Chrysanthemums vs Life of Pi

Although the two individual pieces, Life ofPi by Yann Martel, and The Chrysanthemums, by John Steinbeck, appear to be completely unrelated on the surface, they share a similar theme- location causes people to deal with certain situations in a way contrary to what they believe. Whether fighting for life in the desolate ocean, or struggling on an remote ranch, character’s must learn to adapt to the circumstances at hand. As a person adjusts to their surroundings and processes what remains to cope with, they are forced to evolve into whatever it may take to survive.

Although in Pi’s case he is battling physically, both him and Elisa are emotionally confronting hardships, coping with inward battles, and seclusion. Their minds create an imaginative world, one that protects their well-being and allows them to survive under the conditions given Piscine Molitor Patel, known as Pi throughout the riveting novel, is forced to handle situations in a manner contrary to his prior beliefs throughout his time on the open ocean, and faces a sea of distresses that alter him completely, because of his surroundings Pi’s ability to extensively grasp situations and cope with them in his environment aid him in his time of need, but also push him to the edge.

At the beginning of the novel, Pi is a vegetarian, but given his predicament, he applies new logic. Pi knows that in order to survive he must eat fish. At first, Pi is adverse to the idea, but pushed to the brink of starvation Pi realizes that he must do what he can in order to live.

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Despite the fact that many of the hardships he dealt with were outward battles, his emotions and inward conflicts were his key to survival, As Pi speaks with Tomohiro Okamoto and Atsuro Chiba, he tells his two stories. At this point, Pi must come to grips with what really happened, and what his mind constructed in order to save his emotional and mental state (Martel 305), Although Martel does not ever reveal which story is true, it is understood that Pi mentally could not withstand the idea of humans acting in such a barbaric nature: this draws a parallel between the mannerisms of human beings and animals. As a result of location, human habit can be broken and become primitive.

The desolation of the aquatic world in which Pi is restrained converts him in several measures, His loneliness from his remote environment drives him to search for actions to keep him busy, solely to find that routine is just not enough. “Without Richard Parker, I wouldn‘t be alive today to tell you my story,”- that was the solution to Pi’s solitude. With only one companion, Richard Parker, Pi must learn to cope with the seclusion in which he withstands. Before, his father taught him to never trifle with any animal, because although the creatures are tamed, at heart they still have the capability to kill (Martel 31), In order for Pi to survive, however, he must establish his dominance with Richard Parker in opposition to what his father taught him. Using different means, Pi successfully trains the bengal tiger and secures authority over the animalt.

In doing so, Pi loses his juvenility and finds that his saving grace is his unexpected friend, Richard Parker. Pi’s supremacy is affirmed when the Frenchman climbs aboard Pi’s lifeboat. Within minutes of stepping aboard, the Frenchman is eaten by Richard Parker. This establishes the extent of Pi’s dominance by exhibiting the tigers respect for Pi through the tiger‘s reluctance to attack him, contrary to the Frenchman. Within John Steinbeck’s short story, the predominant character, Elisa, is placed in the Salinas Valley, in California. Unlike Pi’s situation, Elisa does not face a life or death Situation, however, she does learn to cope with a different more extensive hardship, the inequality suffered by women. Desolate, the setting effects the way Elisa feels about herself, and effects how she interprets comments focused towards her. The opening of the story discusses the sunlight bathing the foothills, but not the valley itself, which is a symbol of isolation Elisa is trapped in the lightless valley, but she can see the happiness that is so near her yet out of reach.

This happiness is freedom, adventure, and passion, in which Elisa is overflowing with. The people that her environment involves also emotionally effect Elisa When Henry discusses “the fight” with her, she has mixed emotions about the topic. She knows it is not the place for her gender, yet part of her is intrigued by the idea of it. As a woman, Elisa is considered insubordinate, and although her husband seems much less intelligent, he speaks to Elisa in a condescending manner. Throughout this, however, Elisa maintains sound judgement, and never oversteps her boundary. Not because she wants to necessarily, but because she feels that she has no choice given the circumstances and location.  The Chrysanthemums, an aspect of the setting, are a key to the emotional stability of Elisa herself The flowers, like Elisa, are stuck, grown in the garden without the ability to leave.

They are beautiful and thriving, yet overlooked, in this way, Elisa lives through her flowers- they give her life, and in return she keeps them strong and alive as well. Even though her chrysanthemums are her companions, Elisa’s true savior is the drifteri The man is adventurous and has the capability to do as he pleases, when he pleases. Although Elisa is jealous of him for these reasons, it is not until he asks about her beloved flowers that she becomes truly interested in him. Her contribution to him makes her feel alive, knowing that her adored possessions will finally escape the realm that she is bound to Nevertheless, as Elisa begins to contemplate the decision that she made, she has a sudden realization: she could have inevitably doomed her dearest valuablet.

Suddenly, her visionary world is shattered and all she can do is worry about her precious Chrysanthemum All at once, she is hit with a shock of emotion, and she must handle it as she always has, taking a stable approach Pi’s situation was very unique to Elisa’s, however, they both adjusted to their surroundings based on what would allow them to survive the most efficiently. Even though Pi was fighting for his life physically throughout his novel, Elisa would struggle for the rest of her life with her hardships. The isolated setting that cuts off the characters from happiness is the most important aspect in driving the plot of each story. Yann Martel‘s Life ofPi and Joseph Steinbeck’s The Chrysanthemums unitedly bring about the affects that an environment have on people, and the alterations of the coping techniques the individuals embrace.