The Island

Pi Patel is a religious boy who follows three religions: Hinduism, Islam and Christianity.  He has a vast knowledge of zoology, religion, philosophy and many theories of life.  His family owns a zoo in India, and due to business problems, they settle on moving to Canada.  When the ship faces mechanical issues and sinks, Pi Patel is thrown on a lifeboat accompanied by a hyena, an injured zebra, an orangutan, and Richard Parker the tiger. On his perilous journey, he lands on a mysterious island.   Was it reality or was he losing his mind?  Was this a dream forever in his memory or a twisted reality?  I don’t think Pi even knew at the time. Yet, the reader comes to realize what the island means.

The algae island Pi landed on seemed like a common island, but it was abnormal in every way. In beginning when he arrived, he got too comfortable and came to believe that the island was his salvation.  It had saved him.  It gave him limited comfort for a short while, because the delectable algae he was starting to consume turns out to be man-eating algae. It's an island that seemed to be alive.  It could consume you and anything else on it.  He knew that something wasn’t right about the island from the start.  Somehow, it was almost too perfect, until it turned on him. Meaning, if you appease yourself with comfort and physical things, it turns into a spiritual death. What I mean is, if your faith is too easy and you no longer brave the stormy seas of life and religion (as in Pi’s faiths), then you're no longer experiencing real faith. When he first landed on the island, he knew something wasn’t fitting with the island.  He just decided that it seemed safe and he could take refuge on it, until it was almost too late, and he could have lost his life.

The island symbolized physical comforts and a seemed to be safe refuge.  Pi’s faith wasn’t genuine, because he just believed each religion to be somewhat true.  He thought that he was being intelligent to believe in three beliefs, but this is untrue. It offers temporary salvation to Pi, like the island does. But he must leave the island once he discovers the black “forbidden fruit” on the twisted branches of the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” His illusion of the island is shattered.  Everything he thought about the island was changing when he had the knowledge of the danger he was in.

The whole island is a metaphor for how people think.  They think that physical things and comfort will give them happiness.  It will for a short time, but then it starts to eat away at you, if you don’t stop it. The supposed happiness will make you think it’s alright, but you can save yourself from it if you are strong enough.  His island was supposed to be his safe refuge, but turned on him trying to consume him.