Humanity is one of the mysteries in the universe which no one has a conclusion. The sapiens book explains the major human revolutions which are the current scientific revolution which started about 500 years ago, The agriculture revolution which dates back 10,000 years ago and the cognitive revolution which is estimated to have started around seventy years ago. These revolution changes have helped humans discover themselves, create solutions to their daily solutions and expand more than life has provided. This revolution has led to growth in politics, capitalism, and religion. These theories have helped man to overcome the challenge of Natural selection and helped him to survive.
This Sapiens book was written by Yuval Noah Harari which wad first published in Israel with the Hebrew language in 2011 and later in English in 2014. The writer is trying to explain what does it mean to be a human. He has brought the humanities and science together to get insight and try to explain what is humankind. In 443 pages, you can learn a lot and come out with so many takeouts. Let me discuss some here which come out clearly in the book.
One thing Yuval has painted is we are humans but we are not the only humans. We are homo sapiens or intelligent or wiser humans as we immodestly consider ourselves and we are one in many species that have come across the earth. The sapiens ancestors may behave eliminated the Neanderthal species forty thousand years ago for them to adapt and live freely. These species may have bigger brains than our ancestors.
We the Sapien human species are the only ones remaining. Something interesting is that Europeans and Middle Eastern have complicated status of Homo Sapiens because they are not pure Homo sapiens according to the book. They may be as a result of interbreeding of species of Neanderthal and sapiens and they may make up four percent of Neanderthal genes. This means there are no mixed race but mixed species.
First insight we have the myth-makers which is an idea that separated sapiens from other species. Sapiens take advantage of how they make a myth through language for communication with others and imagination. This helps them figure alternatives and possibilities to survive. This theory helps them rule the world, organize themselves to gather resources and cooperation in different activities. Myths form the basic to glue the Sapiens together. Cognitive Revolution is the process which helps in genetic mutation to help these powers of speech and imagination develop.
Second, we have the Intersubjectively laws which are our shared ‘intersubjective’ myths. These include money, laws, gods, Morals, patriarchy, and drawing of boundaries to make partitioned countries. If you want to understand humans study the intersubjective myths they have in common.
Third, we have brands that come up as powerful intersubjective Myths. We have so many brands names products that are not physical nor do they exist. These brands are fiction but they mean a lot to humans. They are powerful because they help humans in production.
Fourth we have fictions like money which is just a piece of paper in which everyone believes it has value but it has none but gives humans peace of mind.
If you read the book you will come across other insights like if you want to change the world change the myth an example is culture. Another insight is Culture forbids and Biology solves, The law of the few which makes producers enjoy less and consumers more, How happiness happens, We are superhumans and the last insight is how Sapiens will end by the development of transhuman.
This is perhaps one of my best book explaining the revolution of humankind. It good for researchers and historians.