A review by shaunireads1
The Social Conquest of Earth by Edward O. Wilson

4.0

This book is all over the place. I guess that's almost inevitable when the author's stated purpose is to provide answers to the questions "Where did we come from? What are we? Where are we going?" However, even though the book as a whole lacks a truly unifying focus, each individual chapter is incredibly fascinating in its own right. The topics range from ants to group selection to religion and art.

If there is one quote that ties all of the individual chapters, it would have to be this:

Humanity today is like a waking dreamer, caught between the fantasies of sleep and the chaos of the real world. The mind seeks but cannot find the precise place and hour. We have created a Star Wars civilization, with Stone Age emotions, medieval institutions, and godlike technology. We thrash about. We are terribly confused by the mere fact of our existence, and a danger to ourselves and to the rest of life.