Pi begins to struggle with a lack of food. He limits himself to a biscuit every eight hours and eats whatever he can get his hands on, even going so far as to try Richard Parker's feces.
I'm beating this to death, but this also shows Pi's break from humanity. He doesn't hesitate to eat the intestines of a turtle. He even tries tiger feces. Pi is most certainly relying on instinct at this point.
Chapter 78
Everything is constantly changing, but nothing is good nor bad. All types of weather provide a benefit but also a drawback. When it's dark, he wishes it were light and vice versa.
A quote that stood out was "Life on a lifeboat isn't much of a life. It is like an end game in chess, a game with a few pieces. The elements couldn't be more simple, nor the stakes higher." (Martel 241) After the shipwreck, only a few "pieces" are left: Pi, Richard Parker, and the animals. The animals all made mistakes and are now dead. Pi carefully plotted out each of his moves and is thus surviving. Life on a lifeboat is very simple as there are few distractions. This allows Pi to grow closer with his faith. In many religions, stripping down to the necessities is a must to communicate with God. Without any distractions, Pi needs his faith to keep his spirits up.
Chapter 79
Pi takes notice of all the sharks around him and even catches a few. The first one he caught tussled with Richard Parker, resulting in injured paws. From that point on, Pi took care of the killing by stabbing them through the eye.
Again, a sign of drifting away form humanity.
Chapter 80
A dorado jumps on the boat. Richard Parker takes notice and is about to attack Pi over it. Pi maintains eye contact and Richard Parker cowers. Pi now feels comfortable as the alpha on the boat.
"Thanks be to you, Jesus-Matsya" (Martel 246) again shows how Pi thanks the gods for everything good.
Chapter 81
Pi looks back on how remarkable his survival was. He speculates Richard Parker relied on him because he was a zoo animal and knew Pi was the one bringing him food and water.
Again, the theme of the zoo pops up again.
Chapter 82
Pi struggles with the amount of fresh water and food that is available to him. He dilutes Richard Parker's water with salt water to save water. He ends up giving most of the food to Richard Parker, but tries to eat as quickly as he can before the tiger can get to it.
Pi recognizes he has slipped into animal territory by the way he eats.
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