Paperback, 263 pages
English language
Published Nov. 12, 1995 by Bantam/Turner Book.
Ishmael is a 1992 philosophical novel by Daniel Quinn. The novel examines the hidden cultural biases driving modern civilization and explores themes of ethics, sustainability, and global catastrophe. Largely framed as a Socratic conversation between two characters, Ishmael aims to expose that several widely accepted assumptions of modern society, such as human supremacy, are actually cultural myths that produce catastrophic consequences for humankind and the environment. The novel was awarded the $500,000 Turner Tomorrow Fellowship Award in 1991, a year before its formal publication.Ishmael is part of a loose trilogy that includes a 1996 spiritual sequel, The Story of B, and a 1997 "sidequel," My Ishmael. Quinn also details how he arrived at the ideas behind Ishmael in his 1994 autobiography, Providence: The Story of a Fifty-Year Vision Quest. Yet another related book is Quinn's 1999 short treatise, Beyond Civilization.
Wow... I mean, it's essentially an essay surrounded by quotation marks and the words "Ishmael said", but oh, what an essay!
Really forces you to confront some difficult and rewarding to answer questions about culture and civilized society.
"Must read" for anyone dabbling in anarchist or leftist theory, but probably quite enjoyable for folx not doing so.
A reread from long ago -- Three or four people I passed while reading this on the way to work were compelled to say, "Oh that is such a good book!" which is always a good sign. It does present an important perspective on the way cultures all over the world place themselves in the universe, and it's told in that hungry sort of way that makes you think the world could easily be different -- or be made different. However, just like many rereads from high school, it proves flimsy and inconsistent when you actually poke at it. Where I once found the main character's open-mindedness, acceptance of new information, and eagerness to learn compelling, watching him utterly fail to question some pretty egregious self-contradictory statements from the teacher recast him in my mind as a lifeless puppet who is only there to laud and showcase the author's point …
A reread from long ago -- Three or four people I passed while reading this on the way to work were compelled to say, "Oh that is such a good book!" which is always a good sign. It does present an important perspective on the way cultures all over the world place themselves in the universe, and it's told in that hungry sort of way that makes you think the world could easily be different -- or be made different. However, just like many rereads from high school, it proves flimsy and inconsistent when you actually poke at it. Where I once found the main character's open-mindedness, acceptance of new information, and eagerness to learn compelling, watching him utterly fail to question some pretty egregious self-contradictory statements from the teacher recast him in my mind as a lifeless puppet who is only there to laud and showcase the author's point of view. After that point I started to see opportunity after opportunity for him to ask good questions or develop as a character; few are taken; I was disappointed.
Required reading for adolescents. Full credit for igniting the sparks of revolution. Double points for wishing you could smack the main character.
