Humankind: A Hopeful History
Rutger Bregman
From the author of Utopia For Realists, a revolutionary argument that the innate goodness and cooperation of human beings has been the greatest factor in our successIf one basic principle has served as the bedrock of bestselling author Rutger Bregman's thinking, it is that every progressive idea -- whether it was the abolition of slavery, the advent of democracy, women's suffrage, or the ratification of marriage equality -- was once considered radical and dangerous by the mainstream opinion of its time. With Humankind, he brings that mentality to bear against one of our most entrenched ideas: namely, that human beings are by nature selfish and self-interested. By providing a new historical perspective of the last 200,000 years of human history, Bregman sets out to prove that we are in fact evolutionarily wired for cooperation rather than competition, and that our instinct to trust each other has a firm evolutionary basis going back to the beginning of Homo sapiens. more
462 pages, Hardcover
First published Little, Brown and Company
4.33
Rating
59202
Ratings
6534
Reviews
Rutger Bregman
12 books 4337 followers
Rutger Bregman is a Dutch historian, author and journalist. He studied at Utrecht University and the University of California, Los Angeles and is known for popularizing topics related to social and economic innovation measures and their history through, among others, universal basic income and shorter work weeks.Rutger Bregman is a journalist at The Correspondent, and one of Europe's most prominent young thinkers. He has published four books on history, philosophy, and economics.
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Rutger Bregman studeerde aan de universiteit van Utrecht en Los Angeles, en doceerde aan de Universiteit van Utrecht. Hij schrijft voor nrc.next, Het Parool, de Volkskrant, Trouw en De Groene Amsterdammer.
Community reviews
You know that person who's always so happy no matter what. Maybe it's the colleague who is bright and cheery at 8:00 every Monday morning when everyone else is struggling just to open their eyes and get their third cup of coffee down. Or that really annoying person who always urges you to look on the bright side. Oh, your arm fell off. No worries, you have another. more
This books handles a subject I’ve always been interested in: how we become the stories we tell about ourselves. I’ve long been intrigued by Beem’s theory of personality, that our personality is a decision we make every day, and this book continues that conversation. Are humans actually bad, Bregman asks, or are they just becoming bad because we keep telling stories about how humans tend toward badness. What if we instead tell ourselves stories about all the times humans could have chosen selfishness & instead trended toward community. It’s an interesting book to read on the heels of Popular: The Power of Likability in a Status-Obsessed World, a book I just read on the psychology of popularity. more
Dit is een recensie die alleen over de stijl van De meeste mensen deugen gaat. Ik heb niets te zeggen over de inhoud, behalve dat ik het een interessant en onderhoudend boek vond, met name de analyses in grofweg de eerste helft van het boek. Maar qua stijl was ik helaas onaangenaam verrast. Zelden was ik het zo roerend eens met een column als die van hoogleraar Lotte Jensen in de Volkskrant (zie link onderaan). In deze column bekritiseert ze namelijk Rutger Bregmans non-fictie bestseller De meeste mensen deugen puur op het taalgebruik. more
I wish I hadn’t recently read Calling Bullshit. According to that book, I really ought to be applying the sharpest possible criticism to this book. The reason being that this book confirms so many of my own prejudices. In fact, I’ve used many of the arguments used here (and even the same examples) in my own life. For example, over the last few years I’ve been asked to give the opening lecture on the importance of literacy to undergrad education students at work. more
De Meeste Mensen Deugen, zegt Rutger Bregman. Ik heb het gesprek gezien met auteur Rutger Bregman (4 september 2019) in DWDD, waarin hij zijn boek presenteerde. Op basis daarvan heb ik het boek gekocht en gelezen. Matthijs van Nieuwkerk was heel enthousiast. Dat maakte mij nieuwsgierig maar ook op mijn hoede. more
To be honest, I picked up this book to hate-read it. I thought it would be more Pinker and and that Lars guy saying how everything is better now and will everyone just shut up sort of stuff. But I actually really loved the book--that is, I loved the first 2/3rds of the book. The last 1/3rd was way too cute and optimistic for my cold cynical heart. The book is not making the claim that Pinker is making. more
Some great stories, but anecdotes don't make a sustained argument and the whole isn't entirely convincing. Even so, it's the perfect time for a healthy dose of optimism and if there's anything this book does well it's showing how hope and positivity can breed more. So go forth and be the good you want to see in the world. You might just inspire others to do the same. ARC via Netgalley. more
Bregmans book is immensely populair at this moment in Holland. The central thesis is clear from the title, freely translated: Most people are OK. Bregmans, is a journalist and historic from Holland who gained fame by explicitering the need for tax reforms at Davos. In this book he argues that most people are OK in two different ways. 1. more
کتاب آدمی یک تاریخ نوید بخش، از همه لحاظ، چه از نظر ظاهری، مانند کیفیت کاغذ، جلد، صحافی، فونت و چه از نظر ویژگیهایی مانند محتوا (که هر پاراگراف آن رفرنس داشت) و ترجمه (مزدا موحد، فرهنگ نشر نو)، فوق العاده بود. از خواندنش بسیار لذت بردم و به شما هم توصیه میکنم. *********************************************************************عجیب است که از همه آرمانهایم دست برنداشتهام، چقدر بیربط و غیر عملی بهنظر میآیند. اما هنوز به آنها چنگ زدهام چون هنوز، با وجود همه آنچه رخ داده، باور دارم که مردم در کنه وجودشان خوب هستند آن فرانک (۱۹۲۹-۱۹۴۵). صفحه ۱۶۳ کتاببهعبارتدیگر، اگر بهاندازهی کافی به مردم فشار وارد کنی، اگر هل بدهی و سیخونک بزنی، تله بگذاری و دستکاری کنی، در واقع بیشتر ما توان انجام شرارت را داریم. more
An attempt to recast history to persuade us that humans are basically a kind, egalitarian co-operative breed who, left to themselves, would support one another in a non-violent way, only unfortunately we invented agriculture, and lots of oppressive negative power structures flowed from that. The problem with this is, we were left to ourselves and what we did was invent agriculture and embrace the resulting power structures. The basic thesis makes extraordinarily sweeping claims about what everyone in prehistory was like before the invention of agriculture. This includes the 'fact' that they didn't hit their kids or make them do any work to help out (. ), and a long list of traits needed to be chosen a leader 10,000 years ago ('charismatic, wise, tactful, humble'). more
The author totally outwitted Tucker Carlson, who lost his cool, and refused to air the episode. https://www. youtube. com/watch. v=6_nFI. more
Well, we gave him a shot. I really wanted to like Bregman and his hopeful history. While the book was highly entertaining, ultimately his approach is too simplistic, cherry-picked, and optimistic for my skeptical critical heart. On the upside, Bregman is a fantastic writer; you can easily get lost in his stories and his ability to weave his pop social science narrative together. At the same time, you have to appreciate his ambitions and intentions. more
If you wish to believe that people are naturally good but you can’t because of the counter examples in the news and you’ve been taught otherwise in history, sociology, and psychology school classes, then you need to read this book. This book makes a convincing case that humans are by nature friendly and peaceful creatures, and most of the counter examples are caused by pressures of civilization for which evolution of the human brain has left us ill-prepared. Bregman makes the case that a probable reason Homo sapiens prevailed during the prehistory era over Neanderthals, Denisovans, and Homo erectus is because we were hard-wired to be social, work in groups, and consider what’s best for the collective community. This predisposition worked well over many years while humans lived as hunter-gatherers. But these same tendencies led to violent behavior when subjected to the territorial concerns and concentrated populations of the civilized world. more
Op het eerste gezicht lijkt er weinig aan de hand te zijn met DMMD: het is zo'n degelijk theorie-van-alles boek waarin geschiedenis, filosofie, en wetenschap bij elkaar komen. Zo'n leerzame bestseller die je met plezier leest en daarna met trots op de boekenplank legt. Maar dat beeld verdwijnt snel als je door de eerste hoofdstukken heen bent gekomen. Mein Gott. , wat is de stijl van dit boek een drama. more
Meeslepend, verassend en leest als een trein; de boodschap is mooi maar soms miste ik in het laatste stuk van dit boek de nuance - 3. 5 sterCynisme is een ander woord voor luiheid. AlgemeenWat we geloven, is wat we worden. - We worden wat we onderwijzen. Rutger Bregman pakt in De meeste mensen deugen ons mensbeeld vast en toont dat er op veel van de toonaangevende onderzoeken uit de jaren 60 veel af te dingen is. more
I recommend reading this book if you read Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. Another good book. about humankind's history. more
بعد از خوندن این کتاب نتونستم ریویو شایستهای براش بنویسم. شاید برای این که خیلی زیاد بود و خیلی چیز توش بود و من نمیتونستم سر جمعشون کنم. فکر میکردم اگر صبر کنم اوکی میشه. ولی نشد و الان خیلی گذشته و حیفه که برای این کتاب هیچی ننویسم. این کتاب بسیار خواندنی و عالی بود به نظر من. more
This book has taken me nearly two months to read, not because it was difficult to read (it’s not, it’s beautifully written and translated) but because the ideas required quite so long to process fully. I don’t know if anyone has spoken to me in the last two months and NOT had me recommend this book to them wholeheartedly, even when I was only about a hundred pages in. It is like reading a book that confirms and reinforces, through meticulous research, discussion and sourcing, a secret truth I have wanted to believe, deep down, all along. But it took these two months, and I imagine much longer still, to begin dismantling the ideas society has ingrained in me. I can’t write a good review of this book because it would essentially mean rewriting the book. more
Als ich durch Zufall auf dieses Buch gestoßen bin, hat mich der Klappentext sofort neugierig gemacht. Bregman´s Hypothese, dass der Mensch im Grunde gut ist, fand ich spannend, da man doch meist eher den konträren Gedanken hegt und pflegt. Daher hoffte ich, dass dieses Buch in einer doch eher tragischen und schwierigen Zeit der Menschheit einem vielleicht Hoffnung geben kann. Anhand meiner Bewertung könnt ihr es schon vermuten: es hat mir Hoffnung gegeben. Bregman stützt seine Hypothese anhand von Beispielen und Studien aus der bisherigen Geschichte der Menschheit. more
An idealist can be right her whole life, and still be dismissed as naive. This book is intended to change that. Because what seems unreasonable, unrealistic, and impossible today, can turn out to be inevitable tomorrow. It is time for a new realism. It is time for a new view of humankind. more
I'm going to be honest: while reading this book I regularly was annoyed by the pedantic tone, the pastor's morals, the naive one-sidedness. Don’t misunderstand me: I find it quite refreshing that Bregman wants to counteract the cynical, pessimistic view of humanity and of current state of affairs, a negative view that is constantly fed by the news media and largely also by social media. But he makes the mistake of wanting to prove that. His discourse mainly consists of challenging some of the negative prejudices about humanity, for example through quite harsh criticism on famous experiments in the social sciences such as the Milgram experiment or the Stanford Prison experiment, or by debunking myths like the one of the mass murder on Easter Island. His story telling is captivating, in a smooth style and with some excitement as he pretends to be the first one who succeeds in revealing the truth. more
Rutger Bregman returns with one of the most anticipated nonfiction titles of the year. What makes this such a fantastic read is that it is equal parts fascinating and informative; many such books can be dry and tedious but Humankind avoids those pitfalls by employing a highly readable writing style to entice you to carry on turning the pages well into the night. At its heart, this is a book about human nature and on the whole is optimistic about life. I found it different from what I would usually read as I am quite the cynic and it has taught me interesting anecdotal tidbits I will remember. Highly recommended. more
انسان به ذات ودرفعل وعمل خود،مشتاق خیرومهراست. این جمله خلاصه وعصاره تمام کتاب روتخر برخمان پژوهشگر هلندی در حوزه جامعه شناسی وشهروندی است. در قرون گذشته و براساس نظریه و باور اکثر فیلسوفان ومتفکران غربی همچون توماس هابز انسان دارای خصلت سودجویی و ونفع شخصی ومتمایل به شرهست واگر در جایی وزمانی در طول حیات و جوامع بشری اعمال مهرورزی وکمک به همنوع کرده در جهت التیام وتسکین موقتی درون خویش هست وبویی از انسانیت وسرشت پاک نبرده است. در مقابل این فرضیه وباور،گروهی اندکی از فیلسوفان همچون ژان ژاک روسو معتقد و باور داشتند که انسان واعمال او درطول تاریخ بشر واز بدو تولد به سمت مهربانی و سرشت پاک ونیکی سوق وتمایل دارد. نویسنده با بیان این دونظریه وبررسی ا��فاقات مهم وتاثیر گذار در طول تاریخ مانند صلح موقت در کریسمس ١٩١٥ و در میدان جنگ بین ارتش بریتانیا و آلمان در بحبوحه جنگ جهانی اول، واقعه آشویتس وبررسی روانشناسی عاملان دستور این جنایت هولناک،اتحاد احزاب و گروههای سیاسی آفریقای جنوبی به رهبری ماندلا در آخرین سالهای قرن بیستم وبسیار موارد دیگر با منابع و رفرنس های نسبتاً معتبر فرضیه و باور نیک ورزی ومهرانسان را حقیقی وواقعی می داند. more
1. 5 starsNever been happier to finish a book. "What we look for is what we'll find", says Bregman. Hmm, could that be the case with his book and his "research". He seems to want to sell his idea so (too) badly that he foregoes any scrutiny or nuance. more
3. 5 stars. Soothing balm for cynical bastards. Look for the bad and that's all you'll see. Look for the good and you'll find it. more
احتمالا یکی از منفیترین ریویوهاییه که تا حالا نوشتم:این کتاب تاریخ نیستبیشتر یه کتاب انگیزشیه که یه مقدار مثال از گذشته هم دارهحرف نویسنده اینه که انسان بالذات خوبه و اگر به نظر ما اینطور نیست به این خاطره که از دید اشتباهی به قضیه نگاه میکنیم و رسانههای جمعی، سیاستمدارهای خودخواه و غیره هم به این نگاه دامن زدندمن درباره نتیجهگیری و اصل حرف نویسنده نظری ندارم هر چند خیلی باهاش همدل نیستماما مشکل من با این نیست بلکه با استدلالها و نحوه مواجهه نویسنده با موضوعاتیه که قراره بهش بپردازهنویسنده سعی کرده در کتابی که به زور 500 صفحه هم نیست گونه بشر رو رفتارشناسی کنهاما این لقمه بشدت بزرگتر از دهنشهمسائلی که در کتاب مطرح شده در یک کلمه "سطحی" هستندنویسنده مرتبا سعی داره با زدن یه سری مثالهای خاص اونا رو به تمام جنبههای رفتار انسانی تعمیم بده و نقش عوامل دیگه رو کلا نادیده بگیرهبماند که خود این مثالها دچار اشکالات عدیده هستندبعضی از بیخ پرتاند (برای مثال عدم موفقیت نازیها برای کشتار کامل یهودیان دانمارک)، بعضی مغالطهآمیزاند و بعضی هم کمی تغییر داده شدند تا با نتیجهگیری نویسنده تطبیق پیدا کنند (برای مثال روایت نویسنده از آزمایش میلگرام)جالب اینجاست که نویسنده خودش هم در چند جای کتاب تلویحا اشاره میکنه که نتیجه رو گرفته و بعد براش دنبال شواهد گشتهاین وسطها گاهی گریزی هم به روسو میزنه و فریاد "آی پیدایش حکومت و مالکیت خصوصی ما را بیچاره کرد" سر میدهدر آخر هم یه "ده فرمان" (جدی) ارائه میده که باهاش زندگیمون بهتر میشهحقیقتش دیگه ده فرمان رو تا آخر نخوندمهمه اینها رو بگذارید در کنار اینکه نویسنده هیچ تلاشی نکرده حداقل لحن جانبدارانه نداشته باشه کما اینکه طبیعتا تلاشی برای برشمردن و تحلیل استدلال مخالفین هم نکرده (خیلی کم بهش پرداخته اما همه "استرا من" هست یعنی استدلال مخالفین رو به احمقانهترین سطح کاهش داده و بعد اونو رد کرده)حالا بعد این همه نفرتپراکنی :) آیا کتاب نکته مثبتی هم داره؟ آره دو سه داستان خوب هم داخلش گنجونده شده که خب فکر کنم شما در همون تایم یه نوشته دیگه رو بخونید احتمالش زیاده که همین نصیبتون بشهدر مجموع خوشحالم کتاب رو از طاقچه گرفتم و پول کمی بابتش دادم وگرنه اگر به قیمت پشت جلد گرفته بودم واقعا خودم رو فحش میدادم. more
Some books reach you at the right time and this book did exactly that. To be fair, the right time for a book offering a hopeful, optimistic view of humankind to reach me wasn’t that small of a window – I’ve been noticing how I, an usually optimistic person in my day-to-day-life, have become increasingly cynical when it comes to my fellow humans. And… can you blame me, in this economy, this pandemic, this global climate crisis, this political turmoil, etc. etc. etc. more
De eeuwige discussie tussen Rousseau en Hobbs is een interessant uitgangspunt. Is de mens van nature goed en is het de beschaving die ons corrumpeert, of hebben we juist die beschaving nodig om onze slechte oerdriften te beteugelen. Als je je boek een titel als deze geeft, mag het natuurlijk geen twijfel zijn dat Bregman zich ferm in het kamp van Rousseau plaatst: de mens is van nature goed (wat hij de Homo Puppy noemt) en de mensheid heeft tot nu toe alles verkeerd aangepakt door juist van het slechte van de mens uit te gaan. Zijn redenaties zijn me hier en daar wel heel erg kort door de bocht: zo zou het vertroetelen van gevangen alle problemen oplossen, was volgens hem de Eerste Wereldoorlog al tijdens de Kerst van 1914 al afgelopen zijn als de Duitsers en de Engelsen in het niemandsland tussen de loopgraven hun potje voetbal hadden mogen afmaken en het enige wat je hoeft te doen om te voorkomen dat iemand naar Syrie afreist om daar voor de IS te gaan vechten, is een kopje thee met hem te drinken. Ik kreeg het idee dat Bregman vooral zelf heel graag wilde dat zijn ’theorie’ zou kloppen. more