1. Life of Pi: Introduction
Literature in English
Secondary 6

2. Introduction ~ Author Yann Martel Travelled in Iran, Turkey and India
Born June 25, 1963 in Salamanca, Spain
Canadian
Travelled in Iran, Turkey and India
Studying philosophy at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario,
Started writing at age 27
To write Life of Pi…
Six months spent in India visiting mosques, temples, churches and zoos
An entire year reading religious texts and castaway stories
Actual writing: two more years

3. Introduction ~ The Book
First published by Knopf Canada in September 2001
Won:
Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 2002
Boeke Prize, a South African book prize, in 2003
A film adaptation in 2011

4. Story Overview The protagonist Piscine ("Pi") Molitor Patel
An Indian boy from Pondicherry
Exploring the issues of religion and spirituality from an early age
His survival story: 227 days shipwrecked with a tiger in the Pacific Ocean

5. Characters Piscine Molitor Patel (Pi) The protagonist of the story
The narrator for most of the novel
His account of his seven months at sea
His unusual name from the French word for pool
A pool in Paris in which a close family friend, Francis Adirubasamy, loved to swim
A student of zoology and religion
Deeply intrigued by the habits and characteristics of animals and people

6. Characters Richard Parker
The Royal Bengal tiger sharing a lifeboat with Pi
His captor, Richard Parker, named him Thirsty
A shipping clerk reversed their names
From the Pondicherry Zoo
Weighing 450 pounds and about nine feet long
Kills the hyena on the lifeboat and the blind cannibal
Acts as an omega, or submissive, animal respecting Pi’s dominance

7. Characters The Author The narrator of the (fictitious) Author’s Note
Inserting himself into the narrative at several points throughout the text
Never identified by name
Yann Martel
He lives in Canada
Published two books
Inspired to write Pi’s life story during a trip to India

8. Characters Francis Adirubasamy The elderly man
Telling the author Pi’s story during a meeting in a Pondicherry coffee shop
Taught Pi to swim
Bestowed upon him his unusual moniker
Arranges for the author to meet Pi
Pi calls him Mamaji (Indian: respected uncle)

9. Characters Ravi Pi’s older brother
Teases his younger brother mercilessly over his devotion to three religions
Santosh Patel 
Pi’s father
Runs the Pondicherry Zoo
A worrier by nature
Teaching his sons not only to care for and control wild animals, but to fear them
Decided to move his family to Canada
Gita Patel 
Pi’s beloved mother and protector
A book lover
Encouraging Pi to read widely
Speaking her mind
Taking the place of Orange Juice on the lifeboat (in Pi’s another version of his story to his rescuers)

10. Characters Satish Kumar Father Martin
Pi’s biology teacher at a secondary school in Pondicherry
A polio survivor
Odd-looking man, with a body shaped like a triangle
Devotion to the power of scientific inquiry and explanation
Inspiring Pi to study zoology in college
Father Martin 
The Catholic priest
Introducing Pi to Christianity
Preaching a message of love
Disagrees about whose religion Pi should practice

11. Characters Satish Kumar The Hindu Pandit
A plain-featured Muslim mystic
With the same name as Pi’s biology teacher
Working in a bakery
A strong effect on Pi’s academic plans
His faith leads Pi to study religion at college
The Hindu Pandit 
One of three important religious figures
Outraged when Pi begins practicing other religions
Quieted by Pi’s declaration that he just wants to love God

12. Characters The Hyena The Zebra Orange Juice Ugly and intensely violent
Controlling the lifeboat before Richard Parker emerges
The Zebra 
A beautiful male Grant’s zebra
His leg broken jumping into the lifeboat
Tormented by the hyena and eaten alive
Orange Juice 
Maternal orangutan
Floating to the lifeboat on a raft of bananas
Suffering from almost humanlike bouts of loneliness and seasickness
Fighting back valiantly when attacked by the hyena
Killed and decapitated

13. Characters The Blind Frenchman A fellow castaway
Meeting Pi by chance in the middle of the ocean
Driven by hunger and desperation
Trying to kill and cannibalize Pi
Richard Parker kills him first
Meena Patel 
Pi’s wife
Nikhil Patel (Nick) 
Pi’s son
Usha Patel 
Pi’s young daughter
Shy but very close to her father

14. Characters Tomohiro Okamoto Atsuro Chiba
An official from the Maritime Department of the Japanese Ministry of Transport
Investigating the sinking of the Japanese Tsimtsum
Interviews Pi for three hours
Highly skeptical of Pi’s first account of the shipwreck
Atsuro Chiba 
Okamoto’s assistant
More naïve and trusting of the two Japanese officials
His inexperience at conducting interviews
Agrees with Pi that the version of his ordeal with animals is the better than the one with people

15. Characters
The Cook 
The human counterpart to the hyena in Pi’s second story
Rude and violent and hoards food on the lifeboat
Kills the sailor and Pi’s mother
Pi stabs him and he dies
The Sailor 
The human counterpart to the zebra in Pi’s second story
Young, beautiful, and exotic
Speaks only Chinese
Very sad and lonely in the lifeboat
His leg broken and infected after jumping off the ship
His leg cut off by the cook
Dies slowly

16. Organization of the Book
Three parts:
First section: an adult Pi Patel’s rumination over his childhood
Second section: a blend of a detailed and realistic survival memoir and a fantastic allegory in a medieval style
Last section:
The report to the Japanese government
A choice to actually choose the story version the readers prefer