Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions based on the passage:
Yann Martel's Life of Pi explores deep ideas concerning survival, faith, and how we construct the realities we tell ourselves. At its core, the story examines how people handle raw, natural struggles for survival, such as when Pi shares a lifeboat with the fearsome Richard Parker after their voyage goes horribly wrong. This experience shows Pi's split self—the sophisticated part of him and his raw survival instincts clashing while he fights to stay alive. Moreover, Martel questions what someone can believe during desperate times. Pi takes comfort by exploring three religions—Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam—to shield himself from hopelessness. In the end, though, Pi plays with the definition of truth. He ends up telling two entirely different versions of his tale and urges the reader to ponder which is more truthful. So, Martel asserts that we shape our truths based on the accounts we latch onto rather than on cold, hard facts. Such stories help us find purpose in our lives and make sense of everything that happens to us.
What is the author's primary goal in presenting two different versions of Pi's survival story?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
Correct Answer: To compel the reader to evaluate the meaning and purpose behind storytelling.
Explanation
• According to the passage, Pi tells two separate versions of his ordeal to challenge conventional ideas of truth, urging readers to reflect on which account feels truer to them.
• Martel uses these dual narratives to show that people construct reality through the stories they choose to believe, finding deeper meaning and comfort beyond literal facts alone.