4 ms·
Sapiens is a very preachy, low-on-citations work... the Goodreads reviews are interestingly divided ("Dude it changed my whole world!" to "This is not a serious
by orthoganol 9y ago
Sapiens is a very preachy, low-on-citations work... the Goodreads reviews are interestingly divided ("Dude it changed my whole world!" to "This is not a serious work."), but the early sections on pre historical humans are still interesting to read, and seemed mostly correct from what I remember from
my college anthropology class.
- socratees 9y agoMy opinion of Sapiens is the same as well - very broad strokes. I feel Sapiens is heavily promoted because of ease in which the content flows? - maybe that's the selling point of the book?
- GuiA 9y agoAny recommendations for a book about the same subject matter, but more on the academic side?
- gradys 9y agoWhy the West Rules for Now - broad coverage of human history, starting with pre-human hominids. Loosely guided by looking for an account of why in 20th century so much power was concentrated in the West compared to the East, but that guiding question only comes up occasionally. It's mostly a plain history book. I've also heard Our Kind recommended for this kind of thing, but I haven't read it myself.
- markdog12 9y agoI read Our Kind over a decade ago, and thought it was a very good book at the time, but its central thesis, that culture dominates biology, is overstated. I haven't read Why the West Rules for Now, but just looking at its wiki page, it looks to be a complete rehash of Guns, Germs and Steel? The title made me think of The West and the Rest, excellent book: https://www.amazon.ca/Civilization-West-Rest-Niall-Ferguson/dp/0143122061 https://www.amazon.ca/Civilization-West-Rest-Niall-Ferguson/...
- axplusb 9y agoGuns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond offers an interesting and academically quite solid perspective.
- markdog12 9y agoIt was an interesting book, lots of good points that contributed to the west's success. But, it's certainly not without its critics. He gives almost no credit to human agency. https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAnthropology/comments/1rzm07/what_are_some_of_the_main_anthropological/ https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAnthropology/comments/1rzm07/wha...
- TeMPOraL 9y agoInteresting discussion there, thanks for linking! RE "He gives almost no credit to human agency", I wonder what's the current state of that discussion. My current belief (as always, subject to change) is in technological determinism - i.e. available technology level shapes the "parameter space" of social and economical structures, and individual agency is a secondary factor. This seems to match my knowledge of history and history of science, as well as observations of current social dynamics. I'm not a scholar in the area though, so I don't know what's the best criticism of that view.
- MrsPeaches 9y agoHighly recommend, Ideas: A History by Peter Watson. Has a little less about historical events and more on the ideas that shaped humanity. The part on early human development is also fascinating. https://www.amazon.com/d/Books/Ideas-History-Peter-Watson/0753820897/ https://www.amazon.com/d/Books/Ideas-History-Peter-Watson/07...
- markdog12 9y ago> Sapiens is a very preachy Agreed, I also liked most of the book, but some chapters it seemed like the author was pushing a political agenda.