Talk to The Better Angels of Our Nature like its author wrote you back.
Get the ideas that fit your life — not generic summaries.
- Chat with the book
- Audiobook-style main ideas
- Adapts to your life and goals
- Helps you take action
What it argues
The Better Angels of Our Nature is Steven Pinker's argument, supported by extensive historical and statistical data, that human violence has declined dramatically over long time periods and that this decline is real, not an artifact of reporting or perception. The thesis is counterintuitive: most people believe the twentieth century was the most violent in history, and most people believe the world is getting more violent. Pinker argues both beliefs are wrong.
The case is built in layers. Prehistoric and early historical societies were substantially more violent than modern ones: archaeological evidence of interpersonal violence, combined with ethnographic data from hunter-gatherer and tribal societies, suggests that several percent of all deaths in pre-state societies were caused by other people. State formation reduced that rate dramatically by creating monopolies on force and systems of deterrence. Medieval European homicide rates were ten to fifty times higher than modern ones. Judicial torture was routine; public execution was entertainment. The decline of these practices was real and measurable.
What it gets right
- 1.
Violence per capita has declined over long historical timescales, from prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies through the present. This decline is real and measurable, even if the twentieth century appears violent in absolute terms.
- 2.
State formation dramatically reduced interpersonal violence by creating monopolies on force and predictable systems of deterrence and punishment.
- 3.
The decline of state torture, public execution, and gladiatorial entertainment reflects a genuine expansion of the moral circle — the set of beings whose suffering is considered to matter.
What it covers
Who wrote it
Steven Pinker is the Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. His research focuses on language, cognition, and the evolution of the mind. His books include The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, Enlightenment Now, and Rationality. The Better Angels of Our Nature received the outstanding book award from the Association for Psychological Science and was named one of the best books of 2011 by numerous publications. Pinker is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Institute of Canada.
