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Science Fiction & Fantasy |
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Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit
written by Daniel Quinn
Studio : Bantam
by Bantam
Release Date : 1995-05-01
Publisher : Bantam
Released : 1995-07-01
Availability : Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Number of Items : 1
EAN : 9780553375404
Avg. Customer Rating: (based on 861 reviews)
List Price : $18.00
Our Price : $6.80
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Product Description |
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The narrator of this extraordinary tale is a man in search for truth. He answers an ad in a local newspaper from a teacher looking for serious pupils, only to find himself alone in an abandoned office with a full-grown gorilla who is nibbling delicately on a slender branch. "You are the teacher?" he asks incredulously. "I am the teacher," the gorilla replies. Ishmael is a creature of immense wisdom and he has a story to tell, one that no other human being has ever heard. It is a story that extends backward and forward over the lifespan of the earth from the birth of time to a future there is still time save. Like all great teachers, Ishmael refuses to make the lesson easy; he demands the final illumination to come from within ourselves. Is it man's destiny to rule the world? Or is it a higher destiny possible for him-- one more wonderful than he has ever imagined? |
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Great book! |
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After I read this book, I bought it for all my friends for Christmas. Definately a book you want to pass along. Powerful message. |
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Ishmael: An Adventure Of The Mind And Spirit |
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn *****
Ishmael is a stunning narrative on the way things came to be. A story of awareness and philosophy; the way things are and the way things could be. A wonderfully heart-warming, and heart-wrenching tale of acceptance and tolerance.
Ishmael is a Gorilla, who can communicate with humans. Those who want to communicate with him anyway. Sounds a but Peter Pan I know but it really isn't. After Ismael places an add in the paper looking for "A willing student who wants to save the world" he meets his sixth subject. As Ishmael tells his theory of how things came to be the way things are in the world he divides the world into to groups, the takers and the leavers. Telling who each is would ruin the book. The ending is both uplifting and tyrannical making it among the strongest endings in literature.
The story is easy to follow along with despite it's complicated subject matter. Ishmael is never dull and always an interesting read, and one I will soon make mandatory reading for my class. |
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Flawed in so many ways |
Being told to read Ishmael, I was very excited in understanding the "life changing" aspects of it. However, as I read further, I realized that this was simply an insult to my intelligence. Before I get into the fundamental flaws, I shall note that the writing of this book is horrendous. The imagery is beyond dreadful and the main character is one of the least entertaining characters there is. Quinn many times references books that he is read simply to drop name. Furthermore, there are so many flaws with Daniel Quinn's book that it is almost a joke:
1. The most common problem is the "Noble Savage" myth. The idea that tribal life is better off than regular civilization is a wrong. The emergence of most of the technological and philosophical understandings of the world are a direct result of the increase in population. The time allowed when not hunting allowed for the innovation needed to develop many of the tools that Daniel Quinn(who is a hypocrite) to spread his message.
2. The timeline for the Neolithic Revolution is put at 10,000 years ago when the more correct definition is 12,000-13000 years ago. Although, I will admit this is a small flaw.
3. Quinn claims there is a a Law of Limited Competition stated as this:"You may compete to the full extent of your capabilities, but you may not hunt down your competitors or destroy their food or deny them access to food." However, he fails to recognize chimpanzees that many times deny competition to their own as well as others. He also fails to realize the symbiotic/agricultural of ants.
4. Quinn biggest flaw is his idea that starvation of one species is better than others. He claims that humans should die off in order to allow for the other species that humans rely on to flourish. The idea that the deaths of humans is somehow better than the deaths of other animals is fundamentally wrong with his premise that all species are the same and needed for diversification.
5. Quinn seems to forget the evolutionary aspects of competition in nature. He believes that the extinction of other animals by humans is wrong and that "Mother Culture" prevents this by not denying other animals foods. However, "Mother Culture" is responsible for a GREAT number of more extinctions than humans.
6. Quinn believes that no animals stores more than it needs. He brings the example of bees. However, he is wrong. Bees frequently store more than they need for the same reason that humans do in that they will have an increase in population supply.
7. Quinn claims often that the problem with third world countries food production is that first world countries supply the majority of food to third world countries. However, first world countries are the biggest importer of foods. |
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Life Changing |
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Quite possible one of the best books you will evere read. You'll never look at anything the same way again. |
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Thought Provoking |
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Unexpected and enlightening! At times a little difficult to follow in the back and forth exchange, but easily remedied. It kept my attention to the end. |
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