Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow
by Yuval Noah Harari
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Description
Yuval Noah Harari, author of the critically-acclaimed New York Times bestseller and international phenomenon Sapiens, returns with an equally original, compelling, and provocative book, turning his focus toward humanity's future, and our quest to upgrade humans into gods.Over the past century humankind has managed to do the impossible and rein in famine, plague, and war. This may seem hard to accept, but, as Harari explains in his trademark style--thorough, yet riveting--famine, plague and show more war have been transformed from incomprehensible and uncontrollable forces of nature into manageable challenges. For the first time ever, more people die from eating too much than from eating too little; more people die from old age than from infectious diseases; and more people commit suicide than are killed by soldiers, terrorists and criminals put together. The average American is a thousand times more likely to die from binging at McDonalds than from being blown up by Al Qaeda.What then will replace famine, plague, and war at the top of the human agenda? As the self-made gods of planet earth, what destinies will we set ourselves, and which quests will we undertake? Homo Deus explores the projects, dreams and nightmares that will shape the twenty-first century--from overcoming death to creating artificial life. It asks the fundamental questions: Where do we go from here? And how will we protect this fragile world from our own destructive powers? This is the next stage of evolution. This is Homo Deus.With the same insight and clarity that made Sapiens an international hit and a New York Times bestseller, Harari maps out our future. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
There’s something quietly disturbing about Homo Deus—not in what it claims, but in how plausible it feels. If Sapiens was about where we came from, Homo Deus is about where we’re headed—and it’s far less comforting.
The old human struggles—famine, plague, war—are framed as problems we are beginning to solve. But in their absence, a more unsettling question emerges: what is a human for, once survival is no longer the task? The answer Harari gestures toward is not noble. It is efficient.
We are moving, he suggests, from meaning to mechanism. From soul to system. From belief in something greater than ourselves to belief in something that can calculate better than us. Not because we are forced—but because it works.
The most show more haunting idea in this book is not that machines will become like humans, but that humans will begin to accept being less than machines. To trust the algorithm over instinct. To surrender authorship of our own lives in exchange for optimization. And that we’ll call it progress.
Harari writes with the calm tone of someone describing a process already underway. There is no urgency in his voice—only inevitability. That’s what lingers. Not fear, but a kind of quiet resignation. This is not a book about the future. It’s about the slow erasure of the idea that we were ever special to begin with.
A cold, lucid meditation on a future where humanity doesn’t end—it dissolves. show less
The old human struggles—famine, plague, war—are framed as problems we are beginning to solve. But in their absence, a more unsettling question emerges: what is a human for, once survival is no longer the task? The answer Harari gestures toward is not noble. It is efficient.
We are moving, he suggests, from meaning to mechanism. From soul to system. From belief in something greater than ourselves to belief in something that can calculate better than us. Not because we are forced—but because it works.
The most show more haunting idea in this book is not that machines will become like humans, but that humans will begin to accept being less than machines. To trust the algorithm over instinct. To surrender authorship of our own lives in exchange for optimization. And that we’ll call it progress.
Harari writes with the calm tone of someone describing a process already underway. There is no urgency in his voice—only inevitability. That’s what lingers. Not fear, but a kind of quiet resignation. This is not a book about the future. It’s about the slow erasure of the idea that we were ever special to begin with.
A cold, lucid meditation on a future where humanity doesn’t end—it dissolves. show less
Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow is one of the scariest books I have ever read in non-fiction. Everything sounds so plausible and Yuval Harari is talking about a world utterly different from the one in 2016/2017. It makes sense to me the way he explains all these concepts and then boom- he puts how it will all change. This book definitely gets me thinking and I am really glad that my Cortana, due to a glitch, cannot get into my life. All in all, thank you Librarything for naming this book. I feel woke.
(9) Fascinating. I loved Sapiens and really liked this one as well. Maybe not quite as much; but close. This briefly recounts some of the territory that Sapiens covered regarding the evolution of civilization from an ideology perspective - covering religion, commerce, humanism and how these entities were created and the purpose they served as we evolved as a species. But then went on to look at our species through the lens of an algorithm. The brain is no more than an algorithm of biochemical reactions -"if this, then this." In fact in some circumstances in watching live time on a functional MRI a scientist can tell what decision you are going to make, before you even know yourself! Consciousness is just some by-product of all the show more goings on that serves an unclear purpose. Intelligence can be uncoupled from consciousness and can rule the world - lots of examples of this are given which are uncomfortably true. In the end Harari wonders if life will come down to data processing - calls the new religion 'Dataism,' i.e. big data. But if the data are what is all important and AI/robots can do all the work of sustaining life and happiness, what will happen to our species... That is where he lost me some. He really didn't have a suggestion as to what if anything would replace us. And if sapiens aren't there to enter the data... then it seems all would go dark; wouldn't it?
I love Harari's no nonsense, no punches pulled style of writing. I love how he skewers humanism. There are no sacred cows here. It truly is not all about your feelings, God is made up by humans, world political and religious leaders are bureaucratic hacks and medieval throwbacks respectively and have absolutely no vision and likely no role when it comes to the future. What is the point of free elections when Google could figure out who the best leader would be if we give it access to all data points? When we kill the planet it won't really matter because we will all be experiencing things with our avatars in intricate virtual worlds. His logic and his writing are fast - slapping you upside the head with one seemingly inarguable assertion after the other backed up by seemingly scientific assertions. But methinks a deeper dive into some of the things he asserts might not be as convincing. For example, in an area I know about; being a physician - constant monitoring of every heart beat, hormone, and blood chemistry is not the key to better health - but it is the key to causing iatrogenic harm; at least with our current tools. And in addition - diagnoses are not binary; and there is often not a gold standard test to prove the algorithm "right." The vast majority of time, we do not know what is wrong with people. ... Usually, it is some form of ennui from our over-analyzed life. Just saying.
Anyway, bravo. Has made me think disturbing but profound thoughts. Sometimes I could only read a few pages at a time because it was all so astonishing. But maybe just a little over the top at the end. or maybe I am just not a bold enough thinker. I mean, I don't even have an Instagram account and actually value my privacy and relative anonymity. Doomed. show less
I love Harari's no nonsense, no punches pulled style of writing. I love how he skewers humanism. There are no sacred cows here. It truly is not all about your feelings, God is made up by humans, world political and religious leaders are bureaucratic hacks and medieval throwbacks respectively and have absolutely no vision and likely no role when it comes to the future. What is the point of free elections when Google could figure out who the best leader would be if we give it access to all data points? When we kill the planet it won't really matter because we will all be experiencing things with our avatars in intricate virtual worlds. His logic and his writing are fast - slapping you upside the head with one seemingly inarguable assertion after the other backed up by seemingly scientific assertions. But methinks a deeper dive into some of the things he asserts might not be as convincing. For example, in an area I know about; being a physician - constant monitoring of every heart beat, hormone, and blood chemistry is not the key to better health - but it is the key to causing iatrogenic harm; at least with our current tools. And in addition - diagnoses are not binary; and there is often not a gold standard test to prove the algorithm "right." The vast majority of time, we do not know what is wrong with people. ... Usually, it is some form of ennui from our over-analyzed life. Just saying.
Anyway, bravo. Has made me think disturbing but profound thoughts. Sometimes I could only read a few pages at a time because it was all so astonishing. But maybe just a little over the top at the end. or maybe I am just not a bold enough thinker. I mean, I don't even have an Instagram account and actually value my privacy and relative anonymity. Doomed. show less
At the dawn of the 21st century, we stand on the brink of an apotheosis the likes of which the Greek gods would envy. The great project of the 20th century was to tame the existential threats of famine, plague, and war. With this dread trinity reduced to painful but manageable administrative headaches, we will now turn our exponentially accelerating technology on the great project of this century: immortality, eternal bliss, and divinity. For the first time in our existence as a species, we stand on the precipice of ascension from Homo sapiens to Homo deus.
Futurists are overwhelmingly material reductionists. There are no gods, no heavens, no hells, and no souls — we are merely biological algorithms that can be reprogrammed in any show more direction we choose once we understand how. Within this framework of thought, there certainly seems no reason we might not use our tools to direct our evolution to planes of existence beyond imagination.
And here’s the thing: you don’t have to agree with any of this to understand that leading lights today do believe this, and are actively driving us toward this vision. It doesn’t matter if you or I think this is possible or right or advisable; our world is going to change dramatically, precisely because the rich, the powerful, and the technocratic are hungry to grasp at technological divinity without regard for the consequences of this Icarian flight.
As a work of sociological speculation, Harari’s work could no doubt be picked apart in a hundred different ways. For example, many would no doubt bristle at his identification of Humanism as a religion, grounded on no better warrant than any of the theistic religions it has supplanted. Indeed, according to Harari the 20th century saw the greatest and most destructive religious wars in our history as the three Humanist sects — Liberalism, Socialism, and Evolutionary Humanism — savaged each other in a crusade to control the destiny of the human race.
Many would no doubt argue with his central conceit that Humanist values of individualism and human rights are religious dogmas, destined to be supplanted by alien values of the Transhuman age to come. But the very act of arguing with Harari achieves his purpose. He’s not precisely a booster for humanity’s ascension. If anything, he sees this drive for godhood as highly unpredictable, yet so baked into our future by unalterable market forces that the best we can do is at least talk and think about the future toward which we’re careening unchecked. He is less an evangelist seeking converts, and more a prophet warning of an uncertain yet unstoppable destiny.
If we can pause in our thoughtless drive toward this brave new world long enough to consider how emerging technologies might transform the very meaning of humanity, then perhaps we can find a social equilibrium before we stumble blindly into a universe where the rise of Homo deus makes Homo sapiens — you and me — as obsolete and disposable as a broken flip-phone. show less
Futurists are overwhelmingly material reductionists. There are no gods, no heavens, no hells, and no souls — we are merely biological algorithms that can be reprogrammed in any show more direction we choose once we understand how. Within this framework of thought, there certainly seems no reason we might not use our tools to direct our evolution to planes of existence beyond imagination.
And here’s the thing: you don’t have to agree with any of this to understand that leading lights today do believe this, and are actively driving us toward this vision. It doesn’t matter if you or I think this is possible or right or advisable; our world is going to change dramatically, precisely because the rich, the powerful, and the technocratic are hungry to grasp at technological divinity without regard for the consequences of this Icarian flight.
As a work of sociological speculation, Harari’s work could no doubt be picked apart in a hundred different ways. For example, many would no doubt bristle at his identification of Humanism as a religion, grounded on no better warrant than any of the theistic religions it has supplanted. Indeed, according to Harari the 20th century saw the greatest and most destructive religious wars in our history as the three Humanist sects — Liberalism, Socialism, and Evolutionary Humanism — savaged each other in a crusade to control the destiny of the human race.
Many would no doubt argue with his central conceit that Humanist values of individualism and human rights are religious dogmas, destined to be supplanted by alien values of the Transhuman age to come. But the very act of arguing with Harari achieves his purpose. He’s not precisely a booster for humanity’s ascension. If anything, he sees this drive for godhood as highly unpredictable, yet so baked into our future by unalterable market forces that the best we can do is at least talk and think about the future toward which we’re careening unchecked. He is less an evangelist seeking converts, and more a prophet warning of an uncertain yet unstoppable destiny.
If we can pause in our thoughtless drive toward this brave new world long enough to consider how emerging technologies might transform the very meaning of humanity, then perhaps we can find a social equilibrium before we stumble blindly into a universe where the rise of Homo deus makes Homo sapiens — you and me — as obsolete and disposable as a broken flip-phone. show less
This was chosen by my book club – and there is certainly lots of discussion worthy content.
Harari believes humankind has learned to manage famine, plague and war; and that they are now only short term challenges.
He also argues that the unique poser of humans derives from the fact that we are able to believe in what he calls intersubjective entities. These do not exist in any physical form, but are non-tangible concepts agreed upon between humans. They include morality, nations, and religions. This ability to form these concepts is what he believes separates humans from other forms of life, and also separates the humanities from the life sciences.
He brings into the conversation science versus morality – with the rise of humanistic show more religions. His definition of religion include belief systems such as Communism and socialism.
He postulates that the next great challenges (timeline of a hundred years) will involve genetic engineering of humans. Those who can afford to do so, will turn themselves into super-humans – no longer aging, and with augmented mental, physical and emotional skills. These super-humans can become almost god-like. Possibly, artificial Intelligence may also begin to change itself and evolve into something superior to humans. What use will ‘average’ humans with either enhanced humans or AI in control?
I have doubts about his basic principal: have we really learned to manage famine, plague and war? To me, they seem to be popping up in new forms internally within many countries. I see all three of these getting worse with climate change (which Harari believes will be a medium range challenge of the next few decades.)
Lots to think about and consider. I felt the book was worth the time to read but I don’t feel qualified to judge it on anything but interest level. 3.8 stars
I thought the following passage chilling in light of the US political situation today:
“in order to mount a revolution, numbers are never enough. Revolutions are usually made by small networks of agitators rather than by the masses. If you want to launch a revolution, don’t ask yourself, “How many people support my ideas?’ Instead, ask yourself, “How many of my supporters are capable of effective collaboration?’ The Russian Revoluton finally erupted not when 180 million peasants rose against the tsar, but rather when a handful of communists placed themselves at the right place at the right time. In 1917, at a time when the Russian upper and middle classes numbered at least 3 million people, the Communist Party had just 23,000 members. The communists nevertheless gained control of the vast Russian Empire because they organized themselves well. When authority in Russia slipped from the decrepit hands of the tsar and the equally shaky hands of Kerensky’s provisional government, the communists seized it with alacrity, gripping the reins of power like a bulldog …” p154 show less
Harari believes humankind has learned to manage famine, plague and war; and that they are now only short term challenges.
He also argues that the unique poser of humans derives from the fact that we are able to believe in what he calls intersubjective entities. These do not exist in any physical form, but are non-tangible concepts agreed upon between humans. They include morality, nations, and religions. This ability to form these concepts is what he believes separates humans from other forms of life, and also separates the humanities from the life sciences.
He brings into the conversation science versus morality – with the rise of humanistic show more religions. His definition of religion include belief systems such as Communism and socialism.
He postulates that the next great challenges (timeline of a hundred years) will involve genetic engineering of humans. Those who can afford to do so, will turn themselves into super-humans – no longer aging, and with augmented mental, physical and emotional skills. These super-humans can become almost god-like. Possibly, artificial Intelligence may also begin to change itself and evolve into something superior to humans. What use will ‘average’ humans with either enhanced humans or AI in control?
I have doubts about his basic principal: have we really learned to manage famine, plague and war? To me, they seem to be popping up in new forms internally within many countries. I see all three of these getting worse with climate change (which Harari believes will be a medium range challenge of the next few decades.)
Lots to think about and consider. I felt the book was worth the time to read but I don’t feel qualified to judge it on anything but interest level. 3.8 stars
I thought the following passage chilling in light of the US political situation today:
“in order to mount a revolution, numbers are never enough. Revolutions are usually made by small networks of agitators rather than by the masses. If you want to launch a revolution, don’t ask yourself, “How many people support my ideas?’ Instead, ask yourself, “How many of my supporters are capable of effective collaboration?’ The Russian Revoluton finally erupted not when 180 million peasants rose against the tsar, but rather when a handful of communists placed themselves at the right place at the right time. In 1917, at a time when the Russian upper and middle classes numbered at least 3 million people, the Communist Party had just 23,000 members. The communists nevertheless gained control of the vast Russian Empire because they organized themselves well. When authority in Russia slipped from the decrepit hands of the tsar and the equally shaky hands of Kerensky’s provisional government, the communists seized it with alacrity, gripping the reins of power like a bulldog …” p154 show less
Outlier Review Alert!
I don't what is it about Harari's books that always inspire food metaphors in me. With Sapiens, it was masala chai vs. coffee. This time, it is an Eid special, as this review is coming to you on Eid! Wanna know more? Read on!
Imagine being served a scrumptious biryani. Everything smells great and looks great. But when you start eating it, you realise that the meat (sorry, vegetarians!) isn't upto the mark and has been left raw in some places. No matter how flavourful the rest of the biryani is, the meat has spoiled its entire taste. To me, that is Homo Deus in a nutshell.
Homo Deus literally means "Man God", man trying to be God. Part 1 of the book talks about man dominating animals in order to emerge as a superior show more species. In Part 3, Harari dexterously covers humankind's attempts to govern the world with their technological advancements. But what would happen if technology attempts to dominate us tomorrow? (Or has it already begun?) That is also covered in depth and is slightly scary too. You might just end up becoming a bit paranoid after reading this last section. I really enjoyed these two parts of the book (speaking only in a broad sense; there were some flaws in here as well.) But the second part left me utterly irritated.
Part 2 talks about various forms of religion, both actual and assumed. Harari includes Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Liberalism, Communism, Aryanism, Capitalism, Humanism,.. all under the umbrella tag of religion. How these "religions" impacted human decision towards progress or towards disaster, how religious dogmas affected human thinking and human freedom, how collective belief in a particular religion restricted human progress - everything is detailed out based on Harari's presumptions. And this is where he falters badly.
Harari claims that past religious interpretations cannot be judged currently as technology wasn't the same at the time and human consciousness develops with time. And yet, he ends up doing this consistently. Most modern believers know that religious texts aren't supposed to be taken literally but read with their proper deeper interpretation. But Harari seems to be reading these texts only at face value. All of us are aware of atrocities committed in the name of religion both in the past and present. But using that to attack the faith itself is bound to offend believers, whether they are religious or merely spiritual.
Furthermore, when I read a scientific non-fiction, I would expect the author to keep away his personal prejudices while writing and present a factual opinion based on accurate research and/or justified hypotheses. However, just by reading this book, you can guess a lot about Harari's personal beliefs. That is a big NO! You can be whatever you want in your personal life, no problem. But using that to make negative claims about those who don't follow the same ideologies is not expected from such a respected and educated person. Additionally, facts that go with Harari's beliefs are presented convincingly. And facts that don't support his beliefs are conveniently ignored. It is said that half-information is dangerous. This book proves it.
Homo Deus is all about Harari trying to be a Homo Deus himself, a human pseudo-god who is intent on making predictions about current and future human behaviour without realising that he has stumbled many times along the way. Sapiens seemed entirely factual, Homo Deus seems partly fictitious. Sapiens was perceptive, Homo Deus is pompous.
Many readers might still enjoy Homo Deus. It definitely has some extremely astute observations. I just wish Harari had taken care with the rest of his assertions. Let me take an excerpt from the book itself to show you what I think of Homo Deus:
"Each of us has a sophisticated system that throws away most of our experiences, keeps only a few choice samples, mixes them up with bits from movies we saw, novels we read, speeches we heard, and from our own daydreams, and weaves out of all that jumble a seemingly coherent story about who I am, where I came from and where I am going. This story tells me what to love, whom to hate and what to do with myself. ... Some people live a tragedy, others inhabit a never-ending religious drama, some approach life as if it were an action film, and not a few act as if in a comedy. But in the end, they are all just stories."
That's what Homo Deus is. A Yuval Noah Harari story. *Eye roll!* show less
I don't what is it about Harari's books that always inspire food metaphors in me. With Sapiens, it was masala chai vs. coffee. This time, it is an Eid special, as this review is coming to you on Eid! Wanna know more? Read on!
Imagine being served a scrumptious biryani. Everything smells great and looks great. But when you start eating it, you realise that the meat (sorry, vegetarians!) isn't upto the mark and has been left raw in some places. No matter how flavourful the rest of the biryani is, the meat has spoiled its entire taste. To me, that is Homo Deus in a nutshell.
Homo Deus literally means "Man God", man trying to be God. Part 1 of the book talks about man dominating animals in order to emerge as a superior show more species. In Part 3, Harari dexterously covers humankind's attempts to govern the world with their technological advancements. But what would happen if technology attempts to dominate us tomorrow? (Or has it already begun?) That is also covered in depth and is slightly scary too. You might just end up becoming a bit paranoid after reading this last section. I really enjoyed these two parts of the book (speaking only in a broad sense; there were some flaws in here as well.) But the second part left me utterly irritated.
Part 2 talks about various forms of religion, both actual and assumed. Harari includes Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Liberalism, Communism, Aryanism, Capitalism, Humanism,.. all under the umbrella tag of religion. How these "religions" impacted human decision towards progress or towards disaster, how religious dogmas affected human thinking and human freedom, how collective belief in a particular religion restricted human progress - everything is detailed out based on Harari's presumptions. And this is where he falters badly.
Harari claims that past religious interpretations cannot be judged currently as technology wasn't the same at the time and human consciousness develops with time. And yet, he ends up doing this consistently. Most modern believers know that religious texts aren't supposed to be taken literally but read with their proper deeper interpretation. But Harari seems to be reading these texts only at face value. All of us are aware of atrocities committed in the name of religion both in the past and present. But using that to attack the faith itself is bound to offend believers, whether they are religious or merely spiritual.
Furthermore, when I read a scientific non-fiction, I would expect the author to keep away his personal prejudices while writing and present a factual opinion based on accurate research and/or justified hypotheses. However, just by reading this book, you can guess a lot about Harari's personal beliefs. That is a big NO! You can be whatever you want in your personal life, no problem. But using that to make negative claims about those who don't follow the same ideologies is not expected from such a respected and educated person. Additionally, facts that go with Harari's beliefs are presented convincingly. And facts that don't support his beliefs are conveniently ignored. It is said that half-information is dangerous. This book proves it.
Homo Deus is all about Harari trying to be a Homo Deus himself, a human pseudo-god who is intent on making predictions about current and future human behaviour without realising that he has stumbled many times along the way. Sapiens seemed entirely factual, Homo Deus seems partly fictitious. Sapiens was perceptive, Homo Deus is pompous.
Many readers might still enjoy Homo Deus. It definitely has some extremely astute observations. I just wish Harari had taken care with the rest of his assertions. Let me take an excerpt from the book itself to show you what I think of Homo Deus:
"Each of us has a sophisticated system that throws away most of our experiences, keeps only a few choice samples, mixes them up with bits from movies we saw, novels we read, speeches we heard, and from our own daydreams, and weaves out of all that jumble a seemingly coherent story about who I am, where I came from and where I am going. This story tells me what to love, whom to hate and what to do with myself. ... Some people live a tragedy, others inhabit a never-ending religious drama, some approach life as if it were an action film, and not a few act as if in a comedy. But in the end, they are all just stories."
That's what Homo Deus is. A Yuval Noah Harari story. *Eye roll!* show less
Outlier Review Alert!
I don't what is it about Harari's books that always inspire food metaphors in me. With Sapiens, it was masala chai vs. coffee. This time, it is an Eid special, as this review is coming to you on Eid! Wanna know more? Read on!
Imagine being served a scrumptious biryani. Everything smells great and looks great. But when you start eating it, you realise that the meat (sorry, vegetarians!) isn't upto the mark and has been left raw in some places. No matter how flavourful the rest of the biryani is, the meat has spoiled its entire taste. To me, that is Homo Deus in a nutshell.
Homo Deus literally means "Man God", man trying to be God. Part 1 of the book talks about man dominating animals in order to emerge as a superior show more species. In Part 3, Harari dexterously covers humankind's attempts to govern the world with their technological advancements. But what would happen if technology attempts to dominate us tomorrow? (Or has it already begun?) That is also covered in depth and is slightly scary too. You might just end up becoming a bit paranoid after reading this last section. I really enjoyed these two parts of the book (speaking only in a broad sense; there were some flaws in here as well.) But the second part left me utterly irritated.
Part 2 talks about various forms of religion, both actual and assumed. Harari includes Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Liberalism, Communism, Aryanism, Capitalism, Humanism,.. all under the umbrella tag of religion. How these "religions" impacted human decision towards progress or towards disaster, how religious dogmas affected human thinking and human freedom, how collective belief in a particular religion restricted human progress - everything is detailed out based on Harari's presumptions. And this is where he falters badly.
Harari claims that past religious interpretations cannot be judged currently as technology wasn't the same at the time and human consciousness develops with time. And yet, he ends up doing this consistently. Most modern believers know that religious texts aren't supposed to be taken literally but read with their proper deeper interpretation. But Harari seems to be reading these texts only at face value. All of us are aware of atrocities committed in the name of religion both in the past and present. But using that to attack the faith itself is bound to offend believers, whether they are religious or merely spiritual.
Furthermore, when I read a scientific non-fiction, I would expect the author to keep away his personal prejudices while writing and present a factual opinion based on accurate research and/or justified hypotheses. However, just by reading this book, you can guess a lot about Harari's personal beliefs. That is a big NO! You can be whatever you want in your personal life, no problem. But using that to make negative claims about those who don't follow the same ideologies is not expected from such a respected and educated person. Additionally, facts that go with Harari's beliefs are presented convincingly. And facts that don't support his beliefs are conveniently ignored. It is said that half-information is dangerous. This book proves it.
Homo Deus is all about Harari trying to be a Homo Deus himself, a human pseudo-god who is intent on making predictions about current and future human behaviour without realising that he has stumbled many times along the way. Sapiens seemed entirely factual, Homo Deus seems partly fictitious. Sapiens was perceptive, Homo Deus is pompous.
Many readers might still enjoy Homo Deus. It definitely has some extremely astute observations. I just wish Harari had taken care with the rest of his assertions. Let me take an excerpt from the book itself to show you what I think of Homo Deus:
"Each of us has a sophisticated system that throws away most of our experiences, keeps only a few choice samples, mixes them up with bits from movies we saw, novels we read, speeches we heard, and from our own daydreams, and weaves out of all that jumble a seemingly coherent story about who I am, where I came from and where I am going. This story tells me what to love, whom to hate and what to do with myself. ... Some people live a tragedy, others inhabit a never-ending religious drama, some approach life as if it were an action film, and not a few act as if in a comedy. But in the end, they are all just stories."
That's what Homo Deus is. A Yuval Noah Harari story. *Eye roll!* show less
I don't what is it about Harari's books that always inspire food metaphors in me. With Sapiens, it was masala chai vs. coffee. This time, it is an Eid special, as this review is coming to you on Eid! Wanna know more? Read on!
Imagine being served a scrumptious biryani. Everything smells great and looks great. But when you start eating it, you realise that the meat (sorry, vegetarians!) isn't upto the mark and has been left raw in some places. No matter how flavourful the rest of the biryani is, the meat has spoiled its entire taste. To me, that is Homo Deus in a nutshell.
Homo Deus literally means "Man God", man trying to be God. Part 1 of the book talks about man dominating animals in order to emerge as a superior show more species. In Part 3, Harari dexterously covers humankind's attempts to govern the world with their technological advancements. But what would happen if technology attempts to dominate us tomorrow? (Or has it already begun?) That is also covered in depth and is slightly scary too. You might just end up becoming a bit paranoid after reading this last section. I really enjoyed these two parts of the book (speaking only in a broad sense; there were some flaws in here as well.) But the second part left me utterly irritated.
Part 2 talks about various forms of religion, both actual and assumed. Harari includes Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Liberalism, Communism, Aryanism, Capitalism, Humanism,.. all under the umbrella tag of religion. How these "religions" impacted human decision towards progress or towards disaster, how religious dogmas affected human thinking and human freedom, how collective belief in a particular religion restricted human progress - everything is detailed out based on Harari's presumptions. And this is where he falters badly.
Harari claims that past religious interpretations cannot be judged currently as technology wasn't the same at the time and human consciousness develops with time. And yet, he ends up doing this consistently. Most modern believers know that religious texts aren't supposed to be taken literally but read with their proper deeper interpretation. But Harari seems to be reading these texts only at face value. All of us are aware of atrocities committed in the name of religion both in the past and present. But using that to attack the faith itself is bound to offend believers, whether they are religious or merely spiritual.
Furthermore, when I read a scientific non-fiction, I would expect the author to keep away his personal prejudices while writing and present a factual opinion based on accurate research and/or justified hypotheses. However, just by reading this book, you can guess a lot about Harari's personal beliefs. That is a big NO! You can be whatever you want in your personal life, no problem. But using that to make negative claims about those who don't follow the same ideologies is not expected from such a respected and educated person. Additionally, facts that go with Harari's beliefs are presented convincingly. And facts that don't support his beliefs are conveniently ignored. It is said that half-information is dangerous. This book proves it.
Homo Deus is all about Harari trying to be a Homo Deus himself, a human pseudo-god who is intent on making predictions about current and future human behaviour without realising that he has stumbled many times along the way. Sapiens seemed entirely factual, Homo Deus seems partly fictitious. Sapiens was perceptive, Homo Deus is pompous.
Many readers might still enjoy Homo Deus. It definitely has some extremely astute observations. I just wish Harari had taken care with the rest of his assertions. Let me take an excerpt from the book itself to show you what I think of Homo Deus:
"Each of us has a sophisticated system that throws away most of our experiences, keeps only a few choice samples, mixes them up with bits from movies we saw, novels we read, speeches we heard, and from our own daydreams, and weaves out of all that jumble a seemingly coherent story about who I am, where I came from and where I am going. This story tells me what to love, whom to hate and what to do with myself. ... Some people live a tragedy, others inhabit a never-ending religious drama, some approach life as if it were an action film, and not a few act as if in a comedy. But in the end, they are all just stories."
That's what Homo Deus is. A Yuval Noah Harari story. *Eye roll!* show less
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Author Information
Yuval Noah Harari received a PhD in history from the University of Oxford. He lectures at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, specializing in world history. He has written several books including Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind which became a 2016 New York Times Bestsellers. (Bowker Author Biography)
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow
- Original title
- ההיסטוריה של המחר; Brief History of tomorrow
- Alternate titles
- Brief History of tomorrow
- Original publication date
- 2015 (in Hebrew) (in Hebrew); 2016 (in English) (in English); 2017 (in French) (in French); 2017 (Nederlands) (Nederlands)
- Dedication
- To my teacher, S. N. Goenka (1924 - 2013), who lovingly taught me important things.
- First words
- The New Human Agenda
At dawn of the third millenium, humanity wakes up, stretching its limbs and rubbing its eyes. - Quotations
- The study of the human mind has so far assumed that Homo sapiens is Homer Simpson.
(p 76) ... To understand all this we need to go back and investigate who Homo Sapiens really is, how humanism became the dominant world religion and why attempting to fulfil the humanist dream is likely to cause its d... (show all)isintegration. This is the basic plan of the book.
(p 153) Humans nowadays completely dominate the planet not because the individual human is far smarter and more nimble-fingered than the individual chimp or wolf, but because Homo Sapiens is the only species on earth c... (show all)apable of cooperating flexibly in large numbers. Intelligence and toolmaking were obviously very important as well. But if humans had not learned to cooperate flexibly in large numbers, our crafty brains and deft hands would still be splitting flint stones rather than uranium atoms.
(p 253) In a capitalist world the lives of the poor improve only when the economy grows. Hence they are unlikely to support any steps to reduce future ecological threats that are based on slowing down present-day economic gro... (show all)wth. Protecting the environment is a very nice idea, but those who cannot pay their rent are worried about their overdraft far more than about melting ice caps. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)What will happen to society, politics and everyday life when non-conscious but highly intelligent algorithms know us better than we know ourselves?
- Publisher's editor
- Milner, David; Jao, Jonathan; Wachtel, Claire
- Blurbers
- Diamond, Jared; Kahneman, Daniel
- Original language
- Hebrew
- Disambiguation notice
- "First published as A History of Tomorrow in Hebrew in Israel in 2015 by Kinneret Zmora-Bitan Dvir."
"Previously published in Great Britain in 2016 by Harville Secker, a division of Penguin Random House Group Ltd."-... (show all)-Title-page verso.
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- Anthropology, General Nonfiction, History, Science & Nature, Nonfiction, Technology, Philosophy
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- 909.83 — History & geography History World history 1800- 21st century, 2000-2099
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- CB428 .H368513 — Auxiliary Sciences of History History of Civilization History of Civilization By period
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