Sapiens Themes

In Sapiens, author Yuval Noah Harari questions the idea that humans (Homo sapiens, or Sapiens) are evolution’s biggest success story. Humans are more populous and industrious than we’ve ever been, which suggests—at least on the surface—that we’re thriving as a species. However, Harari contends that most humans suffer as societies expand. Even though ancient foragers faced difficulties like high child mortality rates and fearsome predators, Harari thinks humanity’s ancient ancestors actually endured…

In Sapiens, author and historian Yuval Noah Harari argues that humankind’s early ancestors, Homo sapiens, conquered the world 70,000 years ago because of a newfound ability to imagine—and collectively believe in—fictional realities, which he calls “imagined orders” (e.g., myths, religions, and concepts like “money” or “nation”). To Harari, believing in the same fictions or stories about how the world works enables people who wouldn’t otherwise know or trust each other to…

In speculating about humanity’s ancient past, Sapiens author Yuval Noah Harari argues that humans are the Earth’s deadliest species. Harari thinks humanity’s ancestors, Homo sapiens, evolved advanced cognitive skills so suddenly that they jumped to the top of the food chain before the rest of the ecosystem had to time to recalibrate to the new threat. Harari contends that Homo sapiens killed off at least six other human species (including Neanderthals), drove more animal…