In Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, Mother Culture is the embodiment of the undisputed influences to which man is accustomed to living. His story tells the Takers that they were destined to lead the world to heaven; however, exactly the opposite happened. Due to Mother Culture's prejudices against the Takers, the world has fallen into a continuing downfall that cannot be stopped. Mother Culture's favorable view of the Takers also leads to their arrogance and the irony of their story. Mother Culture's story shows the irony of the Takers' failed attempt to create paradise. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay As a perpetuator of Taker culture, Mother Culture continually glorifies the flawed lifestyle founded on ignorance and conceit. Ironically, most Taker society is unaware of Mother Culture's existence, and so Ishmael enlightens the narrator as to who Mother Culture is. “Mother Culture teaches you that this is how it must be” (37). Mother Culture is essentially a guru to the Takers and the backbone of their lives. Teach the Takers who they are and what they should be. “With the exception of a few thousand savages scattered here and there, all the peoples of the earth are now enacting this story” (37). Although Mother Culture has stories for both Takers and Leavers, she believes that all of humanity should follow the Takers' story. He views less civilized beings as savages, which creates arrogance and is the basis for the global downfall the Takers are beginning. Mother Culture profoundly influences the Taker lifestyle, deifying the very real flaws that Takers display. The history of Mother Culture's paradise creates a harmful arrogance in the Taker lifestyle. Ishmael says, reiterating the Narrator's belief: "The world was created for man to conquer and rule, and under human rule it was to become a paradise" (82). The pedestal on which the Takers are placed creates arrogance in their way of life. The Takers believe they are the prophesied rulers of the world and that it belongs entirely to them; This leads to a selfish mindset that is largely responsible for their distorted perception of the overall history of Mother Culture. The arrogance of the Takers, fueled by Mother Culture, is not only harmful to the Earth, but it is harmful to the Takers' ability to reverse the damage they have done. Mother Culture's construction of Taker history has created their disastrous pride. The Takers' lifestyle has ironically led them to believe they are always right, when in reality they couldn't be more wrong. “The story the Takers have enacted here for the past ten thousand years is not only disastrous for humanity and the world, it is fundamentally unhealthy and unsatisfying…” (147). Takers believe that their actions are beneficial to all of the world, especially themselves, because all they see is the short-term benefit their actions have on their kind. In reality, the Takers' actions are subjecting the world to a slow death through power-hungry ways of living, “...It's a. megalomaniac fantasy, and its implementation has given the Takers a culture full of greed, cruelty, mental illness, crime, and drug addiction” (147) The Takers see 'personal benefit' instead of destruction over all else and l Ignorant obsession with power leads them to continue their dangerous lifestyle. The story of Mother Culture's Taker culture had a horribly ironic outcome. They have pushed the world into a slow and steady decline. As Ishmael tells the narrator, “You are prisoners of a system of civilization that more or less.