 “Guns Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies” was written in 1997 by Jared Diamond. Diamond was awarded the Pulitzer the following year for this book, as well as the Aventis Prize for Best Science Book. This is a great book that explains why Eurasian civilizations have survived and conquered others. The author concludes that Eurasian societies had tools that other societies lacked both in the thing itself and in a response to them: guns, germs, and steel.
Diamond immediately discounts that Eurasian intellect, moral, or genetic superiority could be factors. Rather, Diamond explains how the gaps in power and technology between societies originate in environmental differences. Some geographical regions are rich in natural metals, while others are completely devoid of such metals.
Diamond’s entire quest was fueled by a conversation he had with a friend and native of New Guinea. The man asked Diamond why he (the white man) had so much, yet the New Guineans had so little. Most people might come back with a quick answer, such as Wal-Mart, or access to currency. Others might ponder it for a day or two and come back with some kind of argument that had to do with personal will and technology. But Diamond took the question to heart, wondering why we have so much and they so little? The book, and the research that led up to the book, are the answers.
If you look at a map, practically all of the superpowers that ever existed lie north of the equator. Even more specifically, the superpowers that conquered so many civilizations lie in similar latitudes.
As Diamond illustrates, weapons led to immediate military superiority and control. Ambitious European conquerors throughout history have triumphed over populations, even when drastically outnumbered. Most civilizations that were conquered could not compete with guns; a bow and arrow was no match for a rifle that could be shot from a farther distance and drop a man dead.
European diseases further weakened local populations. Europeans, who had spent hundreds of years in close proximity to their livestock (it was not uncommon for cows, sheep, chickens, and humans to sleep under the same roof), grew immunity to many germs that animals carried. The conquered populations, however, lacked immunity against such germs.
Finally, Diamond argues, centralized government promoted nationalism, wielding incredibly powerful military strength. The upper hands of guns, germs, and steel are the basis of Diamond’s book.
The advantages of guns, germs, and steel that these societies had were coupled with the environmental advantages of their geographical region. Farming played a significant role, both with the domestication of animals and with agriculture.
Furthermore, the societies that conquered and controlled, as previously mentioned, came from similar latitudes and climates. As a result, a migrating society successfully moved to a new climate that welcomed the same crops and animals, unlike the Polynesians who migrated to Hawaii, where they nearly perished because crops did not grow as fast or as abundant, thanks to the cooler weather of the more northern islands.
This book is fascinating, and, is one of the greenest reads around because it connects all of the dots and enables its readers to make sense of why Americans consume so much, and, in turn, are willing to sacrifice the environment for the sake of progress, consumption, or efficiency.
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