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A review by fourtriplezed
The Better Angels of Our Nature: A History of Violence and Humanity by Steven Pinker
5.0
What an interesting read! If the idea is to give the reader food for thought this book more than nourishes.
My approach to this book was a bit different than is usual. I have tended to write a review and then read others. Not in this case. I read many good reviews and few that were critical so was very open to being a critic. I am of the opinion that a few did not take note of what Pinker wrote. He got some numbers wrong was a fairly common complaint. He may have and admits as much. A few times he made it clear that his numbers were estimates based on researchers who are respected in the field. “…. so there is no single correct estimate” he writes on page 60 of my copy. Page 168 “….. no one knows exactly how many were killed…..” when discussing holy slaughters. In fact Pinker supports scepticism as he suggested on page 217 when discussing the Enlightenment.
As a westerner living a very comfortable life in Australia I was intrigued to read a comment by US politician John Kerry on page 417. “We have to get back to the place we were, where terrorist are not the focus of our lives, but they’re a nuisance. As a former law-enforcement person, I know we’re never going to end prostitution. We’re never going to end illegal gambling. But we’re going to reduce it, organised crime, to a level where it isn’t on the rise. It isn’t threatening people’s lives every day, and fundamentally it’s something that you continue to fight, but it’s not threatening the fabric of your life” He was right of course but he became “unfit to lead” and had to back pedal as the reality is that the authorities may well have reduced and contained crime, by cripes don’t tell the people that because the media will not be happy unless they are able to make you feel bad about just about every part of your life. Less violence? How dare that be considered when there is news to sell. And take it in your stride as you are not going to get hit by the Mafia? Bah!
This book covered a variety of female issues and after conversation elsewhere I even read On Rape by Germaine Greer. Hardly an area I knew much about. Glad I did. Perhaps blokes my age, 60ish, need to get of their fat arses and not think they rule the world as Pinker has given a very good case that the rise of feminist thought has been good for our collective health. While reading this I came across this item on the repulsive practise of female circumcision. Yes the item says caution is required but it is good to read that progress is taking place.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/nov/07/fgm-rates-in-east-africa-drop-20-years-study-shows
This book has some fascinating sub chapters and one on page 572 called Whence The Rights Revolution? should thrill the hearts of all book readers. Among other things is a fivefold increase in books published from 1960 to 2000. The information we are getting seems to just make us collectively smarter when it comes to treating each other with a little bit of respect and not get on our high horse and want to smash the face in of our neighbours be they next door or in the nation next door.
So does Pinker say we are in for even less violence in the future? No! In fact he makes it abundantly clear that one bit of lunacy can change everything. I personally am very unsure we have rosy future. I am like the next father of children and worry about the environment, that a loony with a nuke will go mad but the book itself is in fact not really about that. It is about the data that shows violence has dropped and gives several reasons why. Disagree with the reasons by all means but also enjoy the fact you have more chance of dying in a car crash than by a terrorist attack no matter what the newspapers tells you.
My approach to this book was a bit different than is usual. I have tended to write a review and then read others. Not in this case. I read many good reviews and few that were critical so was very open to being a critic. I am of the opinion that a few did not take note of what Pinker wrote. He got some numbers wrong was a fairly common complaint. He may have and admits as much. A few times he made it clear that his numbers were estimates based on researchers who are respected in the field. “…. so there is no single correct estimate” he writes on page 60 of my copy. Page 168 “….. no one knows exactly how many were killed…..” when discussing holy slaughters. In fact Pinker supports scepticism as he suggested on page 217 when discussing the Enlightenment.
As a westerner living a very comfortable life in Australia I was intrigued to read a comment by US politician John Kerry on page 417. “We have to get back to the place we were, where terrorist are not the focus of our lives, but they’re a nuisance. As a former law-enforcement person, I know we’re never going to end prostitution. We’re never going to end illegal gambling. But we’re going to reduce it, organised crime, to a level where it isn’t on the rise. It isn’t threatening people’s lives every day, and fundamentally it’s something that you continue to fight, but it’s not threatening the fabric of your life” He was right of course but he became “unfit to lead” and had to back pedal as the reality is that the authorities may well have reduced and contained crime, by cripes don’t tell the people that because the media will not be happy unless they are able to make you feel bad about just about every part of your life. Less violence? How dare that be considered when there is news to sell. And take it in your stride as you are not going to get hit by the Mafia? Bah!
This book covered a variety of female issues and after conversation elsewhere I even read On Rape by Germaine Greer. Hardly an area I knew much about. Glad I did. Perhaps blokes my age, 60ish, need to get of their fat arses and not think they rule the world as Pinker has given a very good case that the rise of feminist thought has been good for our collective health. While reading this I came across this item on the repulsive practise of female circumcision. Yes the item says caution is required but it is good to read that progress is taking place.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/nov/07/fgm-rates-in-east-africa-drop-20-years-study-shows
This book has some fascinating sub chapters and one on page 572 called Whence The Rights Revolution? should thrill the hearts of all book readers. Among other things is a fivefold increase in books published from 1960 to 2000. The information we are getting seems to just make us collectively smarter when it comes to treating each other with a little bit of respect and not get on our high horse and want to smash the face in of our neighbours be they next door or in the nation next door.
So does Pinker say we are in for even less violence in the future? No! In fact he makes it abundantly clear that one bit of lunacy can change everything. I personally am very unsure we have rosy future. I am like the next father of children and worry about the environment, that a loony with a nuke will go mad but the book itself is in fact not really about that. It is about the data that shows violence has dropped and gives several reasons why. Disagree with the reasons by all means but also enjoy the fact you have more chance of dying in a car crash than by a terrorist attack no matter what the newspapers tells you.