Richard Parker is introduced for the first time through these words. The Royal Bengal Tiger is an enigma because he is a symbol. When the Japanese shipping officials were asked the question Which Tale do you believe? ‘One with the human beings’ or the ‘One with the animals’, Mr. Okamoto and Mr. Chiba replies “Yes, the story with animals is a better story”. Life of Pi is not just one story or a tale. It is a collection of tales in the mind of the reader based on the understanding of the novel. What does Richard Parker ultimately refer to? He is the only animal in the story who has a human name. Other animals have pet names like Orange Juice. The story of Pi and Richard Parker is the story of the human soul and the human mind lost in the ocean of life. Pi (3.14) is a transcendental number just like human soul or ‘atman’. The soul exists outside of time and the lifetime of our current personality. Our bodies end but our souls never end. The soul has its own natural state of love, compassion, and clarity. Richard Parker represents the human mind which should always be kept under control. How the soul and the mind co-exist creating a wonderful amalgamation is the crux of the novel. The mind should never dominate the soul. If that happens then there is total ruin. It will be a soulless world devoid of any meaning or spirituality. When the human mind gets corrupted the true essence is lost. Pi is in total control of his own essence and Richard Parker is tamed and conquered.
The same meaning is echoed in the lines of W.B Yeats when he says
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43290/the-second-coming
No comments:
Post a Comment