How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
[Pi:] "The arrogance of you big-city folk! You grant your metropolises all the animals of Eden, buy you deny my hamlet the merest Bengal tiger!"
[Mr. Okamoto:] "Mr. Patel, please calm down."
[Pi:] "If you stumble at mere believability, what are you living for? Isn't love hard to believe?"
[Mr. Okamoto:] "Mr. Patel – "
[Pi:] "Don't you bully me with your politeness! Love is hard to believe, ask any lover. Life is hard to believe, ask any scientist. God is hard to believe, ask any believer. What is your problem with hard to believe?" (3.99.109-113)
Pi loves to argue with Mr. Okamoto and Mr. Chiba (well, mainly with Mr. Okamoto). Mr. Okamoto and Mr. Chiba doubt Pi's story, which really insults Pi. In response, Pi asserts one of the guiding principles of his life. The most beautiful and important experiences are "hard to believe," but that doesn't mean they're illusions. Love and God are hard to believe. The existence of human beings also seems like a miracle. Whether or not Mr. Okamoto and Mr. Chiba agree with the rest of what Pi says, Pi's own existence – at this point – is a miracle.