The book Sapiens, A Brief History of Humankind by Israeli author Yuval Noah Harari has both captivated and frenzied readers since its publication in 2011. A controversial and famously cyniecal book on the history of human society and culture, Harari’s writings have been subject to both admirant praise and harsh criticism from those who argue that the author peddles pseudoscientific claims without proof in his book. Nevertheless, it is only fair that we take a look at Sapiens and see what it has to show for us.
The book starts off with Harari’s idea of a “Cognitive Revolution” that occurred 70,000 years ago following the eruption of Mt. Toba in Indonesia, one of the largest eruptions in history. According to Harari, based on the fact that global temperatures dropped rapidly and the human population with it, humans were forced to be more intelligent and socially cohesive and it was at that time that humans started to think about fictional ideas and things – which no other animal does in our knowledge. Harari argued that this newfound intelligence and cohesion enabled our ancestors to outlive and outcompete the Neanderthals, and to dominate the world even today.
Harari also says that “fictions” make up the basis for our society, consisting of everything from a car company to a divine god to basic human rights, which are all things that a group believes in without questioning that makes the group more cohesive. Just like how religions and cults preach belief in a god or a leader, societies also teach us to believe in entities like businesses, or concepts like human rights – which, honestly, are things that we created. The idea of fiction and stories is central to Sapiens and Harari’s views.
Harari then talks about the second shift in humans and that is the much more widely accepted Agricultural Revolution, in which humans began farming and setting up sedentary civilizations. This also marks the formation of concrete, widespread religions and the start of artistic architecture. While most historians believe that humans started farming as a sort of experimentation and that civilization and religion came later, Harari speculates on a very interesting idea. Harari says that due to the religious beliefs that are also present in hunter-gatherers that agriculture started as a way to feed temple builders, like at Gobekli Tepe in Turkey. Harari theorizes that hunter-gatherers who believed in a single god came to build temples and that farming was invented to feed the workers. With that came houses to feed the workers and walls to guard them and voila! A city has been born. Historians aren’t really too sure on this subject, mainly because hunter-gatherers haven’t really exhibited a need to build religious sites even with complex religious beliefs. Then again, Stonehenge and other rock groupings are thought to have been a significant site for prehistoric man, and they were definitely man-made. As of now, the theory’s not off the list, and it’s a pretty good one too.
The third and most recent shift that is described in Sapiens is the Scientific Revolution. The Scientific Revolution changed how we view things in our world but also how we do things. A surprising amount of advances have been made in the last 200 years, as we went from steam engines to electric vehicles and written mail to instant around the world texting.
The Scientific Revolution can be understood as a culmination of centuries of intellectual and cultural evolution, but its impact was unprecedented in terms of its scope and implications. Harari argues that at its core, the Scientific Revolution was not merely a series of scientific breakthroughs, but a fundamental shift in human consciousness—a shift from myth and superstition to reason and empirical observation. Of course, it starts with colonialism and the best way to profit off of a given substance – slaves, spices, silk, sandalwood, you name it.
The Scientific Revolution is the greatest one we have ever had in terms of sheer magnitude. The consequences of the Scientific Revolution were profound and far-reaching. It revolutionized medicine, agriculture, transportation, and communication, leading to unprecedented improvements in living standards and life expectancy. The development of the steam engine, for example, transformed industry and transportation, laying the groundwork for the Industrial Revolution that followed.
Moreover, the Scientific Revolution challenged prevailing social and political structures. The authority of religious institutions and monarchies, which had traditionally held sway over intellectual discourse, was increasingly questioned as scientific discoveries empowered individuals to think critically and independently. However, the Scientific Revolution also led to eugenics, race theory, forced sterilization of populations, chemical warfare, and fascists at whose head stood the Nazis. It also gave us the nuclear bomb, the climate crisis, and the destruction of Earth’s biodiversity. Harari makes sure to point out that all of the revolutions were a double-edged sword.
In conclusion, Harari’s portrayal of the Three Revolutions in “Sapiens” illuminates not only the dramatic intellectual advancements of our greatest innovators but also their profound impact on human civilization. By the manipulation of the laws of nature, our inventions have paved the way for the modern world and continue to shape our understanding of the universe and our place within it. Sapiens stands as a testament to the power of human curiosity and ingenuity to transcend the past and forge paths toward the future.
Anay Ganesh 