Word: ishmael
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...literate self-titled debut of Black Star (Mos Def and Talib Kweli) is a virtual symphony of African internationalism. The group's name alludes to Marcus Garvey's back-to-Africa nationalism, and the lyrics paint a red, green and black mural stretching from Coltrane to Du Bois to Ishmael Reed to Derrick Bell. Brown Skin Lady is a love song both to a woman and to Africa itself ("I know women on the continent got it/Nigeria and Ghana, you know they got it/Tanzania, Namibia and Mozambique...
...Jerusalem, which the first Muslims called City of the Temple. Only after the Jews of Medina rejected Muhammad did he switch orientation and instruct his adherents to pray facing Mecca, whose ancient shrine, the Kabah, was thought by locals to have been built by Abraham and his son Ishmael, the father of the Arabs...
Step 1: Go with the flow. While "Call my mommy!" may seem more appropriate than "Call me Ishmael," the narrator of Herman Melville's Moby-Dick knows enough not to rock the boat. Fine, so crazy Captain Ahab, angry at a little bite from a big fish, demands that his crew abandon any and all pressing business in order "to chase that white whale on both sides of land, and over all sides of earth, till he spouts black blood." A favor for the boss is still a favor for the boss. Plus the ship comes highly recommended by Ishmael...
...Moping around feeling sorry for yourself is just a quick way to end up on the wrong side of a harpoon. After a little hard work, you'll forget your troubles and gain the kind of conditioning essential to the high-stakes (if not always high-seas) working world. Ishmael sweeps the deck, scans the loft and stays high and dry for the next 500 pages. Then, alas, Moby-Dick shows, battle ensues and all are lost save our hero himself. Call it a very hostile takeover...
Step 3: Live and learn. Ishmael stays upbeat as he drifts afloat, but it doesn't take a deconstructionist to tell you he'll stick to terra firma ASAP. Bottom line: A friendly cannibal is no substitute for a human resources professional...