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Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
Escrito por Yuval Noah Harari
Narrado por Derek Perkins
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From a renowned historian comes a groundbreaking narrative of humanity's creation and evolution—a #1 international bestseller—that explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be "human."
One hundred thousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one—homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us?
Most books about the history of humanity pursue either a historical or a biological approach, but Dr. Yuval Noah Harari breaks the mold with this highly original book that begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas.
Dr. Harari also compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become?
This provocative and insightful work is sure to spark debate and is essential for aficionados of Jared Diamond, James Gleick, Matt Ridley, Robert Wright, and Sharon Moalem.
Acciones del libro
Comenzar a escucharInformación sobre el libro
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
Escrito por Yuval Noah Harari
Narrado por Derek Perkins
Descripción
From a renowned historian comes a groundbreaking narrative of humanity's creation and evolution—a #1 international bestseller—that explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be "human."
One hundred thousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one—homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us?
Most books about the history of humanity pursue either a historical or a biological approach, but Dr. Yuval Noah Harari breaks the mold with this highly original book that begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas.
Dr. Harari also compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become?
This provocative and insightful work is sure to spark debate and is essential for aficionados of Jared Diamond, James Gleick, Matt Ridley, Robert Wright, and Sharon Moalem.
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I have to admit that I have a liking for what I call history primers, and this is one such book. While this is a book that discusses history, Harari does not seem concerned with walking over old historical sites to recover facts that others had missed. Rather, the author shows how various events have affected the development of human culture: in some cases for the worst. Throughout the book, Harari's observations and commentary raise some issues that are worth further contemplation. If you enjoyed books like "Guns, Germs and Steel" or "A Short History of Nearly Everything" then you would most likely enjoy Harari's ideas on why humans have collectively agreed to make the world the way it is.
Rating: 4Non-fiction history of where humans came from to where they are going. It was a great look into human history. The author singles out aspects of human history that he finds important. He writes really well and makes it an easy and enjoyable read. He does have strong opinions, which some people may disagree with, but I enjoyed learning about his perspective.
Rating: 5I think I picked this up because of a comparison to Jared Diamond and that could be why I expected a focus on the early years of humanity's existence. In actuality, the author spends approximately equal time on the years before and after each of three major revolutions in human thought: the agricultural, cognitive, and scientific revolutions. I was also surprised by how philosophical this book was. Instead of simply relating a factual history of humanity, the author asks tough questions, discussing the foundations of current belief systems and wondering whether or not each of the major revolutions he discusses really made people happier.
In a final surprise when I added this review to my book-tracking spreadsheet, I discovered that this was the first work of translated nonfiction I've read (yay!). I must offer some serious kudos to the author and the translator (perhaps one and the same? I can't find any translator listed) for keeping a sense of humor alive through the translation. There were many parts of this book that were quirky or funny in a way that made me smile and made this book a pleasure to read. I suspect that's something that is very hard to achieve across a language barrier. The fun facts in this book also contributed to my enjoyment and I'd recommend it to my many readers who share my love of the an interesting bit of trivia.
Despite my surprise at the philosophical tone of the book, it was largely something I enjoyed. The author made me question basic assumptions, such as whether or not capitalism should be considered a religion and whether or not the agricultural revolution was good for the individual. On occasion, I did feel as though the author went out of his way to give traditional religions a hard time. Even as someone who is not religious, the jabs at religion bothered me when they didn't contribute something useful to the book. However, overall, I felt like the author was very evenhanded in his treatment of some difficult questions. Even when I thought his personal opinion was clear, he usually gave the other side a fair shake.
This book was something completely different. Although it does share the scope of its questions with Jared Diamond's work, it strays more into the philosophical and more into the modern era. This could be a good or a bad thing, depending on the reader and their expectations. This was one of the few times when I enjoyed a book being very different from what I expected. I liked the way it made me question things that seem obvious and wasn't offended by the author's lack of reverence and willingness to dissect all aspects of our culture. If you like Jared Diamond's books, are interested in the very early history of humanity, or just want to read something thought-provoking, I'd highly recommend this. If you are religious, I'm not sure this will be your cup of tea.
This review first published at Doing Dewey.
Rating: 4In a final surprise when I added this review to my book-tracking spreadsheet, I discovered that this was the first work of translated nonfiction I've read (yay!). I must offer some serious kudos to the author and the translator (perhaps one and the same? I can't find any translator listed) for keeping a sense of humor alive through the translation. There were many parts of this book that were quirky or funny in a way that made me smile and made this book a pleasure to read. I suspect that's something that is very hard to achieve across a language barrier. The fun facts in this book also contributed to my enjoyment and I'd recommend it to my many readers who share my love of the an interesting bit of trivia.
Despite my surprise at the philosophical tone of the book, it was largely something I enjoyed. The author made me question basic assumptions, such as whether or not capitalism should be considered a religion and whether or not the agricultural revolution was good for the individual. On occasion, I did feel as though the author went out of his way to give traditional religions a hard time. Even as someone who is not religious, the jabs at religion bothered me when they didn't contribute something useful to the book. However, overall, I felt like the author was very evenhanded in his treatment of some difficult questions. Even when I thought his personal opinion was clear, he usually gave the other side a fair shake.
This book was something completely different. Although it does share the scope of its questions with Jared Diamond's work, it strays more into the philosophical and more into the modern era. This could be a good or a bad thing, depending on the reader and their expectations. This was one of the few times when I enjoyed a book being very different from what I expected. I liked the way it made me question things that seem obvious and wasn't offended by the author's lack of reverence and willingness to dissect all aspects of our culture. If you like Jared Diamond's books, are interested in the very early history of humanity, or just want to read something thought-provoking, I'd highly recommend this. If you are religious, I'm not sure this will be your cup of tea.
This review first published at Doing Dewey.
Harari talks about the history of homo sapiens, the development of our current world, and possibilities for the future.
Rating: 4This is an impressive book: big and interesting thoughts, good writing, compelling topic - but at times I felt it lack something - context? Numerous times I wanted to know more about a topic, how the recent research fitted with other views of the topic. Harari credits Jared Diamond with encouraging him to think big. But Jared Diamond, possible the very best at science writing for the general audience never tried to put ALL of his big thoughts into one volume. I think the scope of this book is so large, that it has become impossible to make the content fully manageable.But these are minor quibbles - this is an excellent book and a great read. Maybe in his later books, Harari focusses on slices of this broad canvas, and is able to bring the reader along, without leaving drowing them in information.
Rating: 4The prose is excellent and sharp, but I found his viewpoints rather pessimistic.
Rating: 4I can't quite put my finger on it but many of his arguments feel like they are based on assumptions I find questionable. Despite this found it an engaging and interesting read from Harari.
Rating: 5Author has amassed a great deal of history, facts, and speculation. He then weaves an interesting fabric explaining just about everything to do about human history/evolution. Like Chomsky, he ignores or dismisses theories and evidence that diminish the strength of his threads. Still, an entertaining read ...
Rating: 4an very interesting look a humans! it is very readable but also very thought proving worth reading
Rating: 4This is not an easy book to present or review. It dissects so many parts of human life and culture, that it would be complicated to discuss on that basis alone. And yet one comes to feel that Harari addresses history largely in the service of offering deeply-held critiques and challenges that unfold over the course of the book.Let me just mention that the hardcover first U.S. edition is an admirable physical specimen. Most notable to me is the feel of the paper. I don't know the accurate words to describe it, but it may be a premium glossy high-lustre paper that feels extremely comfortable to handle. This book fits clearly into the emerging area of historical study some call Big History. It concerns itself with the broad sweep of the human career. Not quite as broad as the view of David Christian who doesn't limit himself to the human part of the story, but broad in that Harari starts with our proto-human ancestry and concludes with a consideration of a potential trans-human future.Let's be clear: I found no original scholarship here. Harari hews to familiar if wide and inclusive intellectual terrain. He owes a great debt to people like Jared Diamond, David Christian, and numerous authors who have come before. The Cognitive Revolution, the Agricultural Revolution, civilization, modernity. Science and its overthrow of the belief that was no more to discover about the universe. The interplay between science, capital and government. And on.This is not a criticism. Harari is an articulate and forceful purveyor of ideas. Sometimes he fails to make clear the distiction between scholarship and his own opinions, but for the most part he can be forgiven; his playing fast and-loose can be frustrating (eg. the chapter on the Agricultural Revolution is titled "History's Biggest Fraud"; "having so recently been one of the underdogs of the Savannah we are full of anxieties over our position, which makes us doubly cruel and dangerous"; "the leading project of the Scientific Revolution is to give humankind eternal life"), but it often feels like quibbling in the face of the questions he raises. Or alternatively, one tends to agree but knows inside that there is less certainty in his assertions that he lets on.Harari spends a lot of time on the notion of human success being due to what he calls inter-subjective phenomena, meaning fictions we agree upon, like money or countries but unlike electrons. He wants to remind us of how much of what we take for granted about ourselves and the world -- and which has resulted in our numerical proliferation and material aggrandizement -- is in a deep sense imaginary. He emphasizes the (familiar) dark side of the Neolithic (and post-Paleolithic in general): longer hours, disease, the false lure of acquisitiveness, etc. He suggests that happiness ought to be the barometer of how we live. Are people happier now than they were before giving up the migrant hunter-gatherer life and becoming sedentary participants in civilization? (Acknowledging however that there's no going back) He is forceful in his criticisms of religion and government. His account of money, capital and banking is especially cogent. He emphasizes repeatedly our insensitivity to the emotional harm our practices have on animals. This book is meant to challenge, to be a cautionary tale. There is a dark -- but not necessarily unfair -- thread running through the text. About our potential future as powerful beings: "Is there anything more dangerous than dissatisfied and irresponsible gods who don't know what they want?"; and "But since we might soon be able to engineer our desires too, the real question facing us is not 'What do we want to become?', but 'What do we want to want?'. Those who are not spooked by this question probably haven't given it enough thought."In the end, this is a thought-provoking book. He may not be right about everything, he may blur the lines between scholarship and interpretation, but his critiques are well worth considering. For a thorough introduction to Big History, I prefer David Christian's Maps of Time. For a challenging critique of the human past and future, this book must be reckoned with.
Rating: 5Interesting and provoking thoughts on where we are as a species.
Rating: 5An excellent popular science book about the development of humankind that is written in a very readable style and that covers a lot of ground in a very accessible manner. Having been given the book by my brother-in-law for my birthday, I read it in a week or so and have passed my paperback copy to my son and offered to buy my daughter a copy for her Kindle.It is popular science and may not be rigorous enough for some who have already read/studied specific areas in greater depth, so you should be sceptical about the assertions made, as Harari would encourage you to be as this is a scientific book. It may not be 100% correct, but you are usually clear where Harari is putting forward his interpretation on the current evidence. Evidence can be interpreted in different ways and its interpretation changes are further evidence becomes available.It is very readable overview of a complex subject and Harari puts forward a cogent interpretation.
Rating: 4Very interesting read about humankind. I listened to this book on audible and quite enjoyed it! I chose it because it was a pick from Mark Zuckerberg's book club. A book that I thought would be a little boring but once I got into it I found it very interesting and hard to put down. I think everyone should pick this one up at some point.
Rating: 5I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this 40 hour narration. Many topics discussed were new to me. Many atrocities committed by humans were hitherto unknown and seemed all the more barbaric for their discovery. The breadth of the discussion was pretty impressive; the depth of the science was good enough for me, but not, I suspect, for the true scientist.The narration by Deredk Perkins was excellent though I found his British accent amusing at times (eevolution?), and helpful at others (oh, is THAT how one pronounces seconded!).
Rating: 4Educational and informative read, though the ending is not particularly convincing. Feels like the author moved from a biological angle to a historical angle, before moving to a technological angle, which I guess makes sense, as the book was about the whole history of the homo sapiens.
Rating: 4Without a doubt, Harari is an erudite historian. His book covers a wide range of events in our humankind from the beginning to the near-future described in 4 parts and 3 revolutions - Cognitive, Agricultural and Scientific revolutions.There are specific parts of the book that I found very interesting like the downsides of walking upright and differences between mono- and polytheists. The authors' views about money and capitalism are quite ingenious and captivating.The sections that talk about how the concept of god was used to unify people of various races and how money did pretty much the same are highly thought-provoking.Some parts of the book could have been a little concise, but all-in-all this is a very good book.
Rating: 4In the arena of a few dozen millenia, homo sapiens are being propelled from non-dominant primates to Gods. What shall we do? Live like Buddha!!!
Rating: 5Fascinating story of the human race as a species. This book is full of ideas and was a joy to read!
Rating: 5I read 50 books a year and have been doing it a long time. Mostly fiction but my share of non-fiction and I can honestly say that this might be the most enjoyable non-fiction that I have ever read. This is a must read. Harari does a wonderful job of explaining our evolution. It allows you to look at everything that we do from this evolutionary perspective. Although the subject matter is scientific, he does a good job of making it enjoyable. I enjoyed his presentation about the industrial revolution and the rapid progress(?) that we have made in raising the standard of living for our species. However, it also points out what we done to the other species and the planet. Books that make you think are the best and this one goes to the top of the list. 5 is my highest book rating but this was actually a 7. Can't wait to read his new book.
Rating: 5I suppose that if you write book subtitled "A Brief History of Humankind" that fits in a backpack you're going to have to abridge someplace. Even so, I think that Harari's book is a useful introduction to long-term anthropology, if that's the term, for a general reader such as myself. The most useful thing about it, perhaps, is how well it explodes the whole "paleo" fad that's taken over the marketplace lately. The author points out how little we can know about how our distant ancestors lived and how varied their societies probably were. It convincingly argues that the caveman archetype that these products push may have had little to do with many ancient humans actually lived: humanity had, at this point, probably many ways of living at once, and it's unlikely that we'll ever know exactly what shapes most of those societies took. From several sub-species and perhaps thousands of tribal bands who probably knew very little about each other to a whole-earth entity we can confidently identify as "humanity," the book traces the development of "globalism" in the broadest possible sense. It also has a lot to say about the sometimes counter-intuitive trade-offs we made by evolving in to sapiens, leaving the forest or the savanna for farms, and, finally by letting machines do much of our work and even some of our thinking. Whatever you think of the whole "happiness studies" thing, "Sapiens" does make some interesting arguments about the pros and cons of every stage of human development. Other parts of the book are less successful. Harari takes some left turns into arguments best left to modern political commentators and his take on the future of humankind seems a bit sketchy and rushed. Still, I found this to enjoyable read, if only because it showed me how much I don't know about a huge stretch of human history.
Rating: 4Brilliant. Bold. Fascinating. To say that it's thought-provoking would be a major understatement. I simply wasn't prepared for many of Dr. Harari's arguments, theories and interpretations and the staggering amount of historical time that he covered so aptly! It's not just any history book. Controversial? Yes. But where the author has a point - he is very convincing; where there isn't enough historical information to make a point he honestly says so, all the while producing very plausible theories... Excellent chapter on Polytheism and Monotheism and a great take on Buddhist view of happiness - among so many other fascinating, even if at times "irreverent", insights... Interesting theories about "patriarchal genes" in our societies even up to this day. I also truly see Dr. Harari's reasoning about love-hate relationship between global empires and the societies that they absorbed. What's more, I find the author very objective in his search for answers. All in all, I agree with one of the readers: this book is "most enjoyable and most depressing" at the same time. But it's honest. If I were to choose one book to recommend to my two adult children, this would be the one.
Rating: 5Harari presents a work that looks at the human species as a whole and describes our history from the biggest perspective possible. In this way he describes our development from nomadic foragers through the agricultural revolution into the development of societies, empires, nations, technologies to our current position as the dominant life on the planet. This objective approach allows Harari to present novel and often uncomfortable reasoning behind who we are and how we became that way.The moral voice is weak - you cannot tell whether Harari is a right-on PC academic who sees everything that humans do is bad, or whether he believes that humans are part of a bigger picture where humans are driven by their collective species inheritance, just as all other animals and plants are. The objectivity is to be admired but it does make the narrative flow more difficult to follow and the reader is often caught off balance as his perspective and view changes.This is an important book that addresses some hard questions in a different way and provides much for every human to think about as they go about their daily lives.
Rating: 4"Consistency is the playground of dull minds." This is one of the many sentences in this book that challenged me and got me thinking. I'm not sure I agree with it but you have to read his argument leading up to it to decide what you think.
I was given this book and thought it would probably stay unread on my shelves for a long time. 'A Brief History of Mankind' isn't (for me) a very grabbing sub-title. But the reviews made it sound more interesting than the title suggested. And they were right. It's the best kind of 'pop' history - intelligent and immensely knowledgeable but written with a light touch, plenty of dry humour and a series of hypotheses that get you thinking. For example, his argument that our language evolved as a way of gossiping. Or, that obesity is a natural state inherited from our hunter-gatherer ancestors who had to binge-eat when they found a supply of food, for example a tree full of ripe fruit, because they couldn't carry much of it and it would probably be eaten by other humans or animals by the time they returned to it. There's also some wonderful anecdotes including one about Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong meeting a Native American while they were training in the desert for the moon landing. I won't spoil it by repeating it here.
Part of my enjoyment of the book was disagreeing with a lot of Harari's more iconoclastic theories including those concerning imperialism and the state of global capitalism. This is a book that will teach you a lot but also help you to formulate your own ideas about our past, present and future.
Rating: 4I was given this book and thought it would probably stay unread on my shelves for a long time. 'A Brief History of Mankind' isn't (for me) a very grabbing sub-title. But the reviews made it sound more interesting than the title suggested. And they were right. It's the best kind of 'pop' history - intelligent and immensely knowledgeable but written with a light touch, plenty of dry humour and a series of hypotheses that get you thinking. For example, his argument that our language evolved as a way of gossiping. Or, that obesity is a natural state inherited from our hunter-gatherer ancestors who had to binge-eat when they found a supply of food, for example a tree full of ripe fruit, because they couldn't carry much of it and it would probably be eaten by other humans or animals by the time they returned to it. There's also some wonderful anecdotes including one about Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong meeting a Native American while they were training in the desert for the moon landing. I won't spoil it by repeating it here.
Part of my enjoyment of the book was disagreeing with a lot of Harari's more iconoclastic theories including those concerning imperialism and the state of global capitalism. This is a book that will teach you a lot but also help you to formulate your own ideas about our past, present and future.
very thought provoking book. Makes some basic logic errors, but tries to account for them in places (Post hoc Ergo proctor hoc) I borrowed this from library and listened to it but think i will buy so i can take notes and delve into it more
Rating: 5Well-written history of 70,000 years of Humans
Rating: 4This book will make anyone think about their beliefs and our place on this planet as a species. Absolutely fascinating. The only issue I had is that the author does present many of his theories as fact (like there are no other theories out there, or if there are they are briefly / dismissively mentioned. While many of the theories presented appear (to me) to be very rational and logical there where a few times I did wonder what an anthropologist would think of the statements.
Rating: 5A must read. It will get you thinking about how we have progressed and whether it have been progress or regress. Have the lives of sapiens improved over the thousands of years? What about the planet and the other animals on the planet (the ones we haven't killed off any way) are they better off?
Rating: 5Sapiens A Brief History of Humankind is just that. It begins with the earliest humans and there were several. We seem to think we have a monopoly on humanship but it is not true. There were many humans who did not make it. Homosapiens may have crowded them out. In the earliest years men were hunters and gathers. You will learn about the monkeys who are our closest relations. I enjoyed the book and think it is worth a detour.
Rating: 4Long history from Noah Harari. Great intro observing that "a large brain, the use of tools, superior learning abilities and complex social structures (p. 11)" are insufficient as an explanation for humans' now dominant position, as "humans enjoyed these advantages for a full 2 million years during which they remained weak and marginal creatures." Humans were in the middle of the food chain until we jumped to the top quite recently, with no ecological checks and balances on our power. Harari is clear that he sees agriculture as a trap increasing the number of people at the cost of lowering the standard of living. Nobody agreed, but who would volunteer to starve to go back? Another (well known) observation is how recent much of what modern geographically based culture culture is - e.g. only recently did tomatoes come to Italy and horses came to the Americas with the Europeans. Relatedly, it is always good to be reminded of both the breadth and the contingency of practices and norms. I was not aware that Columbus never realized he had not come to India and that America was named after Vespucci who was one of those who said that one did not know which country it was. There is much material on how myths/fictions keep humans cooperating, like religion, rights and the legal system, the limited liability company. Recommended.
Rating: 4Good gallop through he whole of human history. Not just one damn thing after another , but what are the underlying structures and causes that give it shape.Good one is the pattern of empire, Roman, Ottoman or British - kind of Decline & fall but shorter. Has a jolly tone and even some good jokes, some of them a touch puerile, and many detailed examples are made up with silly names (Mr Greedy and the like), where it would be more convincing if a real case were taken. The jocularity perhaps makes it easier reading but detracts from the heft of the argument. also too much space and weight given to Marxist approach which, for me at least, seemed out-of-date even before the Soviet collapse.
Rating: 4