STUDY AIDS · FIRST PUBLISHED 2018
Summary of Sapiens
A Brief History of Humankind
by Book Notes
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SUMMARY OF SAPIENS: A BRIEF HISTORY OF HUMANKIND.
DISCLAIMER:
This book is a general overview of Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. It is intended to be read as a companionship to the original book, provide a general overview of the contents and concepts within it, and make studying the book less confusing. This summary is not affiliated with the writer or publisher of Sapiens in any way. This is not the original book, and if you intended to purchase the original, it can be found here: http://amzn.to/2qxORbB
THE HISTORY OF HUMANKIND:
Written by Yuval Noah Harari, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind is explores the cultural evolution of Homo sapiens throughout the ages. It begins with early man, several species under the Homo genus, and continues chronologically through the ages. Harari’s explanations of human biology, psychology, and history is connected to the basis that humankind has not evolved in a very long time, and they are essentially the same hunter gatherers they always have been on a psychological level, only ow they’re living in an industrial world.
THE FOUR MAJOR ERAS:
PART ONE: The Cognitive Revolution… where mankind has evolved to have imagination, the basis for creating the fictions and myths that would dominate the creation of societies and bonds between strangers that allow for mass cooperation between human beings. PART TWO: The Agriculture Revolution… how humankind navigated the slow process of domesticating plants and animals, eventually leading to mankind’s settlement lifestyle that allowed for the existence of ruling classes. PART THREE: The Unification of Humankind… which covers the creation and acceptance of money, politics, economics, religion, and the many constructs that truly allows for large civilizations. Within this section is a heavy focus on empires and how they have shaped history ever since imperial ambitions began. PART FOUR: The Scientific Revolution… based around the idea that during the last 500 years the explosion of knowledge and technology as a result of humankind acknowledging their ignorance and lack of answers for everything. Leading up to modern day humans, this section focuses heavily not only on scientific advancements, but how politics, religion, and capitalism shape scientific discoveries for better or worse.
WHY THIS SUMMARY?
Following Sapiens chapter by chapter, our goal is to condense and simplify without losing the overarching themes that connect each chapter together. This allows for succinct explanations in the book’s exploration of biology, psychology, and culture in a fraction of the time, and is given enough context in easy-to-read language to avoid confusion without requiring a huge time commitment.