The Better Angels of Our Nature
 | |
| Author | Steven Pinker |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Viking Books |
Publication date | 2011 |
| Pages | 832 |
| ISBN | 978-0-670-02295-3 |
| OCLC | 707969125 |
| 303.609 PINKER | |
| LC Class | HM1116 .P57 2011 |
The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined is a 2011 book by Steven Pinker arguing that violence in the world, especially the western part, has declined both in the long run and in the short. He also suggests explanations of why this has happened.[1] It has been nominated for the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books for 2012.[2]
The phrase "the better angels of our nature" stems from the last words of Lincoln's first inaugural address.
Influences
Because of the highly interdisciplinary nature of the book Pinker uses a wide range of sources from many different fields. Particular attention is drawn to thinkers such as Thomas Hobbes who Pinker argues has been undervalued. Pinker's use of 'un-orthodox' thinkers follows directly from his observation that the data on violence contradicts our current expectations. In an earlier work Pinker characterised the general misunderstanding concerning Hobbes:
Hobbes is commonly interpreted as proposing that man in a state of nature was saddled with an irrational impulse for hatred and destruction. In fact his analysis is more subtle, and perhaps even more tragic for he showed how the dynamics of violence fall out of interactions among rational and self-interested agents.[3]
Pinker also relies upon the sometimes bypassed thought of more contemporary political scientists/theorists; for example the works of political scientist John Mueller and sociologist Norbert Elias, among others. The extent of Elias' influence on Pinker can be adduced from the title of Chapter 3 of The Better Angels of Our Nature, which is taken from the title of Elias' seminal The Civilizing Process.[4] Pinker also draws upon the work of international relations scholar Joshua Goldstein, and both have co-written a New York Times op-ed article titled 'War Really Is Going Out of Style' that summarises many of their shared views.[5] Both authors also appeared together at Harvard's Institute of Politics to answer questions from academics and students concerning their similar thesis'.[6]
Reception
Positive
Peter Singer positively reviewed The Better Angels of Our Nature in The New York Times.[7] Singer concludes: "[It] is a supremely important book. To have command of so much research, spread across so many different fields, is a masterly achievement. Pinker convincingly demonstrates that there has been a dramatic decline in violence, and he is persuasive about the causes of that decline."[7]
Negative
John N. Gray gave a critical review of the book in Prospect.[8] Elizabeth Kolbert wrote a critical review in The New Yorker,[9] to which Pinker posted a reply.[10] Ben Laws gave a critical review published on CTheory.Net [11]
Edward Herman of the University of Pennsylvania, together with David Peterson, has written a lengthy, scathing criticism of the book.[12]
References
- ^ Smith, Jordan Michael (October 20, 2011). "The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved November 16, 2011.
- ^ "Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books Longlist 2012 Announced". The Royal Society. June 16, 2012. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
- ^ Pinker, Steven, The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature (Penguin: 2002), p. 318
- ^ Elias, Norbert, The Civilizing Process, Vol.I. The History of Manners, (Oxford: Blackwell, 1969), and The Civilizing Process, Vol.II. State Formation and Civilization, (Oxford: Blackwell, 1982).
- ^ Goldstein & Pinker,'War Really Is Going Out of Style', New York Times, December 17th 2011
- ^ "Is War on the Way Out?". Harvard University Institute of Politics. February 1, 2012.
- ^ a b Singer, Peter 'Is Violence History?' New York Times, October 6, 2011.
- ^ Gray, John "Delusions of peace" Prospect, September 21, 2011.
- ^ Kolbert, Elizabeth (October 3, 2011). "Peace In Our Time: Steven Pinker's History of Violence in Decline". The New Yorker.
- ^ Pinker, Steven (November 2011). "Frequently Asked Questions about The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined".
- ^ Laws, Ben (March 21, 2012). "Against Pinker's Violence". Ctheory.
- ^ http://www.zcommunications.org/reality-denial-steven-pinkers-apologetics-for-western-imperial-volence-by-edward-s-herman-and-david-peterson-1
External links
An Executive Summary of 'The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined' January 28, 2012