LIFE OF PI Part 3: Chapters 56-89

Pi's journey or, rather, predicament, transforms from a somewhat dry account of seafaring and zoo animals to a pithy description of both physical and spiritual survival. I saw in this section three main premises: fear is a most evil opponent, man can get used to anything, and that the seeming absence of God causes the greatest despair.
As Pi depicts the effects of fear in Chapter 86, the suffering that he is to recount as the book progresses is evident. The reader can tell that he is speaking from experience, yet his words can easily be related to those of us who haven't floated the Pacific with a Bengal tiger. The presence of fear in Life of Pi makes Pi a realistic character, one who tosses and turns in his sleep like the ocean on which he has found himself.
Pi, who is an animal-loving vegetarian, is initially scarred when he hunts and kills fish, turtles, and even birds. As the need for food intensifies, however, he becomes accustomed to killing and eating animals. As he describes this change in attitude, he justifies it by saying that man can get used to anything. This underlying theme is pervasive in our culture as well. I would even go so far as to say that events like the Holocaust and school shootings are in part caused by normalization of atrocity. Additionally, when Pi successfully attempts to assert his dominance over Richard Parker, he claims that animals can get used to anything as well. Here, the reader can see that perseverance and intellect prevail over brute strength. The power of acclamation is paramount to Life of Pi and indeed the continuation of Pi's life because adaptation is often the key to progress.
This section of the book is more spiritual than the last; however, the reader sees a different side of Pi's religious zeal. Pi prays everyday he is on the life raft and tries to remain optimistic, but he often falls into despair because of the seeming absence of God. No longer is "I just want to love God" enough for Pi: he wants God to love and save him. As humans, we can feel tricked by a seemingly silent God who does not answer our prayers on our terms. Sometimes the situation can feel as dire as Pi's. The depiction of spiritual doubt in this section of the novel is refreshing, though, because it makes Pi a realistic character with a full range of emotions, including anger.
Life of Pi is a book in which I can see myself, despite the outlandish story line and cultural difference. In some ways, we are all floating with our fears, whispering prayers into the sky, God's immense and occasionally seemingly deaf ear.