Life of Pi Analysis

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Sarah Mrs. Green Honors World Lit Life of Pi Analytical Essay Humans are not always civil; they can be just as savage as animals. In, The Life of Pi, by Yann Martel, Pi’s father uses part of the zoo to say that humans are more dangerous than animals “Just beyond the ticket booth Father had had painted on a wall in bright red letters the question: DO YOU KNOW WHICH IS THE MOST DANGEROUS ANIMAL IN THE ZOO? An arrow pointed to a small curtain. There were so many eager, curious hands that pulled at the curtain that we had to replace it regularly. Behind it was a mirror” (Martel 39). People are known to be unkind to animals in zoos where even on accident, many animals die every year from consumption of unsuitable objects. However, there is also a more meaningful side to this topic. Humans act just as relentless as animals when they are pushed to the edge of survival. This is seen in the final chapter of the book on Pi’s second account of what occurred on the life boat. This demonstration in the Pondicherry Zoo reminds visitors of the fact that humans are more harmful to animals, than animals are harmful to man. Zoo keepers see this mostly by people in the zoo feeding the animals common objects which are dangerous. Pi’s father sees this and that is why exhibit of the mirror exists, “We have in mind people who feed fish hooks to the otters, razors to the bears, apples with small nails in the them to the elephants and hardware variations on the theme: ballpoint pens, paper clips, safety pins, rubber bands, combs, coffee spoons, horseshoes, pieces of broken glass, rings and other jewelry (and not just cheap plastic bangles: gold wedding bands, too) drinking straws, plastic cutlery, ping pong balls, tennis balls and so on” (Martel 36). There is also the issue of unprovoked cruelty to animals by disturbed people. Overall, humans can be foolish and unruly in a zoo

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