A review of 'The human web: A bird's-eye view of world history' by J.R. & W.H. McNeill

Résumé du document

In this book, the authors propose to traverse the field of world history and 'to know how the world got to be the way it is' through the theory of webs of exchanges and communication. Schematically a web is 'a set of connections that link people to one another' and is characterized by a wide variety of practices – basically oscillating between cooperation and competition – that are exerted. These webs are based on networks of information and of transfers of technologies and their evolution has gone through several stages in human history since 6,000 BCE. During the world-wide web phase, unoccupied places severely outnumbered the size of the population. Then with the development of urbanization and the creation of cities as attracting poles for diverse trades of goods and for the diffusion of innovations, what is called a metropolitan web emerged.

Because of the specialization of labor which triggered the production of diversified goods and the accumulation of wealth, these cities depended on hinterlands for food supply essentially. The McNeills think the relationships both within and between webs in terms of cooperation-competition which means that the webs' positions in the struggle for power and survival is partly determined by the course of innovations in the communication field. Lastly, the cosmopolitan web developed by itself thanks to the electric revolution and the subsequent acceleration in communication and exchanges. Ultimately the general trend is that webs grew through human history, have encompassed more and more countries – the whole globe in the end - and have become denser and more sophisticated.

As being only a piece in a larger organic device constitutive of our ecosystem, human communities have the capacity to influence the balancing mechanisms which confer its stability to the system through their actions. In the early times of human development – that is the hunters-gatherers societies – the McNeills show how human beings have progressively altered their lifestyle by a process of apprenticeship. Firstly, they had to deal with climate fluctuations and the resulting challenges they had to face either to preserve or to modify their way of life in a more sustainable way. Thanks to tools and fire they were able to reshape their relations towards food ; they also developed a new range of clothes allowing them better support in harsh climate conditions. At first, early nomadic human communities have probably crossed each other's way accidentally and thus planted the first seeds for an eventual culture of exchange.

Extraits

[...] The reader can finally in the conclusion have a clear insight of the analytical prism the one of sociobiology that the McNeills used in their web-theory. They claim that the earth is a living organism with multiple levers that balance it and provide stability. The net that runs around the earth is getting evermore-complex and, thus, requires more energy As a final warning they point out that the global web has to be maintained carefully, otherwise, it will collaps In order to face the challenges ahead, humans must learn to live simultaneously in a cosmopolitan where their actions have tremendous repercussions on their ecosystem's sustainability. [...]

[...] The world's economy was therefore reshaped as some parts of the world had to reorganize their production forces towards land-intensive productions. When its comparative advantages were not good enough Britain used its enhanced military power to impose tariffs, taxes and treaties that furthered the interest of its manufacturers European Imperialism and the British one in particular was cheap and easy The increased weapon production facilitated conquests and a power imbalance established itself and prevailed between about 1840 and 1945 Africa and Asia were the principal victims of the Industrial Revolution as industrial powers could finance the war effort at an extremly low cost. [...]

[...] Using systems of symbolic meanings made possible the creation of the first webs. For example human groups could then interact, build alliances, share knowledge, myths and rituals or organize lineages. This was the first step towards literacy and ultimately to the creation and enhancement of religious and economic powers which will tremendously influence the course of human civilizations. What is usually called the Neolithic Revolution taking place between 10,000 and 7,000 BCE in Melanesia, Mesoamerica or in the Fertile Crescent which is the shift from huntergatherers societies to settled and agricultural societies was undoubtedly of utmost importance in the expansion and reconfiguration of the web. [...]

[...] In Western Europe, populations could manage the influence of climate and established a sustainable agriculture. The flows of ideas, goods and practices spreading within the web reinforced the regions' power and wealth. However, the high rate of population growth and the intensive colonization of new lands devastated Europe in the 14 th century. Merchants and bankers were also active in the political and military fields because they were less controlled. Migrations were made easier as urban governments were rather using jus soli, but in return people's safety was reduced. [...]

[...] As a result the population growth and the consequences of human beings' actions on their environment soil erosion and its qualitative lowering, over-irrigation, deforestation, extinction of species, homogenization of the world's flora and fauna multiplied the threats to human life such as for example famines, diseases or warfare. Nevertheless, the development of agriculture contributed both to the increase and renewal of the spread of ideas and productive techniques, and to the propagation of crop crosses. The multiplication of villages solidified the human webs and provided a certain continuity through the rooting of habits, skills and knowledge within societies. [...]