[마이리뷰] Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (Paperback)
Yuval Noah Harari / Perennial / 2018년 5월

What potential did Europe develop in the early modern periodthat enabled it to dominate the late modern world? There are twocomplementary answers to this question: modern science andcapitalism. - P282

[마이리뷰] Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (Paperback)
Yuval Noah Harari / Perennial / 2018년 5월

So why study history? Unlike physics or economics, history is nota means for making accurate predictions. We study history not toknow the future but to widen our horizons, to understand that ourpresentsituation is neither natural nor inevitable, and that we con-sequently have many more possibilities before us than we imagine.
For example, studying how Europeans came to dominate Africans en-ables us to realise that there is nothing natural or inevitable about theracial hierarchy, and that the world might well be arranged differently. - P241

Why did modern humans develop a growing belief in their abil-ity to obtain new powers through research? What forged the bondbetween science, politics and economics? This chapter looks at theunique nature of modern science in order to provide part of the answer.
The next two chapters examine the formation of the alliance betweenscience, the European empires and the economics of capitalism. - P250

The Scientific Revolution has not been a revolution of knowledge. Ithas been above all a revolution of ignorance. The great discovery thatthat humanslaunched the Scientific Revolution was the discoverydo not know the answers to their most important questions. - P252

[마이리뷰] Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (Paperback)
Yuval Noah Harari / Perennial / 2018년 5월

Theist religions sanctify the gods. Humanist religions sanctifyhumanity, or more correctly, Homo sapiens. Humanism is a beliefthat Homo sapiens has a unique and sacred nature, which is funda-mentally different from the nature of all other animals and of allother phenomena. Humanists believe that the unique nature ofHomo sapiens is the most important thing in the world, and it deter-mines the meaning of everything that happens in the universe. Thesupreme good is the good of Homo sapiens. The rest of the world andall other beings exist solely for the benefit of this species. - P230

The main ambition of the Nazis was to protect humankind fromdegeneration and encourage its progressive evolution. This is why theNazis said that the Aryan race, the most advanced form of humanity,
had to be protected and fostered, while degenerate kinds of Homosapiens like Jews, Roma, homosexuals and the mentally ill had to bequarantined and even exterminated. The Nazis explained that Homosapiens itself appeared when one ‘superior population of ancienthumans evolved, whereas ‘inferior populations such as the Neander-thals became extinct. These different populations were at first nomore than different races, but developed independently along theirown evolutionary paths. This might well happen again. Accordingto the Nazis, Homo sapiens had already divided into several distinctraces, each with its own unique qualities. One of these races, theAryan race, had the finest qualities – rationalism, beauty, integrity,
diligence. The Aryan race therefore had the potential to turn maninto superman. Other races, such as Jews and blacks, were today‘sNeanderthals, possessing inferior qualities. If allowed to breed, andin particular to intermarry with Aryans, they would adulterate allhuman populations and doom Homo sapiens to extinction. - P232

[마이리뷰] Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind (Paperback)
Yuval Noah Harari / Perennial / 2018년 5월

Weare all responsible for each other, but not responsible for them.
We were always distinct from them, and owe them nothing. We don‘twant to see any of them in our territory, and we don‘t care an iotawhat happens in their territory. - P196

We can understand the decolonisation process of the last fewdecades in a similar way. During the modern era Europeans con-quered much of the globe under the guise of spreading a superiorWestern culture. They were so successful that billions of peoplegradually adopted significant parts of that culture. Indians, Africans,
Arabs, Chinese and Maoris learned French, English and Spanish. - P201

Cultural trends also spread with lightning speed. Almost every-where you go, you can eat Indian curry, watch Hollywood movies,
play English-style association football or listen to the latest K-pophit. A multi-ethnic global society is forming over and above theindividual states. Entrepreneurs, engineers, bankers and scholarsthroughout the world speak the same language and share similarviews and interests. - P207

1. Religion is an entire system of norms and values, rather thanan isolated custom or belief. Knocking on wood for good luck isn‘t areligion. Even a belief in reincarnation does not constitute a religion,
as long as it does not validate certain behavioral standards.
2. To be considered a religion, the system of norms and valuesmust claim to be based on superhuman laws rather than on humandecisions. Professional soccer is not a religion, because despite itsmany rules, rites and often bizarre rituals, everyone knows thathuman beings invented soccer themselves, and FIFA may at anymoment enlarge the size of the goal or cancel the offside rule. - P210

[마이리뷰] 사피엔스

사피엔스 (무선본) - 유인원에서 사이보그까지, 인간 역사의 대담하고 위대한 질문 ㅣ 인류 3부작 시리즈
유발 하라리 지음, 조현욱 옮김, 이태수 감수 / 김영사 / 2015년 11월

따라서 화폐란 상호신뢰 시스템의 일종이지만, 그저 그런 상호신뢰 시스템이 아니라 인간이 고안한 것 중에서 가장 보편적이고 효율적인 상호신뢰 시스템이다. - P258

돈이 모든 악의 근원이라고 매도했다. 물론그렇기도 하지만, 한편 돈은 인류가 지닌 관용성의 정점이다. 돈은언어나 국법, 문화코드, 종교 신앙, 사회적 관습보다 더욱 마음이 열려 있다. 인간이 창조한 신뢰 시스템 중 유일하게 거의 모든 문화적간극을 메울 수 있다. 종교나 사회적 성별, 인종, 연령, 성적 지향을근거로 사람을 차별하지 않는 유일한 신뢰 시스템이기도 하다. 돈덕분에 서로 알지도 못하고 심지어 신뢰하지도 않는 사람들이 효율적으로 협력할 수 있다. - P266

그러므로 인간의 경제사는 미묘한 춤과 같다. 사람들은 이방인과의 수월한 협력을 위해서 돈에 의존하지만, 그것이 인간적 가치와친밀한 관계를 손상시킬까 봐 두려워한다. 한편으로는 그토록 오랜세월 동안 돈과 상업의 이동을 막아온 공동체라는 댐을 기꺼이 파괴하면서, 다른 한편으로는 사회와 종교와 환경이 시장의 노예가되지 않도록 막아줄 댐을 건설한다. - P268