Other Themes

Life of Pi pays attention to Pi's struggle to survive, which is another theme. He does extraordinary things to push himself to the limit physically as well as mentally in a terrible situation. Pi has many dangers around him including Richard Parker, sun, and limited food and drink. So, there is a conflict between him and nature forcing him to be a vegetarian, train an animal, and find food. There is also discussion of the behavior of animals in a zoo implying their freedom. Being captive or being free in nature are similar because in both situations they claim a territory and treat it the same way. According to Pi they will stay where they are because animals will escape the zoo and not go anywhere. They might not necessarily be as free to roam but they are more free from harm. Animals also handle situations different depending on their environment so in the case of a zoo they must be helped to get accustomed. Same with the situation in which Pi was faced on the lifeboat. He needed to make it more comfortable for Richard Parker. Pi thinks that humans are more adaptable but overall the same nature laws would not work because people wouldn't be happy if they were in a zoo just like they aren't happy if they are on a lifeboat but they try to deal with it.