Comprehension:
Read the given passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:-
An excerpt from ‘Life of Pi’
I wept like a child. It was not because I was overcome at having survived my ordeal, though I was. Nor was it the presence of my brothers and sisters, though that too was very moving. I was weeping because Richard Parker had left me so unceremoniously. What a terrible thing it is to botch a farewell. I am a person who believes in form, in the harmony of order. Where we can, we must give a meaningful shape. For example--I wonder--could you tell my jumbled story in exactly one hundred chapters, not one more, not one less? I’ll tell you, that’s one thing I hate about my nickname, the way that number runs on forever. It’s important in life to conclude things properly. Only then you can let go. Otherwise you are left with words you should have said but never did, and your heart is heavy with remorse. That bungled goodbye hurts me to this day. I wish so much that I’d had one last look at him in the lifeboat, that I’d provoked him a little, so that I was on his mind. I wish I had said to him then-- yes, I know, to a tiger, but still-- I wish I had said, “Richard Parker, it’s over. We have survived. Can you believe it? I owe you more gratitude than I can express. I couldn’t have done it without you. I would like to say it formally: Richard Parker, thank you. Thank you for saving my life. And now go where you must. You have known the confined freedom of a zoo most of your life; now you will know the free confinement of a jungle. I wish you all the best with it. Watch out for Man. He is not your friend. But I hope you remember me as a friend.”
(An excerpt from ‘Life of Pi’)
According to the passage, the narrator's pain for the 'bungled goodbye' is symbolic of the universal human tendency to:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → attach deep meaning to goodbyes
The narrator says: "It's important in life to conclude things properly. Only then you can let go." An unfinished farewell leaves "words you should have said but never did", and the heart "heavy with remorse". His lasting pain over one bungled goodbye shows how much meaning people attach to farewells.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: overthink the past relationships — Incorrect. Wrong focus: he does not brood over relationships in general; his pain is about one farewell that was not completed.
Option 2: seek validation from others even from animals — Incorrect. Misread: validation means approval or recognition from others; the narrator wanted to give thanks to Richard Parker, not to receive approval from him.
Option 4: avoid confronting difficult situations — Incorrect. Contradicted: he wishes he had faced the farewell and said everything ("I wish I had said ..."), not avoided it.