Life of Pi: A Literary Gem

Yann Martel's novel, Life of Pi, is widely revered as a classic of the modern age. Its creative plot line and captivating voice serve to ignite the readers imagination while delving into a plethora of humanity's questions about religion, candor, and the natural world.

The story relates the life of a young boy, and the interesting experiences he has on a seemingly unfeasible adventure. The boy, Piscine Molitor Patel, grows up in Pondicherry, India, with his older, more popular brother, Ravi. Their parents own and run a local zoo, and Piscine, called Pi to avoid the harrows of peer inflicted, name jokes, is constantly immersed in a world of animals and exotic cultures. At a young age, he becomes fascinated with the concept of organized religion, and questions whether or not his faith, Hinduism, is really the right denomination for him. As a result, Pi explores the world of worship, becoming members to both a Christian church and an Islamic synagogue while retaining Hindu loyalties, all at the utter disbelief of his family and religious leaders. The conflicting nature of his pursuits only serves to confuse and motivate him further. When Indian nationalist Mahatma Ghandi is murdered, and political upheaval ensues, the Patel family decides to sell their property and most of the zoo animals, and hightail it for Canada, where they believe a better life awaits. They board a passenger ship, and begin the voyage northwest. However, not even a few days into the journey, Pi awakens to a loud, ominous noise in the middle of the night, and sneaks out of his family's cabin to investigate. On the deck of the boat, he sees the crew running around in a panicked frenzy, screaming in foreign, Asian tongues, and unlocking the cages of the few animals his family had brought with them. One of the crewmen spots him and tosses him overboard, amongst an array of animals also fleeing the ship, and onto a lifeboat, where he finds himself in the company of a weeping hyena and a zebra with a broken leg. As he watches the ship sink, and realizes that he is the only person that has successfully escaped, he sees an old friend, Richard Parker, struggling to stay afloat. Without hesitation, Pi calls attention to his acquaintance and throws out a life line, failing to even stop and consider the potential gravity of his actions. When his acquaintance finally jumps onboard, Pi fearfully realizes the danger of what he has just done: he has just willingly saved the live of a Bengal tiger, India's greatest predator, and is now contained with it within the constraints of a small life boat. The rest of the tale conveys Pi's struggles for survival against not only nature, but also the brute force of his lifeboat companions and existence of his own will to survive the hardships he endures.

Martel's literary creation is one of marvelous originality, impressive capacity for reader connection, and immense insight into human perceptions of faith. This novel is a must read masterpiece that can be enjoyed by most ages and will, no doubt, endure the tests of time. I am eagerly awaiting the release of it's film counterpart, which will be released this Wednesday, November 14.

Photo made possible by http://www.filmofilia.com/new-life-of-pi-clip-121493/

Rationalization in Frankenstein: Justifying the Wrong Decision

Rationalization, or a justification of disapproving thoughts or actions, plagues the minds of all individuals. It often prevents people from doing what they know is right, for they are able defend their own selfish, inappropriate, and cruel conduct through persuading themselves in favor of their behavior. In fact, when presented with a pressing situation, if one does not make the decision choose the ethical or honorable pathway within 6 seconds, he will lose himself to his rationalization. For example, in psychologist Stanley Milgram's experiment, obedience to an authority figure, as it pertains to following unethical or immoral orders, was tested. Participants were recruited to administer electric shocks to unseen patients at the direction of a tall, commanding man in a white lab coat. A majority of the shock administering participants sent shocks of dangerous magnitude to the patient in the next room, even when they the patient screamed for mercy or stopped communicating altogether. The shock administering participants then justified their inhumane actions, claiming that since they were only following orders, they were not responsible for any consequences. This experiment clearly demonstrated the negative effects of rationalization on the human conscience. 

In addition, rationalization also afflicts Frankenstein's mind when he talks himself out of confessing who William's true murderer is. Even though the life of innocent Justine Moritz, beloved and dedicated house maid, is on the line for supposedly killing little William Frankenstein, Victor refuses to come forward and reveal the identity and essence of the actual criminal. He rationalizes that if he came forth to claim that a monster he created with his own two hands was his own brother's murderer, he would be deemed a madman by his family, his friends, the court, and the citizens of Geneva. Frankenstein also believes that no one would acknowledge the credibility of his declaration. So, to preserve his reputation and sanity, he restrains himself, and watches a poor, innocent, heart-broken girl be condemned for a crime she would never even dream of committing. This rationalization also serves to signify a pattern of fault within Victor: his mind continues to be is biggest enemy, for he convinces himself to create life for the controversial sake of science but talks himself out of saving a girl's life. If Victor had been denied the ability to rationalize, the novel Frankenstein would no longer be considered a tragedy.