Culture

According to protagonist Ishmael's definition, "culture" is a people enacting (making real) a story ("a scenario interrelating man, the world, and the gods").

The Darryl Hicks Carnival

An old-fashioned freak show, the Darryl Hicks Carnival acquires the protagonist, Ishmael, after he is evicted from his apartment. The narrator tracks the carnival northward to Plymouth, where he finds Ishmael being verbally tormented by children and reticent to talk. Eventually Ishmael agrees to finish the lessons from his barred cage, but is in bad physical shape by the time they finish. As the narrator schemes how to rescue his gorilla mentor, Ishmael dies of pneumonia. The Carnival packs up and moves on to its next venue and the narrator finds a few mementos in the trash the Carnival leaves behind.

Enacting

According to protagonist Ishmael's definition, "enacting" is the way whereby a story ("a scenario interrelating man, the world...