In Life of Pie, Mantel uses the coalition between a boy and an untamed tiger to portray the unification of oxymoronic characters. Similarly, in How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Thomas C. Foster explains the impact communion have have on the relationships between characters throughout a story.

Communion is displayed throughout Life of Pi alongside the symbolic inference Foster claims. Piscine, the protagonist, shares a meal with his animal companion, Richard Parker. While in the ocean, Pi abandons his vegetarianism in order to catch and eat a part of a fish, using the other parts to tame Richard Parker. The allocation of meals between Pi and Richard Parker sparks a friendly connection between man and a beastly figure. Richard Parker becomes more dependable and comfortable with Pi, while Pi gets a friend and responsibility while stranded in the ocean. Foster thinks similarly, as in How To Read Literature Like a Professor it states,”Next to our mortality, which comes to great and small equally, all the differences in our lives are mere surface details,” (14). The quote connects to Life of Pi in the sense that Pi and Richard Parker can put aside their little differences and genuinely accompany and trust one another. This example from Life of Pi reconnects to Foster’s belief that communion can create strong bonds between characters through the ignorance of small differences.