Lessons Of History: Book Notes
By Will & Ariel Durant.
I. The First Lesson of History
The first lesson of history is modesty. At any moment a comet could destroy Earth in an instant.
“When the universe has crushed him man will still be nobler than that which kills him, because he knows that he is dying, and of its victory the universe knows nothing.”—Blaise Pascal (1654)
History is subject to geology. Generations of men before us have established a growing mastery over the earth. But the influence of geographic factors diminish as technology grows. Man, not the earth, create civilizations.
But in the end, we’re all still destined to become fossils in the soil.
II. Technology
Science & technology has changed more in the last 200 years than in the previous 10,000 years. To quote Charles Péguy:
“The world changed less since Jesus Christ than in the last thirty years.”
Technology moves faster than man has time to evolve. As a result, all technological advances are merely new means of achieving old ends.
Further, technology is powerful—but neutral.
(i) It can kill more quickly than it can heal.
(ii) It can destroy more quickly than it can build.
Today, we can consume information from anyone across the globe via the internet. Yet sometimes we envy our ancestors, whose peace was only disturbed by the news of their small village.1
“Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical midgets.” — Omar Bradley
III. Morality
A universally accepted moral code is necessary for civilization. Religion and Communism are like two buckets in a well. When one goes down the other goes up.
Religion prevails during periods when the law is weak and morals must bear the burden of maintaining social order.
Communism prevails as the rising power of the law permits the decline of the church, the family, and morality without endangering the stability of the state.
There is no significant example in human history (before now) of a society successfully maintaining moral life without religion.
IV. How Civilizations Collapse
Civilizations begin, flourish, decline, and disappear.
What are the causes of growth? The agency of creative individuals with clarity of mind and energy of will—capable of responding to new situations with good ideas to progress civilization forward.
What are the causes of decay? A failure of leadership may allow a state to weaken itself with internal strife. A decisive defeat in war typically brings the final blow.
V. War
Every year some new invention, method, or situation compels a fresh adjustment of behavior and ideas.
War accelerates this trend.
In the last 3,421 years of recorded history only have 268 have seen no war. Peace is rare.
When a nation dies from war, man picks up and moves on. With it, he brings his memories with him, and he establishes a new home elsewhere.
VI. Population Growth
War is one way Mother Nature restores balance to a growing population. The other two ways are famine and pestilence. In his Essay on Population (1798), Thomas Malthus explained that:
“Without these periodic checks, the birth rate would so far exceed the death rate that the multiplication of mouths would nullify any increase in the production of food.”
VII. Economics
Every economic system must rely upon some form of the profit motive to stir individuals to productivity.
More complex economies put a premium on superior ability—thus intensifying the concentration of wealth.2 We’re seeing this today with our K-Shaped economy.
VIII. How Civilizations Progress
Civilization is inherited. Because of the work done by generations before us, we are born into a richer heritage—on a higher level thanks to the accumulation of knowledge and art which elevates man.
To paraphrase Walter Isaacson from “Ben Franklin: An American Life”:
The central theme of Ben Franklin’s life was progress: the idea that individuals and humanity improve based on a steady increase of knowledge.
I share this opinion. I have a responsibility to contribute in some way to make my small part of the world better.
Hopefully you learned something new from this summary of The Lessons Of History.
Thanks for reading.
— GV
Dunbar’s number is the proposed cognitive limit of about 150 stable social relationships a person can maintain, suggesting we can only truly know and manage so many connections.
The “Economics of Superstars” refers to Sherwin Rosen’s 1981 paper explaining how technology and large markets create winner-take-all scenarios where a few highly talented individuals (superstars) capture disproportionately large incomes, even for small talent differences, impacting sectors like the tech industry.