Final answer:
Ishmael's instruction to share knowledge reflects the power of disseminating ideas, which can lead to cultural or societal shifts and embodies the responsibility of educated individuals to spread their understanding.
Step-by-step explanation:
The significance of Ishmael's instruction for the narrator to share what he has learned with 100 people is a metaphor for the dissemination of knowledge and ideas through society. This expectation illustrates how a single person's understanding can influence many others, potentially leading to widespread cultural or societal shifts. The concept represents the exponential power of sharing information and reflects on the responsibility of knowledge bearers to educate and inspire change. The theme can be connected to various contexts whether it be religious where prophets like Muhammad spread their teachings to create global religions, or in literary works, such as in Mark Twain's narrative, where personal experiences convey universal lessons. This core idea is also mirrored in the historical accounts of Islamic scholarship, where advancements in areas such as mathematics, exemplified by the word algebra, were widely distributed from the Islamic scholars in cosmopolitan cities.