Bregman is not naive; he grounds his arguments in reassessments of historical events and in studies from the sciences and social sciences, observing that the preponderance of evidence demonstrates that people are much more inclined toward good than toward evil. He debunks a number of long-held beliefs ... Bregman presents his findings in a chatty, engaging style that evokes Malcolm Gladwell. As in Gladwell’s work, there is a cherry-picked quality to the information he presents. There is also a fair amount of generalization and oversimplification ... Additionally, Bregman tosses off some claims that seem unfounded ... Despite its flaws, Humankind is an enjoyable and thought-provoking read, one whose bold argument has potentially far-reaching implications for how we run our governments, workplaces, schools, and correctional facilities.
Bregman has a Gladwellian gift for sifting through academic reports and finding anecdotal jewels. And, like the Canadian populariser, he’s not afraid to take his audience on a digressive journey of discovery ... despite the almost bewildering array of characters and information, Bregman never loses sight of his central thesis ... There’s a great deal of reassuring human decency to be taken from this bold and thought-provoking book and a wealth of evidence in support of the contention that the sense of who we are as a species has been deleteriously distorted. But it seems equally misleading to offer the false choice of Rousseau and Hobbes when, clearly, humanity encompasses both ... There will always be a battle between our altruistic and selfish instincts, our openness and our protectiveness – it is the very stuff of human drama. Still, if the devil has all the best tunes, it makes a welcome change to read such a sustained and enjoyable tribute to our better natures.
Releasing a book with the subtitle 'a hopeful history' during a pandemic that has led to thousands of deaths, put millions out of work and threatens to undermine the global financial system, is a brave choice...But Dutch historian Rutger Bregman’s latest work has enough research and anecdotes to make even Hobbesian cynics feel a little less jaded about humanity — even if they may not be fully convinced by every anecdote or example that he offers ... Bregman’s attacks on the consensus around our nature are often delivered with aplomb and evidence ... Even when the stories covered are not novel, Bregman successfully ties them into an overarching narrative that, on balance, humanity is not so bad ... The writing is not without fault. Bregman has a tendency to grandstanding, particularly in his introduction. Labelling his central thesis as a 'mind-bending drug' feels more than a little unnecessary. His claim that 'to stand up for human goodness is to take a stand against the powers that be' also feels unnecessary, not least at a time when conspiracy theories about globalist elites are rife ... But Humankind is engaging enough to overlook these moments. Certainly, it is hard not to feel a greater sense of hope after reading the statistics on how hard it is to make soldiers want to kill their opponent ... in some ways these are redundant: the story of humanity woven into the book is sufficient to suggest a healthy way forward. Whether or not it is a truly 'new realism' is a point for debate. But Bregman’s examples offer a more caring ideal for how to perceive the world, a concept that is only going to seem more relevant in years to come.
... [a] stimulating treatise on reshaping society, which arrives at a good moment for two reasons. The first is that the coronavirus crisis has largely displayed people at their best, while its impact has made many yearn for a more optimistic vision of the future. ... It’s a bold case that might seem delusional...[Bregman] makes his argument with panache, however, roving millennia to use evidence from hunter-gatherer societies and modern examples, while taking on the theories of writers such as Richard Dawkins and Steven Pinker ... There’s plenty of entertainment along the way in his snappy phrasing ... Some weaknesses creep in. Bregman wrongly claims that ideology played 'a remarkably small role' in jihadists joining Islamic State; a suspiciously precise quote about a murder comes from a book criticised for its dramatised scenes; an assertion that playgrounds with slides and swings are 'a child’s nightmare' is bizarre ... Nonetheless, many will sympathise with Bregman’s support for creativity in education, the removal of healthcare bureaucracy and greater autonomy in the workplace — all of which he believes can come from trusting more. Another concluding recommendation is to learn compassion through meditation. Bregman admits this sounds 'New-Agey' and there’s that feel to some of this book ... Some will regard that as a warning. But maybe he’s right...Either way, as societies contemplate new ways of living in a post-coronavirus world, Bregman has given us much to consider.
Bregman sprints at a breakneck pace around history and science ... Bregman is far from the first sceptic to unpick and ridicule these landmark projects in social psychology...But Bregman handily, and enjoyably, draws up a damning charge-sheet against the Wicked Humans hypothesis and its propagators. Crucially, he shows that such experiments won fame just as a full understanding of the Holocaust and other genocides took root everywhere. In the reputedly carefree 1960s, the nightmares of the century finally hit home, and the verdict on humankind turned sour ... Bregman seldom lingers long enough for doubt and ambiguity to seed ... However heart-warming, this scattergun anecdotalism will hardly convert the sort of heavyweight thinker (the likes of Jared Diamond, Steven Pinker and Richard Dawkins) whom this book sets out to challenge and rebut...That said, Bregman is zestfully good company from first to last. His cheekily entertaining, seductively readable prose finds perfect champions in his translators, Elizabeth Manton and Erica Moore. Meanwhile, his insistence on the solid realism of kindness, compassion and solidarity – with their roots deep in the early growth and flourishing of our species – does offer a more credible account of 'the resilience of humankind' than the lurid 'killer ape' precepts and their reflections in hyper-individualist politics or economics. And, right now, as mutual care and shared responsibility alone promise a way out of global emergency, it certainly looks as if Bregman and his allies stand on the right side of history.
... lively and illuminating ... Bregman argues convincingly that the dominant assumptions about behaviour in modern capitalism are upside down. They start from a belief that the default position of humanity is nasty selfishness and that we therefore respond only to threats and rewards. In fact the default is the opposite: most people behave well in most circumstances. Good management should be about creating the conditions in which they can get on with doing so...Even a few months ago this might have seemed, as Bregman claims, 'a radical idea'. The coronavirus crisis has made it blindingly obvious. Under its pressure, 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.
... coherent, well-proven ... The best thing about Bregman's book is that it doesn't just present you with his optimistic conclusions, fully formed. It takes you on his personal journey, from believing (and teaching) many of society's shibboleths about inherent evil to systematically tearing each one apart with evidence.
... has many quotable quotes on every page, and is full of powerful aphorisms drawn from the history of political thought ... Bregman’s style is sometimes irritatingly chatty and repetitive, as if he were talking to someone with a limited attention-span who won’t tolerate any discourse not peppered with daft analogies and cheery personal anecdotes. The thoroughness of his demolition-job is impressive, though, as he sweeps aside example after example of the stories we tell ourselves in order to uphold the myth of our own wickedness ... In detail, its deconstructions of some of the 'truths' we have been told about human nature are often fascinating; as riveting as any thriller, and probably deeply necessary, in trying to shift our politics onto new and more productive ground ... In outline, though, this is a long book pointing out what should, in any rational world, be absolutely obvious: that human beings can do evil, but most of the time do not; that we can seek war, but tend, in the vast majority, to prefer peace; that we are sometimes motivated by greed and self-interest, but more often by a simple need to be involved with other people, and to be liked and accepted by them.
... a passionate plea for a radical revision of our view of mankind and a call to collective behavioral change ... Bregman’s conclusion is as simple as it is daring. Even in the face of unspeakable evil, the Dutch historian clings onto man’s fundamental kindness and instead blames acts of anthropological sabotage. The daringness of his conclusion also invites further questioning, however ... offers mountains of evidence for man’s essentially social nature, his role as a homo cooperans. All this evidence, however, ultimately evokes a paralyzing question: why does politics exist? If all human questions can be traced back to matters of personal morality, why do humans persist in the harmful habit of engaging in politics? ... Through 300 pages of hopefulness it is precisely this political dimension which goes missing from Bregman’s tract. However useful his role in educating readers on the injustices of Western tax system, America’s prison archipelagos or the dangerous myths of right-wing economics, Humankind ends in general indecision ... With these recommendations, Bregman’s book reveals itself as a self-help guide for readers eager to work with their renewed faith in humanity. What this might mean for one’s party membership, voting choices, religious denomination, organizational preferences, or leadership positions is left to the discretion of the reader. Politics is the exclusive terrain for politicians, students of Thomas Hobbes who only see evil in our world. Perhaps this is also a major reason why Humankind has such a hard time explaining to us why, if humans are indeed kind, we still live in anything but the kindest of worlds.
Like most big-idea books, this one begins by absurdly overstating the novelty of its argument ... a polemic in the high Gladwellian style and so aims to be a simple lesson overturning our allegedly preconceived ideas, with the help of carefully selected study citations and pseudo-novelistic scenes from the blitz and other teachable stories ... Such anecdotes are heartwarming, but perhaps you want more evolutionary meat ... inconsistencies bedevil the book, particularly in its argument (again following Rousseau) that the great tragedy of human history was the invention of agriculture and cities around 10,000 years ago ... here, unless he owns a time machine, he is simply making things up. And cherry-picking his evidence again ... At length, Bregman’s wilfully Edenic view of prehistoric society prompts the reader to wonder why, if he loves the hunter-gatherer lifestyle so much, he doesn’t go and live there ... plainly the attempt to replace a story about humans’ essential wickedness with a contrasting story about humans’ essential loveliness has already run aground – as it was bound to, since any claim that complex human beings are essentially one single thing or another is a fairytale.
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.
... intriguing ... [Bergman] 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.
