The defining characteristic of mankind are not our opposable thumbs, nor our capacity for emotions, nor our ability to speak, write, read, or do mathematics. Humanity's truly defining characteristic is its self-awareness. No other recorded animal species has this attribute. Truly, at this point self-awareness is tantamount to sentience. And as humanity is the pinnacle of life on earth, as well as the sole sentient being, self-awareness is indisputably synonymous with humanity. However, what if there were a gorilla who was not only self-aware and sentient, but wiser than the majority of humanity. What becomes humanity's defining characteristic? What, then, makes us human? Are we the pinnacle of life, the end all be all, or are we just another animal floundering along? Daniel Quinn explores these concepts in his novel Ishmael, a book about a telepathic gorilla teaching a man how to think.
Despite the ludicrous premise, Ishmael sets out to change humanity's perception on the world. Ishmael's teachings thus far revolve around the story humanity tells itself and enacts every single second of every single day. Humanity has been enacting the same story for thousands of years, since the agricultural revolution to modern day. As with all stories, humanity's own story has a beginning, middle, and an end. Modern society's story, like all societies before it, begins with a creation myth.
This sparks an interesting thought, which is also brought up in the book. What is our creation myth? The main character (who I'll refer to as the Student) himself says there is no such thing in our society, our society is based on facts not myths. However, there quite clearly is such a thing, the subjects taught in school all have our creation myth interwoven into the material. The story of humanity's creation is, of course, the big bang and evolution, these things are, for the most part, seen as fact. However, the creation myth is different, it relates to the ideas I outlined in the first paragraph, and that is that humanity is the apex of evolution. Sentience is the end all be all of life and evolution. Strange then, that evolution has not stopped there. Humanity continues to evolve, does that mean self-awareness and sentience and humanity are not the pinnacle of life? Every human being knows, from birth, that man is superior, that they are superior. How could we not? Everything tells us this. What other creature controls fire, bends metals to their will, directs electricity, rules the skies, lands, oceans, Earth in the same way as man? Shouldn't that alone be proof enough that man is the pinnacle, life's greatest achievement? Surely, man is inherently different, inherently greater, than beasts.
As the Student also describes, do you ever get the feeling that you're being lied to?
A good introduction to the philosophical questions your novel raises. I'd be interested to hear how the book raises the questions. Are they directly raised by Ishmael, or are these questions you infer as you read?
ReplyDeleteYou mention, at one point, how implausible the book is. Is it set out as a fantasy, or is the style more realistic in nature? Also, I think the phrase is "be-all end-all."
The questions are, at least so far, raised mainly by Ishmael. I would like there to be more reading in between the lines and forming your own opinions and ideas but so far it seems like a lot of the material is laid out for the reader. It may be that the author wrote himself into a corner by making Ishmael almost omni-potent or I just haven't read enough. I hope, and also suspect, it's the latter.
DeleteThe style is realistic rather than fantastical. I would say that Ishmael's existence is magical realism as his progression to this state is explained and outlined rather logically and realistically, even though the reader knows the impossibility of it. You're right, the phrase is be-all end-all but, at this point, I've been saying end-all be-all my entire life so I'm not sure I'll ever say it correctly.