Jason Greco

Mrs. Baditoi

(H) English 9

2 May 2016

Explanation for Creative Analysis

I chose to write an alternate ending for my novel, Life of Pi, for many reasons. This book

clearly has two very powerful themes, faith and survival. Faith is an incredibly important theme

in this novel because its what gets Pi through his tragic journey across the Pacific Ocean. This

theme is also displayed at the end of the novel when Pi shares two stories with the men

interviewing him from the Japanese Ministry of Transport. After Pi tells them the stories, he

says, You cant prove which story is true and which is not. You must take my word for it.

(Martel 398) The other crucial theme in this story, survival, is evident in Pis attempt at to make

it against all odds. Pis main inspiration for living is the responsibility he accepts to take care of

Richard Parker. Even though Pi has just lost his whole family and felt that he had nothing left to

live for, Richard Parker provided him with a reason to keep fighting. He accepted the

responsibility to not only take care of Richard Parker but to also tame him. Pi realizes this when

he says, It was not a question of him or me, but of him and me. We were, literally and

figuratively, in the same boat. (Martel 206) With both of these major themes in this novel, I

think an alternate ending is the perfect choice. This type of creative analysis allows me to

perfectly incorporate both major themes of this novel into one design.