of the novel has to do with revelation or religious awakening. The two majors that the author has taken in college and his passionate involvement in his studies signal the possibility of an inner conflict, between reason and his spiritual experiences.

The conflict could be related to the clash between religions as well: it can be derived that the narrator is Indian, that he lives in Toronto and that he would like to visit several key religious cities: Jerusalem, Varanasi and Mecca. There is also a cultural conflict, as seen in the brief restaurant scene depicted at the end of the chapter: the narrator was mocked by a waiter in an Indian restaurant in Canada for his habit of eating with his fingers, as he was used to in his native country. The mood of the novel is set by the general theme as grave and preoccupied.

The narrator’s voice seems to betray the past agitation and distress. It becomes obvious that the main character writes his story in the aftermath of unusual experiences that have shaken him to the core. This could also explain the fact that he chooses to mention his present situation only incidentally. At present he lives in Canada, but, as the title of the first chapter shows, the novel might be set in his hometown in India as well, Pondicherry. The first chapter of Life of Pi contains therefore a wealth of details from which important aspects of the novel can be inferred.

Works Cited: Martel, Yann. Life of Pi. New York: Mariner Books, 2003. Print.