| Edition |
First United States Dutton trade paperback edition. |
| Description |
xi, 287 pages : illustrations, maps, charts ; 24 cm |
| Note |
Cover title. |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages [247]-271) and index. |
| Contents |
Mysteries of the human journey -- The human odyssey. First steps ; Lost in stagnation ; The storm beneath the surface ; Full steam ; Metamorphosis ; The promised land ; Coda : resolving the mystery of growth -- The origins of wealth and inequality. Splendour and misery ; The fingerprints of institutions ; The cultural factor ; The shadow of geography ; The legacy of the agricultural revolution ; Out of Africa ; Coda : unravelling the mystery of inequality -- Afterword. |
| Summary |
Why are humans the only species to have escaped - only very recently - the subsistence trap, allowing us to enjoy a standard of living that vastly exceeds all others? And why have we progressed so unequally around the world, resulting in the great disparities between nations that exist today? Immense in scope and packed with astounding connections, this narrative explains how technology, population size, and adaptation led to a stunning "phase change" in the human story a mere two hundred years ago. But by tracing that same journey back in time and peeling away the layers of influence - colonialism, political institutions, societal structure, culture - the author arrives also at an explanation of inequality's ultimate causes: those ancestral populations that enjoyed fruitful geographical characteristics and rich diversity were set on the path to prosperity, while those that lacked it were disadvantaged in ways still echoed today. As we face ecological crisis across the globe, this is a book of urgent truths and enduring relevance, with lessons that are both hopeful and profound: gender equality, investment in education, and balancing diversity with social cohesion are the keys not only to our species's thriving, but to its survival. -- Adapted from publisher's description. |
| Subject |
Economic development.
|
|
Economic history.
|
|
Equality.
|
|
Economic development. (OCoLC)fst00901785
|
|
Economic history. (OCoLC)fst00901974
|
|
Equality. (OCoLC)fst00914456
|
| Cover Title |
The journey of humanity : the origins of wealth and inequality |
| ISBN |
0593186001 |
|
9780593186008 |
|
