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by axplusb 3241 days ago
Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond offers an interesting and academically quite solid perspective.
1 comments

It was an interesting book, lots of good points that contributed to the west's success. But, it's certainly not without its critics. He gives almost no credit to human agency.

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAnthropology/comments/1rzm07/wha...

Interesting discussion there, thanks for linking!

RE "He gives almost no credit to human agency", I wonder what's the current state of that discussion. My current belief (as always, subject to change) is in technological determinism - i.e. available technology level shapes the "parameter space" of social and economical structures, and individual agency is a secondary factor. This seems to match my knowledge of history and history of science, as well as observations of current social dynamics. I'm not a scholar in the area though, so I don't know what's the best criticism of that view.