Learning More About Humanity

 

I am a huge fan of author, Yuval Noah Harari. He has such a clear understanding of humanity—where it has come from, where it is now, and where it is headed. His latest book Sapiens: The Pillars of Civilization, A Graphic History Volume Two is due out on December 21. Harari's popular books history follows:

Sapiens The Birth of Humankind Volume 1

Sapiens Homo Deus

21 Lessons for the 21st Century

His October 31 interview on 60 Minutes is an excellent overview of where he has been and where he is headed regarding humankind. You can also get an inside look at his brilliance in the NYTimes interview "Yuval Noah Harari Believes This Simple Story Can Save the Planet" by David Marchese. (Nov. 7, 2121).

Sapiens

The book Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari has been on the NYTimes BestSellers List for 72 weeks, and if you read it, you will understand why. It is now on my top best read list. The video below gives a quick, excellent introduction to the book.

Unstoppable Us — Yuval Noah Harari Talks to Young Readers

What a fantastic follow-up to his bestselling book Sapiens. Yuval Noah Harari wrote this book especially for middle readers and young adults. Unstoppable Us is written and illustrated to help them understand the evolution of humans and is currently number five on the NYTimes bestseller list for Middle Grade Hardcover books.

Here is a brief YouTube where he explains his newest book.

A Look at the Pandemic

I find myself asking what are we learning from this historic pandemic?

Some thoughts and resources . . .

Humanity is far better off when everyone is working together, rather than forming tribes and forcing people to care for their tribe rather than caring for humanity, especially when we look at the world population. In America, we experienced this humanity/tribe effect before, during, and after the Civil War and World War II.

Tribes and the evolution of humanity are so well explained in the popular book Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari—see my June 9, 2019 blog post, and in Sebastian Junger's book Tribe—see my July 8, 2016 blog post. Both books can be helpful in understanding where we are as a global society in the midst of this pandemic.

One last resource is equally powerful: the podcast "Making Sense" with Sam Harris and his May 1 conversation with Yuval Noah Harari. It has so much good pandemic perspective information on what is going on around us during these difficult time.

Caste versus Class

 

I have always been intrigued about the difference between "caste" and "class." I wrote an article back in 1999 in Independent School magazine, "Class Bias—The Real Enemy" that gave my thoughts on class. . . back then. Well, the book Caste The Origins of Our Discontent by Isabel Wilkerson explains it all and in such an understandable way. This NYTimes bestseller—28 weeks on the bestseller list—is a must-read book by all. 

It really takes the wonderful book Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari to the next level in helping us understand the importance of "humanity" in any culture.

Here is an excellent seven-minute video review of the book with Isabel Wilkerson from the PBS News Hour.

Contact

Humankind A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman is powerful and gives a comprehensive look at the history of humanity. It crosses paths with Yuval Noah Harari's book Sapiens.

There is one chapter — "The Best Remedy For Hate, Injustice and Prejudice" — that is excellent on presenting the best remedy for these humanity issues, and the remedy is "CONTACT." Here is an excerpt (page 358) from that chapter: 

"Contact engenders more trust, more solidarity and more mutual kindness. It helps you see the world through other people's eyes. Moreover, it changes you as a person, because individuals with a diverse group of friends are more tolerant towards strangers. And contact is contagious: when you see a neighbor getting along with others, it makes you rethink your own biases."

Humankind: A Hopeful History

If you want a better understanding of where we — humans — are in getting along with one another, read the book Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman. I found the book to be a perfect follow-up to the book Sapiens a Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. 

In chapter 15 entitled "This Is What Democracy Looks Like" Bregman gives a brilliant comparison of democracy and communism. 

Also, in chapter 14, I love how he explains what is best for children: "Over the past five decades, the intrinsic motivation of children has been systematically stifled. Adults have been filling children's time with homework, athletics, music, drama, tutoring, exam practice — the list of activities seems endless. That means less time for that one other activity: play. And then I mean play in the broadest sense — the freedom to go wherever curiosity leads. To search and to discover, to experiment and to create. Not along any lines set out by parents or teachers, but just because. For the fun of it." (page 280)

Finally, view Bregman's TED Talk where he talks about poverty not being a lack of knowledge; and view his interview with Dan Pink.