Today I will be at a conference in Chicago (no, not the same conference as Wednesday - busy week!).
Here is the plan:
- Use the first half of the class to read. On the "calendars" tab of the blog or in the previous post you can see where you should be for class on Tuesday / Wednesday. You can probably get a lot of that reading done now.
- For the second half, please work with a group of 2-4 people to answer these questions. Please do so in a Google document and share it with me at the end of the period. The focus will continue to be on the dual major Pi has in college in Toronto: religious studies and zoology (p. 3). How do these early chapters of the novel continue to explore issues about religion, animals, and the intersection between the two?
- What does Pi say about agnostics and atheists? What do these terms mean to him? Cite relevant text.
- What does Pi say about animal training, including alpha figures and trainers?
- What are the religious artifacts present in Pi's home?
- Describe Pi's views on and approach to religion in the chapters you've read. What does religion mean to him? What do some of the specific religions he speaks of mean to him?
- Where do you see the spheres of zoology and religious studies interact in the book up to this point? How / why? What points / ideas is Pi (or Martel) exploring here?
Have a great weekend!
