Humankind - A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman
A beautiful book that categorically proves the innate kindness and bountiful goodness within all human beings
Hi, I’m Sue and I write about the beauty and ingenuity of Nature, and how we can deepen our connection for our optimum health and wellbeing. Discover more Nature-inspired content on Spiral Leaf, Twitter and my video Nature Channel.
There are so few books celebrating the innate goodness, inherent ingenuity and infinite resourcefulness of human beings. That is why this book written by Rutger Bregman was a pleasure to find. It categorically proves a wonderful fact of life with many superb examples throughout, making it an informative resource and a pleasure to read.
Why this book?
It's true that certain books appear when it's the right time to read them.
I bought Humankind a few years ago, put it on my bookshelf and promised to get back to it. I was enticed by the heartwarming testimonials on the back cover such as: 'How would your life and view of the world change if you knew people were good?'
It was only when I moved house a few months before the lockdown that I picked it up to read and I knew it was being presented to me as one of those books that I needed to read exactly then. It brought me a lot of comfort and hope at the time about the strength and love inherent in human beings and this is as important to know now and it was then.
I felt it was a good time to share this with you here and I hope it will be helpful.
What is it about?
Humankind is a well researched book written by historian and writer, Rutger Bregman, who lives in Holland. Rutger challenges the notion that civilisation is no more than skin deep by exposing the myth that by nature, human beings are selfish, aggressive and quick to panic.
Nothing, in fact, could be farther from the truth when such claims are made on the back of spurious research, manipulated experiments and/or pure fantasy. It’s a tactic known as Veneer Theory identified by a Dutch biologist, Frans de Waal.
There are examples of Veneer Theory throughout the book where wholly negative and unpleasant views of human nature are presented. These are not only untrue but dangerous for humanity as a whole, specially when they are used as a basis for government policy.
We see the result of this misconception all around us today, and as a sweet antidote, Rutger provides many opposing stories and hidden bona fide research proving the opposite of these false claims to be true.
What is the main premise?
Humankind presents a radical idea that most people, deep down, are pretty decent.
It poses the question of what kind of planet we would prefer to live on (in the context of what people might do in the event of a plane crash).
Would it be:
A - where people help those needing assistance out of the plane first, showing a willingness to give their life for perfect strangers, or
B - where people panic and fend for themselves, trampling those in need of assistance under foot.
Rutger makes the case that although 97 percent of people think we live on Planet B, in almost every case, we actually live on Planet A.
The sinking of the Titanic provides a good example when the block-buster film is compared to what actually happened in that most terrifying situation. Far from the dramatised panic, people were in fact quite orderly and considerate, working together and helping those most in need of assistance first.
Block-buster films, books and documentaries that falsify tragic events like these, presenting them as real-life stories, are a clear example of Veneer Theory being used to mislead people about the fundamental and benevolent tenets of human nature.
What are the main points discussed?
Humankind begins with two intriguing stories that demonstrate Veneer Theory in action leaving no question of its validity in terms of the difference between what goes on and what we are told about these things. One of these stories is so wonderful and powerful, I have written a separate post about it which I will share here soon.
There are five sections as follows: where we are now (The State of Nature); the impact of two World Wars (after Auschwitz); how power corrupts (Why Good People Turn Bad); and how we treat each other (The Other Cheek).
The Epilogue presents '10 Rules to Live By' which are helpful in framing a positive state of mind and encouraging us all to be kind to ourselves and each other which is what humanity needs most right now.
These are my favourite rules which I think we could all benefit from during such turbulent times:
When in doubt, assume the best
Think in win-win scenarios
Ask more questions
Temper your empathy, train your compassion
Try to understand the other, even if you don't get where they're coming from
Come out of the closet, don't be ashamed to do good
Avoid the news (and other mainstream media)
What are the key highlights?
This book contains a great deal of good news for humankind with some examples as follows:
New kids on the block
An all new and improved version of the Lord of the Flies completely debunks the idea that children left alone to survive and look after themselves on a desert island results in rivalry and carnage.
It shows how entirely made-up stories about human nature were heavily publicised as truth and subsequently translated into unproven, pseudo facts.We can see the long-term effects of this deception all around us today.
By way of comparison, Rutger presents a little known incident of a group of real boys who were deserted on an island for over a year leading to an altogether different outcome.
This is such a remarkable story, I have written about in a separate post - The True Story of the Lord of the Flies - here on Substack.
Men against fire
Our impressions of what happens in wars turns out to be a misconception and puts the business of fighting wars into an entirely different perspective.
Numerous accounts come to the conclusion that most soldiers never fired their guns and that fear of aggression appears to be the normal part of our emotional make-up.
For example, most soldiers would aim too high to avoid killing their fellow man whatever side they were fighting for with practically all the injuries and fatalities being caused by other means.
Christmas between the lines
I think we are all aware of the remarkable morale shown by war torn victims on both sides of the equation during the war, in particular the London and Dresden bombings.
I wasn't aware of a similarly endearing story about the English and the Germans dropping their weapons on the front lines and coming together to celebrate Christmas together, sharing cigarettes and chocolate, showing each other photographs of their loved ones and wondering what they were all doing there and what they were fighting for.
I can't imagine what the conditions must have been like and it's another clear example of what human beings are truly made of.
Managing (people) is bullsh*t
This is interesting, especially as we move closer to the time when we need to be managing ourselves and not others or each other.
I know from my staff motivation survey facilitation days that when people have all the information they need to make informed decisions, the training they need to learn what they need to know, the resources they need to carry out their work to a high standard with support available if required, they do not need to be managed. Indeed, being micro-managed is recognised as being highly demotivating, having a negative impact on job satisfaction.
A good example of this is provided with the story of Jos de Blok who built a highly successful healthcare organisation by simply 'letting people do their job.'
This completely throws the capitalist/communism idea of having to use a carrot and stick approach out of the window. It also knocks Frederick Taylor's idea on the head that workers need enforced supervision from management and that 'what they want most from their employers, beyond anything else, is high wages.'
Where most corporate employers seem to be cut off from the real world in this regard, Jos sees his employees as 'intrinsically motivated professionals and experts who have no need for managers.'
It is true that the greater the autonomy for everyone involved, the greater the win-win-win situation for employer, employee and the organisation as a whole.
Made to believe (make-believe)
This is the exposure and significance of famous experiments which were designed and manipulated (sometimes to horrific degrees) to bring out the worst in people. These include 'The Prison Experiment' in Stanford University's basement and the Stanley Milgram 'Shock Experiments.'
Other such machinations demonstrate how our attitude towards ourselves and other human beings has been corrupted by this kind of spurious science which has so disasterously influenced our society and is still so prevelent in our world today.
Many examples of the counter arguments are given throughout the book which has no less than 54 pages of 'notes' or references. This gives us all the evidence we need to understand and celebrate the intrinsic goodness of Human Nature and the fact that human beings are essentially good people at heart.
What are the best takeaways?
Apart from the '10 Rules to Live by' above, I would add the following insights that might be helpful in the situation we find ourselves in today.
Supportive Culture
Human beings depend on and are motivated by our immediate and wider living environments, impacted by the quality of the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and other essential resources we need to live a healthy, happy and fulfilling life - in harmony with ourselves, each other and the natural world we so depend on.
Natural Healing
Human DNA is programmed to be flexible so that it can adapt to the environment we find ourselves in as babies in the womb and newborns through puberty and adulthood. The good news is that whatever we have suffered in the past can be fully and completely healed when we are exposed to a nurturing and supportive environment (or culture) at anytime in our lives.
Sticking Together
Human beings are particularly resourceful, compassionate and helpful towards each other during a crisis, quickly coming together to contribute skills, knowledge and information to help everyone come through the ordeal together.
Avoiding Media
If a so-called based on true life story becomes a block-buster or goes viral it could be a clear sign that it may not be the truth but rather skewed to present the most unfavourable impression of human nature using Veneer Theory. This aligns very well with the last of my favourite '10 Rules to Live By' which is to 'avoid the news (and mainstream media)' as much as possible.
Being Responsible
Human beings are sociable animals which is something very well understood by our Indigenous friends and hunter-gather societies back in the days when, to be elected as leader for the tribe, you had to be:
Generous
Brave
Wise
Charismatic
Fair
Impartial
Reliable
Tactful
Strong
Humble
It is clear and well proven that humankind is innately kind, conscientious and resouceful. With this in mind, we can un-learn and re-learn how we can best live, work and play together in peace and harmony.
We do need to take back control of our lives. We need to support each other and give each other the benefit of the doubt as we are all at different stages in our journey and no one has the same experience.It doesn’t mean being managed by anyone, it means being empowered and enabled to successfully manage ourselves.
Thank you for reading, I look forward to seeing you again soon.
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Humankind - A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman
Further reading
Debunking a work of fiction to replace it with a real story that speaks of the beauty and ingenuity of Human Nature
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