Features Of Magical Realism In Life Of Pi

Life of Pi is Yann Martel’s masterpiece. Since it was published, it has received much attention from the academic community. Scholars at home and abroad have respectively made fruitful research into the novel’s aesthetic value, narrative strategy and characters. Some scholars referred to the novel as a work of magical realism, but they did not make any further analysis. Magical realism is a narrative technique in Latin American literature, and its main characteristics contain juxtaposition of reality and fantasy, past and present, mingling of reality, myths, folklores and fables, universal adoption of symbol and so on. This thesis adopts a qualitative approach and textual analysis, exploring the magical realist characteristics of the novel from three aspects: symbolism, mythological archetypes and narrative mode.In terms of symbol, Life of Pi, through different symbols and comparisons, illustrates the differences and similarities between science and religion, and between reason and imagination. Animals are used as symbols of different human qualities, revealing the castaways’existential predicament and their miserable psychological state. As regards archetypes, Martel borrows the biblical Noah, Satan and Ark to shape the images of characters and things, making them rich in symbolic meaning. The author also employs religious allusions and myths to construct the plots, demonstrating the mystical relations between human and nature, and between human and things. As to narrative technique, Martel utilizes the realist narrative techniques to draw reality, fantasy, religious myths and supernatural elements together, vividly presenting Pi’s incredible adventure at sea. Through combination of reality and imagination, juxtaposition of past and present, Martel takes readers to travel between human and animal worlds, and refutes people’s negative views about zoo and religion, appealing to everyone to treat animals with kindness and pay attention to the relationship between self and the other.The unique artistic charm of magical realism is fully demonstrated in Life of Pi. By his abundant imagination, wonderful ideas and dreamlike scenes, the author creates a marvelous adventure story, and reflects the mystical natural reality and the deep social reality. The novel manifests the artistic features of magical realism from three aspects: symbolism, mythological archetypes and narrative mode. Therefore, it is a work of magical realism.