Bright, Mein, Russell 1

Aimee Mein, Charlie Bright, Elsa Russell

Ms. Broaddus
PIB LA 10 6
January 29th, 2016
Passage #3 Analysis
In Chapter 59 of Life of Pi, Yann Martel takes the reader on a sensational journey. The
passage begins with short, to-the-point sentences, then flows into a greater description using
colorful word choice to provoke the readers imagination and feelings of serenity and peace. The
passage then turns to a darker place, where Pi remembers the Tsimtsum. Finally, it comes full
circle and ends with the safe and comfortable feeling present in the middle of the passage. The
strong use of vivid senses, purposeful diction, and well-used syntax in the passage brings out the
better side of Pis journey and gives him a new perspective on being stranded at sea.
The first sentence of the passage, I heard a splash (Martel, 175), quickly invokes the
senses and begins to create a new, calmer, tone that has not often used by Martel. As the passage
continues, words like glassy, evanescent, and phosphorescent, begin to bring a creative
and calmer tone. This serves as a big contrast to the hopeless and fearful tone that Martel uses for
the majority of Pis time out at sea up to this point. Martel also utilizes the sense of sight by
describing the colors and appearance of all the sea creatures and water. Martel describes the
water as being predominantly green, which happens to be the color that represents Islam in the
novel. This shows that Pis religions are with him at all times and provide a calming aspect to his
life. Other colors are used to invoke the senses when Martel describes the fish as showing off
their bright gold, blue, and green as they whisked by (Martel, 176). These colorful descriptions

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and stimulation of the senses sets the tone for a new outlook on being a castaway and gives hope
to both the reader and Pi.
As well as the great use of senses, Martel adds another dimension to the passage by using
specific diction. Words and phrases like hurly-burly, and stubbornly refused to be colorful
creates an informal tone which results in readers being more comfortable to imagine the scene
and be in the moment with Pi. Other specific words such as wondrous and awe-inspiring
stand out and further create the tone of bliss and calmness. Although this changes during the last
third of the passage when Martel plays with the diction by using phrases like sparsely inhabited
waste of water to change the tone to a darker place. At the end the tone is resurrected to being
more informal and calm. This is cleverly done by using more whimsical words. Overall, diction
in this passage brings the reader through a journey of emotions and thoughts that results to the
original feeling of serenity that has not been seen until this point in the novel.
In addition to the use of senses and diction, Martels clever use of syntax helps to create a
peaceful, yet fascinated mood. For example, in the beginning of the passage, Martel begins by
saying I heard a splash. I looked down at the water. I gasped. I thought I was alone (Martel,
175). This quickly piques the readers interest by using the fast paced parallelism of I heard, I
looked, I gasped, I thought. Transitions are also extremely important in this passage, and help
the flow by mirroring the similes and metaphors within the passage. For example, at the end of
the first long paragraph, Martel says I looked on until the lights went out in the city (Martel,
176). This transition signals the ending of the city metaphor, and allows for the space and
creation of a new metaphor. In total, the use of syntax is another great tool used by Martel to add
to the tone and feel of the passage.

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In conclusion, in Chapter 59 of Life of Pi, Yann Martel brings the reader full cycle
beginning with short, to-the-point sentences, then flowing into a greater description using
colorful word choice, taking a quick turn to a darker place, and lastly ending with the safe and
comfortable feeling that is present in the middle of the passage. All in all, Martels powerful use
of senses, diction, and syntax brings out the better side of Pis journey and gives him a new
perspective on being stranded at sea.