Ultrasocial: The Evolution of Human Nature and the Quest for a Sustainable Future

Description

Ultrasocial argues that rather than environmental destruction and extreme inequality being due to human nature, they are the result of the adoption of agriculture by our ancestors. Human economy has become an ultrasocial superorganism (similar to an ant or termite colony), with the requirements of superorganism taking precedence over the individuals within it. Human society is now an autonomous, highly integrated network of technologies, institutions, and belief systems dedicated to the expansion of economic production. Recognizing this allows a radically new interpretation of free market and neoliberal ideology which - far from advocating personal freedom - leads to sacrificing the well-being of individuals for the benefit of the global market. Ultrasocial is a fascinating exploration of what this means for the future direction of the humanity: can we forge a better, more egalitarian, and sustainable future by changing this socio-economic - and ultimately destructive - path? Gowdy explores how this might be achieved. Cover 04.0_pp_iv_iv_Copyright_page 05.0_pp_v_vi_Dedication 06.0_pp_vii_viii_Contents 07.0_pp_ix_ix_Figures 08.0_pp_x_x_Tables 09.0_pp_xi_xiv_Preface 10.0_pp_xv_xvi_Acknowledgments 11.0_pp_1_86_The_Evolution_of_Human_Ultrasociality 11.1_pp_3_16_The_Ultrasocial_Origin_of_Our_Existential_Crisis 11.2_pp_17_40_The_Evolution_of_Ultrasociality_in_Humans_and_Social_Insects 11.3_pp_41_63_Our_Hunter-Gatherer_Heritage_and_the_Evolution_of_Human_Nature 11.4_pp_64_86_The_Agricultural_Transition_and_How_It_Changed_Our_Species 12.0_pp_87_146_The_Rise_and_Consolidation_of_StateMarket_Societies 12.1_pp_89_114_The_Rise_of_State_Societies 12.2_pp_115_128_The_Modern_StateMarket_Superorganism 12.3_pp_129_146_Neoliberalism 13.0_pp_147_214_Back_to_the_Future 13.1_pp_149_165_Taming_the_Market 13.2_pp_166_192_Evolving_a_Sustainable_and_Equitable_Future 13.3_pp_193_214_Reclaiming_Human_Nature 14.0_pp_215_231_Notes 15.0_pp_232_256_References 16.0_pp_257_270_Index