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’)
Who do you think Richard Parker is in the passage?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → A wild animal
The narrator says he wishes he had spoken to Richard Parker, "yes, I know, to a tiger", and tells him that he has "known the confined freedom of a zoo" and will now know "the free confinement of a jungle". Richard Parker is a tiger, a wild animal.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: A celebrity — Incorrect. Not mentioned: nothing suggests that Richard Parker is a famous person.
Option 2: An elder brother — Incorrect. Contradicted: the narrator's "brothers and sisters" are mentioned separately, and Richard Parker is called a tiger.
Option 3: an imaginary friend — Incorrect. Contradicted: Richard Parker was in the lifeboat, saved the narrator's life and has now gone into the jungle; he is a real animal, not an imagined one.