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A review by rosenaughtin
Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman
challenging
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
I reached for this book after reading an excerpt from it in The Guardian, "The Real Lord of the Flies." That story in itself was captivating and I was intrigued by Rutger Bregman's thesis: that humans are, in large part, communal, helpful, and decent. The book was super dense, informative, meticulously researched, and full of interesting and hopeful anecdotes about humankind. Bregman takes many examples from history that show our alleged intrinsic brutishness -- such as the Stanford Prison Experiment, Milgram's shock experiment, and the death of Kitty Genovese -- and explains how these scenarios were largely misinterpreted by the media and the general public.
Bregman also shows how empathy can lead us to a greater affiliation with our "in-group," unintentionally putting us at odds with outsiders, and how this can be utilized by despots and dictators to encourage war, hoarding of resources, and racism. He argues that compassion is more effective than empathy in connecting with other humans - I would argue that his definition of compassion is very similar to "radical empathy," though he never uses the term.
Best of all, he offers solutions through examples, from corporations to prisons to governments. He argues that if we accept within ourselves that humans are mostly good, then we can utilize communication, confrontation, compassion, and resistance to challenge our current institutions.
Favorite quote: "If you believe that people are essentially good, you have to question why evil exists at all. It implies that engagement and resistance are worthwhile, and it imposes an obligation to act."
Bregman also shows how empathy can lead us to a greater affiliation with our "in-group," unintentionally putting us at odds with outsiders, and how this can be utilized by despots and dictators to encourage war, hoarding of resources, and racism. He argues that compassion is more effective than empathy in connecting with other humans - I would argue that his definition of compassion is very similar to "radical empathy," though he never uses the term.
Best of all, he offers solutions through examples, from corporations to prisons to governments. He argues that if we accept within ourselves that humans are mostly good, then we can utilize communication, confrontation, compassion, and resistance to challenge our current institutions.
Favorite quote: "If you believe that people are essentially good, you have to question why evil exists at all. It implies that engagement and resistance are worthwhile, and it imposes an obligation to act."
Content Warnings
Minor: Genocide, Racism, and Forced institutionalization