what is the taker story ishmael

Ishmael

explains that Takers believe that they have a special knowledge of how to rule the world. They also believe that the Leavers do not have this knowledge—this is precisely why they don’t rule the world. The story that the Takers tell themselves unites Takers, Leavers, and, most importantly of all, gods.

Full Answer

What is the analogy of Ishmael?

What are the two groups of people in Ishmael?

What are the takers in human history?

What is taker activity?

Why are we making the Middle East rich?

Is the Leaver Life Possible Anymore?

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What is the premise of the Taker story?

The premise of the Taker story is the world belongs to man.

What is the knowledge that allows the takers to rule the world Ishmael?

Ishmael's version of why the fruit was forbidden to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is: eating the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil provides gods with the knowledge of who shall live and who shall die—knowledge which they need to rule the world. The fruit nourishes only the gods, though.

What is the point of Ishmael's story of the flight of civilization?

The narrator explains that Mother Culture would suggest that humans are above any law that applies to the rest of life on earth. Ishmael sets out to show how, regardless of what Mother Culture says, the law of living applies, and that he'll use the analogy of gravity and flight to explain.

Who are the takers and the leavers?

The premise of the book is that there are two kinds of people in the world: Takers and Leavers. Leavers represent man before the agricultural revolution, for the most part, although there are still some Leavers in the world today. Takers represent those who change the earth for their purposes.

How did man become man according to Ishmael?

The narrator suggests that man became man by evolving from older life forms: Homo erectus, homo habilis, etc. Because they live in the hands of the gods, Leavers are subject to the effects of evolution, like natural selection and competition for finite resources.

What prevents people from releasing the world from its cage Ishmael?

Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person. 26 What prevents them from releasing the world from captivity? They're unable to find (SEE) the bars of the cage.

What are two laws that people should follow to live Ishmael?

He says the three basic rules are 1) do not exterminate your competition for food; 2) do not destroy your competitors' food supply in order to grow your own; and 3) do not deny access to food to others. Ishmael approves of the narrator's rules and asks what they promote.

How does Ishmael suggest that we must change our civilization and culture?

Thus, Ishmael and the narrator are not only representative of an allegorical model of learning (similar to Socrates and his pupils, for instance) but are also a model for cultural change, for, as Ishmael suggests to the narrator, the only way to change people's actions is to start with their minds.

How does Ishmael define culture?

The third term he defines is "culture," which is a group of people enacting a story. Ishmael says that Mother Culture concludes that the Leavers' story is the first chapter of humankind's development and the Takers are the second chapter, but he indicates they are competing stories.

What are Takers and Leavers in Ishmael?

Unlike "Leaver" societies, which sustained themselves and the natural world for thousands of years, our "Taker" society will run out of things to kill and will die. Quinn likens the agricultural revolution to humans' first attempts at flight.

What is the difference between who Takers and Leavers think the world was made for?

The most fundamental difference between Takers and Leavers is that Takers believe that the world was made for them and Leavers believe themselves to belong to the world.

What should I read after Ishmael?

If you like IshmaelIshmael. Quinn, Daniel. Book, 1992. ... The Culture of Make Believe. Jensen, Derrick, 1960- Book, 2002. ... Ecotopia. the Notebooks and Reports of William Weston. Callenbach, Ernest. ... The Hungry Tide. Ghosh, Amitav. Book, 2005. ... Siddhartha. An Indian Tale. Hesse, Hermann, 1877-1962. ... Turtle Moon. Hoffman, Alice. Book, 1997.

What is the difference between what the leavers and the takers pass on to their offspring?

The narrator and Ishmael dig a little deeper to try to ascertain the different types of information Taker and Leaver cultures transmit to new generations. Taker cultures pass down to each generation ways to better produce things; Leaver cultures pass down ways to live well for a particular culture.

How does Ishmael suggest that we must change our civilization and culture?

Thus, Ishmael and the narrator are not only representative of an allegorical model of learning (similar to Socrates and his pupils, for instance) but are also a model for cultural change, for, as Ishmael suggests to the narrator, the only way to change people's actions is to start with their minds.

How does Ishmael interpret the story of Cain and Abel?

According to Ishmael, Cain is representative of Takers and Abel is representative of Leavers. Leavers used this allegory to explain the spread of Taker culture during the Agricultural Revolution.

How does Ishmael define culture?

The third term he defines is "culture," which is a group of people enacting a story. Ishmael says that Mother Culture concludes that the Leavers' story is the first chapter of humankind's development and the Takers are the second chapter, but he indicates they are competing stories.

The Takers And The Leavers By Daniel Quinn - 890 Words | Bartleby

Ishmael: Paradigms of Yesterday "Come with me if you want to live," was all that Arnold Schwarzenegger said in his movie Terminator 2: Judgement Day, and after reading Daniel Quinn's masterpiece Ishmael, one might well receive the impression Quinn echoes such sentiments.

According to Ishmael, Who are the takers, What is mother culture, and ...

The Takers are civilized people. Mother Culture is a personified concept that Ishmael uses to explain how the Takers perpetually enact the story that claims man is the apex of evolution and rulers of the world.

Lessons From The Novel "Ishmael" By Daniel Quinn

"Ishmael" is a novel by Daniel Quinn, which deeply explores the cause and effects of human ambition and expansionism. Quinn strives to answer the question of what makes humans so different from all the other animals which inhabit the Earth.

Leavers and Takers | Ray C. Anderson Foundation

In his narrative, Quinn draws a distinction between two very general human cultural traditions, which he calls the Leavers and the Takers. The Leavers are essentially the indigenous humans of our planet, who now make up a tiny percentage of the global human population, but who once, many thousands of years ago, comprised all of humanity.

Ishmael Chapter 8 Summary & Analysis | LitCharts

In Ishmael ’s room the narrator dives into explaining the law of life. As an outline, he proposes that Takers do four things that no other life forms do. The first such thing is to exterminate competitors. Whereas animals never hunt each other to extinction—only killing what they need to survive—Takers will often kill simply to kill.

What was the original purpose of the story in the book of Ishmael?

About 2,000 years ago, he says, the Takers began to believe in a story. This story had been told by the Leavers for many thousands of years beforehand—in fact, the original purpose of the story was to explain why the Takers left the Leavers behind.

How did Ishmael begin his lessons?

Ishmael begins the lessons by drawing a simple diagram. The diagram shows the timeline of human history, beginning three million years ago. For the Leavers, life is virtually the same now as it was in the past. For the Takers, however, the Agricultural Revolution, which occurred approximately 10,000 years ago, changed the quality of life enormously. There is no specific end to the Agricultural Revolution, Ishmael concludes. It’s still spreading all over the world.

Why don't the Takers rule the world?

Ishmael explains that Takers believe that they have a special knowledge of how to rule the world. They also believe that the Leavers do not have this knowledge —this is precisely why they don’t rule the world. The story that the Takers tell themselves unites Takers, Leavers, and, most importantly of all, gods.

What does the narrator notice when he sits down near Ishmael?

As he sits down near Ishmael, the narrator feels a little wary, but he notices that Ishmael seems to look at him in exactly the same way as before. As the narrator proceeds with his education, he gets closer and closer to Ishmael, both literally and metaphorically.

Why did Cain kill Abel?

Because God preferred Abel’s offering, Cain was jealous. Thus, he killed Abel, his own brother.

What did Ishmael tell Adam to eat from?

With this in mind, they decided to tell Adam not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Ishmael argues that the Tree of Knowledge is a kind of placebo—by eating from it, Adam thinks he has gained wisdom, when in reality, the tree gives no wisdom of its own, but only the illusion of wisdom. Active Themes.

What does Ishmael believe about the agricultural revolution?

Ishmael believes that the Agricultural Revolution is constantly being enacted throughout the world. This suggests a kind of stasis in the world of the Takers—no true progress is being made, but only a continuous repetition of the same major breakthrough. Active Themes. Ishmael moves on with the lesson.

How does Ishmael explain the Takers and Leavers story?

To hep understand how Takers pass along their story, Ishmael introduces a figure named Mother Culture, who he insists reinforces the story through every facet of Taker society. Takers assume that humans are the pinnacles of evolution, and that the world was made for man. This belief has led to catastrophic results, yet the Taker story allows man to blame to gods. They believe the gods wishes man to be in control, and so if man is fundamentally flawed, then the gods are responsible for engendering the situation. Ishmael refuses to accept this premise, saying that the only thing wrong with humans is that the story that they insist on enacting puts them at odds with the world.

What is the topic of the book Ishmael?

Ishmael claims that the topic of his teachings is “captivity” (33-34). Having spent the majority of his life in some form of captivity, Ishmael has been able to evaluate the subject to learn that humanity is also living under a form of captivity.

What happens to Ishmael in the carnival?

When he returns to the office, he finds that Ishmael has been removed, his patroness having passed away. After some investigation, the narrator finds Ishmael in a traveling carnival, and visits him to continue their conversations. Though Ishmael seems sickly, he is eventually willing to continue.

How does Ishmael communicate with the narrator?

Communicating with him in this fashion, the narrator learns Ishmael’s background - in which the gorilla was stolen from the wild and displayed in a menagerie, then rescued by a Holocaust survivor who taught him his name and how to learn. Impressed, the narrator decides to accept his teachings, returning to Ishmael's office throughout the story.

What does the narrator say in Ishmael?

Ishmael begins when the nameless narrator finds a newspaper ad that reads: "Teacher seeks pupil. Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person" (4).

What is Ishmael's final advice to the narrator?

Ishmael's final advice to the narrator is that he must spread the world of these lessons, encourage individuals one at a time to break from the thought prison that Mother Culture's story creates. If Takers can begin to enact a different, more harmonious story, then perhaps the world will not be destroyed.

Why did the ancient Semitic herders use the story of Cain killing Abel?

Ishmael then explains how the ancient Semitic herders, who originated the tale, used the story of Cain killing Abel to symbolize the way that the agricultural Taker civilizations were destroying the Leavers in order to steal and cultivate their land. The Takers were acting as if they were gods themselves, and had the divine knowledge of who should live or die.

What does the narrator realize about Ishmael?

The narrator realizes that Ishmael is right, but can’t get excited over this fact. Ishmael is disappointed with the narrator’s lack of enthusiasm. In the second lesson, Ishmael and the narrator discuss the “middle” and “end” of the story of the Takers, as the Takers themselves see it.

What does Ishmael ask the narrator to explain?

In subsequent lessons, Ishmael asks the narrator to explain the other stories that Taker culture believes. With much prompting, the narrator realizes that his culture—understood as Western culture, or industrialized culture—believes in its right to dominate the entire world.

What is the strange quality of Taker society?

A strange quality of Taker society, he explains, is that Takers both embrace history and reject history.

What is the lesson plan of Ishmael?

As a basic lesson plan, Ishmael says that his project will be to show the narrator that human history is the history of two groups, the Takers and the Leavers, who enact two radically different stories about man, the world, and the gods.

What does Ishmael say about the narrator?

Ishmael asks the narrator if he feels like a prisoner, and the narrator answers that he does, but that he can’t put into words where this feeling comes from. Ishmael explains that the narrator is part of a culture, and as a result, he has been taught certain “stories”—explanations of the relationship between man, the world, and the gods—which are so pervasive that they’re invisible to him. Ishmael says that he will try to help the narrator understand these stories, and recognize why they’re false and misleading. As a basic lesson plan, Ishmael says that his project will be to show the narrator that human history is the history of two groups, the Takers and the Leavers, who enact two radically different stories about man, the world, and the gods. Takers, according to Ishmael, are the humans who developed agriculture and civilization—the humans who dominate the Earth to this day. Leavers (the Navajo, Bushmen, etc.), by contrast, are those who never adopt agricultural practices and ignore the supposed benefits of civilization.

What happened to Ishmael in the carnival?

When he returns to the carnival, he finds that Ishmael has died of pneumonia —the narrator hadn’t noticed that Ishmael had been getting sick. The bribee gives the narrator Ishmael’s possessions, including the poster the narrator saw when he first visited Ishmael. The narrator drives back to his home and studies the poster. He’s surprised to find that there’s another message on the back: “WITH GORILLA GONE, WILL THERE BE HOPE FOR MAN?”

What is the story of Cain and Abel about?

Ishmael goes on to also interpret the story of Cain and Abel as being about Takers and Leavers. The narrator gets a visit from his uncle, falls behind on his deadlines, and gets a tooth removed. As a result, he abandons Ishmael for a week. When he returns, he’s surprised to find that Ishmael has left his building.

What is the story of Ishmael?

Pleased, Ishmael defines the story he is about to tell as the story of “how the gods acquired the knowledge they needed to rule the world” (156). He then tells a story about a debate between the gods, over whether to send a flock of locusts to the savannah to sustain the birds and lizards.

What does Ishmael say about the Taker culture?

Ishmael expands this idea to contemporary life, noting how large families are prized in Taker culture, in imitation of what happened between Adam and Eve. To expand to our heart's content is an expression of our power over the world.

What is the point of Ishmael's interpretation of the Cain and Abel story?

Ishmael's interpretation stresses several important points. The first is that Leavers and Takers are born of the same past; the Takers merely split off. The second is that the Leavers saw a need to warn the rest of the world against the Takers, explained by the existence of the 'mark of Cain.' And finally , this perspective reminds us that agriculture is not necessarily supreme. Instead, it requires work and anxiety, which leads to the problems (like depression) Ishmael earlier stressed that Taker culture alone suffers. In other words, the Takers doomed not only the Leavers by forcing their way of life on everyone, but also made life much more difficult for themselves as well.

Why did the Semites not understand the Takers?

In response, the narrator suggests that the Semites did not understand why the Takers were so insistent on forcing their agricultural way of life on others. Their wanton murderous aggression must have suggested to the Semites that these Takers believed they were equal to the gods, killing as they pleased. Further, the pressures of working so hard to produce agriculture - as opposed to living off of the Earth's natural bounty - suggested to the Semites that they had been punished for living this way. This explains why Adam is expelled from the garden. Ishmael is pleased by the narrator’s explanation.

Why did the stories about the Fall of Adam and the slaughter of Abel survive?

Ishmael believes that the stories about the Fall of Adam and the slaughter of Abel survived because the Takers never entirely overran the Semites.

Why does Ishmael believe the story was devised by the Leavers?

Ishmael reasons that the Takers would never have forbidden Adam the knowledge of good and evil, but would have had the gods grant it to him. The story would be of man's ascent, not his fall.

What do the Takers believe?

Before identifying the story, Ishmael notes that Takers believe they they possess the most fundamental knowledge of all, knowledge indispensable to those who want to rule the world. Accordingly, the Takers believe that the Leavers lack this “knowledge” (155).

What is the book Ishmael about?

Daniel Quinn's philosophical novel Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit opens with the narrator reading the newspaper and finding himself both disgruntled and intrigued by a personal advertisement.

What is the purpose of Ishmael and the narrator?

Ishmael and the narrator begin a series of meetings wherein Ishmael helps the narrator understand his cultural history.

What is the main myth of Ishmael?

One of the main myths he discusses is the story of Adam and Eve. Ishmael helps the narrator see that while Taker culture, through the dominance of Christianity, sees this myth as explaining its own creation, historically this myth was used by Leaver cultures to explain the expansion of Taker cultures.

What does Ishmael help the narrator see?

Ishmael helps the narrator see that while it may seem that Taker culture has outwitted the ecological rules that govern other life-forms, in many ways Taker culture is in freefall, doomed to crash once it has depleted the planet of its biological and environmental resources.

What are the two groups that Ishmael divided humans into?

Ishmael divides humans into two groups: Leavers and Takers. Takers are members of the dominant culture, which sees humans as rulers of the world, whose destiny is to grow without check and dominate first the planet, then the universe, through technological innovations.

What happened to Ishmael when he finally returns to his office?

When he finally returns to Ishmael's office, Ishmael is nowhere to be found. He tracks Ishmael down to a traveling carnival and visits him at night, so they can finish their lessons. The narrator comes up with a plan to rescue Ishmael from the circus by buying him from the circus's owner.

How did Ishmael die?

He tracks Ishmael down to a traveling carnival and visits him at night, so they can finish their lessons. The narrator comes up with a plan to rescue Ishmael from the circus by buying him from the circus's owner. By the time he gets the cash together, however, Ishmael has died from pneumonia. The narrator gathers up a few of Ishmael's remaining belongings and starts contemplating how he'll fulfill Ishmael's command to become a teacher himself and help other people see the problems with Taker culture and find a new way to live in balance with other life on the planet.

How does Ishmael use storytelling?

Second, the function of storytelling continues to expand. So far, storytelling has been used as a teaching tool by Ishmael and as a term for the way a culture understands itself. For instance, recall that Ishmael first began explaining Taker culture by trying to get the narrator to tell the Takers' creation myth (i.e., the story of the Big Bang and evolution resulting in humankind). Now, Ishmael also shows the narrator that cultures can use story to explain other cultures' behaviors. Both the story of The Fall and Cain and Abel were tools Semites used to explain the expansion of agriculture and the people who threatened their way of life.

What does the takers appropriation of the story of the Fall and Cain and Abel mean?

Furthermore, the Takers' appropriation of this story in the Bible suggests that another part of Taker culture is appropriating Leaver culture in order to dominate it. By taking the stories of The Fall and Cain and Abel for their own, the Takers have obscured the point of these stories and have made Leaver culture even more invisible and diminished when compared with Taker culture.

What did the story of the Fall and Cain and Abel show the narrator?

Both the story of The Fall and Cain and Abel were tools Semites used to explain the expansion of agriculture and the people who threatened their way of life.

Why do Cain and Abel kill the Leavers?

In the story of Cain and Abel, Cain represents the Takers who must kill the Leavers (Abel) in order to expand agricultural production. Once again, Ishmael has brought the narrator's attention to a story that, while familiar, makes more sense when looked at from the Leaver perspective. Thus, Cain and Abel aren't actual brothers, ...

What is the relationship between Cain and Abel?

In the Bible story, Cain and Abel are brothers ; Cain's a farmer and Abel's a herder. Cain's jealousy of Abel eventually induces him to murder Abel. By alluding to this story, Ishmael adds to the narrator's understanding of Taker and Leaver culture and the divide between the two.

Why did the Leavers adopt a tale that once was used to show their shortcomings as one of their own creation?

Ishmael explains that because the Leavers didn't fully die out or become completely assimilated into Taker culture, the Takers, through the spread of Christianity, came to adopt a tale that once was used to show their shortcomings as one of their own creation myths.

Why did Leavers use this allegory?

Leavers used this allegory to explain the spread of Taker culture during the Agricultural Revolution. Recall that earlier in Part 9, Ishmael alluded to and expanded on the story of The Fall.

Where was Ishmael captured?

He was captured from his mother when he was young, by two famous animal collectors, who sold him to a zoo in the Northeast United States. He explains how, at the zoo, captive animals have a sense of living an unnatural life. Eventually, Ishmael was sold to a traveling menagerie. Unlike the zoo visitors, who talked amongst themselves while studying him, menagerie visitors spoke directly to him. He eventually intuited through their repetition that they were calling him "Goliath"

What is the meaning of man's story?

man and nature enact two different stories. man's story is the meaning of the world, divine intentions and human destiny. this story is what humans are held captive by and also as it explains how things came to be.

What does "live" mean in a story?

means to live so as to make the story a reality.

Is the Taker culture in freefall?

Taker culture is in freefall, doomed to crash once it has depleted the planet of its biological and environmental resources.

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Is this analogy flawed? To refer to the Taker story as a falling object destined to hit the ground is, in my opinion, a little inappropriate, or at least suspect.

The Taker Thunderbolt

Is this analogy flawed? To refer to the Taker story as a falling object destined to hit the ground is, in my opinion, a little inappropriate, or at least suspect.

What is the analogy of Ishmael?

Ishmael spend most of his life in captivity, which he uses as an analogy for how modern man is captive in our society too. We are no longer self sufficient. We do not know the skills that kept our forefathers alive. We depend on the collective whole to provide for us. And this really isn’t news to most of us. It’s not that we are unaware. It’s just that the majority of us simply don’t think about it. In fact the “normal” person these days:

What are the two groups of people in Ishmael?

Much of the conversation in Ishmael is focused on the concept of Takers and Leavers, dividing the human population into two categories: those who live in harmony with nature, and those who dominate it. The first group — those who live in harmony with nature — is referred to as Leavers because they leave the world as it is, and are content to live as a part of it. They don’t attempt to control their destiny any more than the monkey, or the wolf, or the raccoon tries to control theirs. The second group is referred to as Takers because they take what they want from the world, regardless of consequence. They slaughter mindlessly, and squander natural resources. They act as gods, above all the Earth and the creatures that live upon it.

What are the takers in human history?

So, to simplify, let’s look at it this way; Takers are what we consider “civilized man.” (That’s us. We’ve been civilized.) Leavers are the hunter gatherer cultures that we consider “primitives.” (Think Amazonian tribes.) Early in human history, before man learned to farm, all people were Leavers. Today, Leavers are almost extinct and our overpopulated planet is swarming with Takers. But how and where did the change begin? It all started in the Fertile Crescent.

What is taker activity?

People who have practiced (or relied upon) food and supplies distribution. People who have engaged in constant and unchecked population increases . All of that is Taker activity.

Why are we making the Middle East rich?

We could stop using fossil fuels. Right now we are making the Middle East rich by buying their oil because it is convenient and easy. We need to rebuild our electrical grid so that it is modern, and can utilize a solar infrastructure. Then we need to work hard to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels in favor of renewable energy technology.

Is the Leaver Life Possible Anymore?

It might be possible in remote parts of Africa, Alaska, outback Australia, or the Amazon jungle. But our world is just not set up for that way of life anymore. There are too many people to feed. We NEED agriculture to survive. Without it, our planet’s natural food resources would be stripped so thoroughly that natural recovery before human extinction would be next to impossible.