Humankind: A Hopeful History

by Rutger Bregman, Erica Moore (Translator), Elizabeth Manton (Translator)

Overview

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

The “lively” (The New Yorker), “convincing” (Forbes), and “riveting pick-me-up we all need right now” (People) that proves humanity thrives in a crisis and that our innate kindness and cooperation have been the greatest factors in our long-term success as a species.

If there is one belief that has united the left and the right, psychologists and philosophers, ancient thinkers and modern ones, it is the tacit assumption that humans are bad. It's a notion that drives newspaper headlines and guides the laws that shape our lives. From Machiavelli to Hobbes, Freud to Pinker, the roots of this belief have sunk deep into Western thought. Human beings, we're taught, are by nature selfish and governed primarily by self-interest.

But what if it isn't true? International bestseller Rutger Bregman provides new perspective on the past 200,000 years of human history, setting out to prove that we are hardwired for kindness, geared toward cooperation rather than competition, and more inclined to trust rather than distrust one another. In fact this instinct has a firm evolutionary basis going back to the beginning of Homo sapiens. 

From the real-life Lord of the Flies to the solidarity in the aftermath of the Blitz, the hidden flaws in the Stanford prison experiment to the true story of twin brothers on opposite sides who helped Mandela end apartheid, Bregman shows us that believing in human generosity and collaboration isn't merely optimistic—it's realistic. Moreover, it has huge implications for how society functions. When we think the worst of people, it brings out the worst in our politics and economics. But if we believe in the reality of humanity's kindness and altruism, it will form the foundation for achieving true change in society, a case that Bregman makes convincingly with his signature wit, refreshing frankness, and memorable storytelling.

"The Sapiens of 2020." —The Guardian

"Humankind made me see humanity from a fresh perspective." —Yuval Noah Harari, author of the #1 bestseller Sapiens

Longlisted for the 2021 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction

One of the Washington Post's 50 Notable Nonfiction Works in 2020
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316418522
Publisher:	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date:	11/16/2021
Pages:	480
Sales rank:	38,699
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Rutger Bregman, a historian and writer at The Correspondent, is one of Europe's most prominent young thinkers. His last book, Utopia for Realists, which was translated into thirty-two languages, is a New York Times bestseller. He lives in Holland.

Table of Contents

Prologue xi

1 A New Realism 1

2 The Real Lord of the Flies 21

Part I The State of Nature 41

3 The Rise of Homo puppy 49

4 Colonel Marshall and the Soldiers Who Wouldn't Shoot 73

5 The Curse of Civilisation 93

6 The Mystery of Easter Island 113

Part 2 After Auschwitz 135

7 In the Basement of Stanford University 139

8 Stanley Milgram and the Shock Machine 159

9 The Death of Catherine Susan Genovese 179

Part 3 Why Good People Turn Bad 195

10 How Empathy Blinds 201

11 How Power Corrupts 223

12 What the Enlightenment Got Wrong 241

Part 4 A New Realism 251

13 The Power of Intrinsic Motivation 263

14 Homo ludens 279

15 This Is What Democracy Looks Like 297

Part 5 The Other Cheek 319

16 Drinking Tea with Terrorists 325

17 The Best Remedy for Hate, Injustice and Prejudice 347

18 When the Soldiers Came Out of the Trenches 365

Epilogue Ten Rules to Live By 379

Acknowledgements 399

Notes 401

Index 453

Editorial Reviews

"Fascinating . . . I enjoyed Humankind immensely. It's entertaining, uplifting, and very likely to reach the broad audience it courts . . . This book might just make the world a kinder place."—Tristram Fane Saunders, Daily Telegraph

"Bregman's book is an intervention in a centuries-old argument about the moral nature of human beings . . . Humankind is filled with compelling tales of human goodness. The book will challenge what you thought you knew . . . Bregman's book is a thrilling read and it represents a necessary correction to the idea that we are all barely disguised savages."—James Marriott, The Times

"Bregman's assertion that you and I (and everyone else) is basically a good and moral being is the breakthrough thinking we've been looking for to activate and energize millions to live more sustainably, vote for climate action, and raise their voice for the future . . . Today, during this terrible pandemic which has a third of humanity in some sort of lockdown, the 'good people' premise is being proven . . . Despite the news reports of those breaking the rules, the vast majority of us (over 80 percent) are doing the right thing . . . This might prove to be the wake-up call we needed to our own goodness. For most, this pandemic has demanded the hardest change in how we live. But we've done it because it's the right thing to do. It's impossible to underestimate what this means for our collective sense of self. We're ready to stretch our do-gooder muscles."—Solitaire Townsend, Forbes

"Invigorating... The book is crammed full of fascinating examples... a much needed reminder of the traditional virtues of modesty and the like, of sharing, and of co-operation rather than vicious competition... If books require the right zeitgeist to have a major impact, then Bregman's timing may prove brilliant... Bregman's book is something of a beacon at the moment, when many are looking for values to profess in our traumatised and altered society... [it] stands a very good chance of having a real impact on the feelings of the general public."—Alexander McCall Smith, The Scotsman

“Interesting and urgent . . . Bregman attacks huge and highly sensitive questions with his usual brand of vim, vigor, and intellectual nuance . . . The historian is a sort of Dutch Sherlock Holmes, furiously prodding at the sacred cows of psychological research and laying out his counterarguments with the breathless pace of a thriller . . . Books like this one ask important and unsettling questions about the assumptions that underpin our approach to everything from schools to prisons, from police to politics.”—Ceri Radford, The Independent

"Bregman offers a fresh and optimistic perspective on humanity and our innate tendencies toward generosity and kindness. Backed by 200,000 years of human history, Humankind makes a convincing argument to seek out the best in others, rather than looking for the worst."—Kat Sarfas, Barnesandnoble.com

"This latest book on society, history, and anthropology by Rutger Bregman has many quotable quotes on every page and is full of powerful aphorisms drawn from the history of political thought . . . The whole theme of Humankind is the demolition of what Bregman sees as the big lie that humans are fundamentally evil and self-interested . . . The thoroughness of his demolition job is impressive, as he sweeps aside example after example of the stories we tell ourselves in order to uphold the myth of our own wickedness . . . The book's deconstructions of some of the 'truths' we have been told about human nature are fascinating; as riveting as any thriller, and necessary, in trying to shift our politics onto new and more productive ground."—Joyce McMillan, The Scotsman

"Lively and illuminating . . . Bregman argues convincingly that the dominant assumptions about behavior in modern capitalism are upside down . . . Under the pressure of the coronavirus, what we see are millions and millions of people risking their own lives to help others, not under threat of dismissal and not because of financial incentives, but because it's what comes naturally. If we 'revert' during a disaster, it is not to being apes or angels. It is to being merely, decently human."—Fintan O'Toole, Irish Times

"Bregman argues convincingly that what we teach and report about ourselves, we become: telling ourselves incessantly that we are selfish, aggressive, and untrustworthy will make us more so. The counter-examples he provides are inspiring . . . Bold, entertaining, and uplifting, Humankind should be read less as a scholarly treatise on human nature and more as a call to consciousness and action."—Owen Harman, The Spectator

"Brisk and entertaining . . . Meticulously sifting the evidence, Bregman finds that the most pessimistic views of human nature are not backed up by the facts . . . Humankind works as a much-needed corrective to excessive pessimism about human wickedness.”—Julina Baggini, The Prospect

"A beach read for brainiacs . . . Its hopeful message could not be better timed . . . As impressive as Bregman's arguments are, he's also a gifted storyteller . . . Picture an animated, multi-directional lecture by a charismatic professor, and you're at Humankind . . . It's a dazzling performance."—Brett Josef Grubisic, Maclean's

From the Publisher

04/06/2020

Dutch historian Bregman (Utopia for Realists) puts a positive spin on human behavior in this intriguing survey of politics, literature, psychology, sociology, and philosophy. To prove his hypothesis that humankind is basically good, Bregman reevaluates some of the most entrenched cultural narratives suggesting otherwise. For example, six Tongan boys shipwrecked on an island in the 1960s didn’t beat each other senseless—à la William Golding’s characters in The Lord of the Flies—but lived harmoniously until their rescue a year later. Bregman also revisits the Stanford Prison Experiment (researchers muddled the study by ensuring that students chosen as guards would be cruel to those posing as prisoners) and the 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese, in which 37 bystanders supposedly heard her cries for help but failed to intervene (Bregman offers evidence that several people actually did call the police, and that one of Kitty’s neighbors ran directly to her aid). He even attempts to fold the Holocaust into his theory, but his explanation that the Nazis “believed they were on the right side of history” fails to either hearten or persuade. Overall, however, this intelligent and reassuring chronicle disproves much received wisdom about the dark side of human nature. Readers looking for solace in uncertain times will find it here. (June)

Publishers Weekly

Thomas Judd's performance complements the theme of positivity throughout Bregman's look at humankind. This audiobook takes a critical view of the conventional wisdom that humans are selfish and prone to conflict to protect their interests. Instead of "veneer theory," which posits that people engage in shallow niceties only to maintain cultural order, Bregman provides evidence of people defying expectations to support each other. He debunks well-established experiments on abusive human behavior, like the notorious Stanford prison experiment, which have captivated the public despite being fundamentally flawed. As Bregman notes, the idea that humans are naturally motivated to be decent to each other remains a radical idea. Judd's delivery befits this radical notion as his voice exudes empathy and kindness. S.P.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2020 - AudioFile

Thomas Judd's performance complements the theme of positivity throughout Bregman's look at humankind. This audiobook takes a critical view of the conventional wisdom that humans are selfish and prone to conflict to protect their interests. Instead of "veneer theory," which posits that people engage in shallow niceties only to maintain cultural order, Bregman provides evidence of people defying expectations to support each other. He debunks well-established experiments on abusive human behavior, like the notorious Stanford prison experiment, which have captivated the public despite being fundamentally flawed. As Bregman notes, the idea that humans are naturally motivated to be decent to each other remains a radical idea. Judd's delivery befits this radical notion as his voice exudes empathy and kindness. S.P.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2020 - AudioFile

★ 2020-03-15
“There is a persistent myth that by their very nature, humans are selfish, aggressive, and quick to panic.” British historian and journalist Bregman disagrees, making a convincing case that we’re not so bad.

In Lord of the Flies, a group of boys stranded on an island descend into savagery. The author turns up a real-life version that turned out much better: In 1965, six teenagers were marooned on a tiny, waterless islet, and they cooperated until their rescue 15 months later, when they were alive and healthy. Bregman’s fascinating examination of pro-depravity evidence reveals an alarming amount of error. Readers may remember the 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese; newspapers reported that 38 bystanders heard her screams and did nothing. Journalistic incompetence, writes the author; multiple neighbors came to her aid. Iconic scientific studies reveal crippling flaws. In a 1971 prison study at Stanford, researchers divided students into “prisoners” and “guards.” Within days, the guards became abusive. Bregman reveals that it was a “hoax”; researchers instructed the guards to behave badly. At the peak of human depravity lies Nazi administrator Adolph Eichmann. At his 1961 trial, he portrayed himself as a desk-bound bureaucrat carrying out his boss’s orders. The phrase “the banality of evil” entered the lexicon. Subsequent research in Nazi archives revealed Eichmann as a psychopath. After cogently laying out the problem, the author turns to solutions. For example, 20% of those discharged from Norway’s cushy prisons return in two years, the world’s lowest recidivism rate and a big money-saver; in the U.S., it’s 60%. Experts agree that oppressive prisons increase crime, but reform efforts invariably fizzle; “coddling” criminals outrages most Americans. Bregman describes businesses without bosses, schools in which teachers assume that students want to learn, and local governments in which citizens exert genuine power wisely. Readers may wonder why these are not spreading like wildfire. Since good studies show that deeply held false beliefs remain immune to evidence, human depravity must qualify.

A powerful argument in favor of human virtue that will probably not catch on. (b/w illustrations)

Kirkus Reviews