Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
 Book cover of Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind | |
| Author | Yuval Harari |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | History, Human evolution |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | Harper |
Publication date | 2014 |
| ISBN | 978-0062316097 |
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind is a book by Yuval Harari first published in Hebrew in Israel in 2011,[1] and in English in 2014.[2][3] Harari cites Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel as one of the greatest inspirations for the book by showing that it was possible to "ask very big questions and answer them scientifically".[4]
Content
The book surveys the history of humankind from the evolution of archaic human species in the Stone Age up to the twenty-first century. Its main argument is that Homo sapiens dominates the world because it is the only animal that can cooperate flexibly in large numbers. Besides, the author claims that prehistoric sapiens may have committed a massive genocide, leading other homo species such as the Neanderthals into extinction. The book further argues that Homo sapiens can cooperate flexibly in large numbers, because it has a unique ability to believe in things existing purely in its own imagination, such as gods, nations, money and human rights. The author claims that all large scale human cooperation systems – including religions, political structures, trade networks and legal institutions – are ultimately based on fiction.[5]
Other salient arguments of the book are that money is a system of mutual trust; that capitalism is a religion rather than only an economic theory;that agricultural revolution started as a promise of luxury but ended as a trap that made people’s life worse; that empire has been the most successful political system of the last 2,000 years; that money, empires and religions are the powers that are unifying the world; that the treatment of domesticated animals is among the worst crimes in history; that people today are not significantly happier than in past eras;[6] and that humans are currently in the process of upgrading themselves into gods.
Reception
Translated into more than 30 languages, the book won the National Library of China's Wenjin Book Award for 2015.[7]
References
- ↑ Harari, Yuval Noah; Vintage (2014). Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. ISBN 9780099590088.
- ↑ Strawson, Galen (11 September 2014). "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
- ↑ Payne, Tom (26 September 2014). "Sapiens: a Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, review: 'urgent questions'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
- ↑ Kennedy, Paul (2015-01-12). "Sapiens". Ideas: with Paul Kennedy (CBC Radio 1).
- ↑ short overview
- ↑ Were we happier in the stone age?, The Guardian, 2014 sep 05
- ↑ China Book Award, CCTV News, April 23, 2015