Beyond Civilization

Aaron Lifton

Period 4 APES – Mr. Sussin

 The book Beyond Civilization was written by Daniel Quinn to share his ideas, opinions,

and knowledge regarding the future of civilization, as well as the opportunity for great societal

progress. This book is regarded as both a clarification of and an expansion to his previous three

books, which included Ishmael, The Story of B, and My Ishmael. Throughout the book Quinn

examines the difference between “old” and “new” minds, to show how only a radically new

approach would be able to invoke progress of civilization, and allow humanity to venture beyond

traditional civilization to a more perfect society.

Futurist Daniel Quinn constructs a new approach to the development and utilization of

methodology and advanced urban planning that would allow for prevention of environmental

destruction as well as the protection of the environment and its inhabitants. To analyze the core

of civilization, civilization must be deconstructed. Additionally, to advance civilization as a

whole, its core ideas and methodologies must be reconsidered and redesigned. Quinn asks

fundamental questions such as “Why does civilization grow food, lock it up, and then make

people earn money to buy it back?” This shows how modern civilization is taken for granted,

even though it possesses fundamental problems. Quinn likens this way of thinking to the idea of

gravity – he says “Before Newton, people didn’t wonder why unsupported objects are compelled

to fall to the ground. They just figured, what else could they do? They have to fall to the ground,

and that’s that.” This way of thinking slows progress and doesn’t allow for radically new ideas.

Quinn’s main idea can be summed up by the question “Why not progress beyond civilization and

abandon the hierarchical lifestyles that cause many of our social problems?”

He shows how “old minds” think that all problems can be solved by programs,

bureaucracy, and politics, and how this way of thinking leads to failure and repetition of this
failure. He states “Old minds think: How do we stop these bad things from happening?" Quinn

shows how “new minds” think intuitively to take a radical approach that to ask fundamental

question and change fundamental ideas. He states "New minds think: How do we make things

the way we want them to be?" This approach to problem solving allows for greater advancement

of civilization and more efficient solutions to problems that modern civilization creates.

I agree with Quinn in that taking a new approach to advancing human culture and

civilization is necessary. It is obvious that the current approach or what he calls “old mind”

approach, is not effective. It wastes money, leaves problems unsolved, and slows innovation.

Quinn’s approach seems effective, but it is radical and untested. It may be too extreme a solution

for such a problem. I also thought Quinn’s idea that Richard Dawkin’s “memes” have led to

problems with civilization and environmental harm was very interesting. A meme is defined as

“a cultural unit (an idea or value or pattern of behavior) that is passed from one person to another

by non-genetic means (as by imitation).” Quinn suggested that certain destructive memes that

hurt both civilization and the environment have been passed on for thousands of years. For

example, such a meme could be the lack of care for the environment, or a feeling of ownership

over the planet. Quinn suggests this has led to destructive practices harmful to our planet. While

the idea that memes exist is valid, Quinn’s hypothesis that persistent destructive memes are to

blame for environmental destruction can never be proven, and it is almost impossible to figure

out when such a meme started, as it could have been only recently created due to technological

advancements.

The idea that the current approach to civilization is fundamentally flawed causes concern

with the fate of the earth. Many environmental problems are caused by a sedentary society, such

as waste, and emissions. Before civilization, these problems were not as detrimental to the

environment because of the patterns of tribal society. When Quinn points out that current
civilization is ineffective and wasteful, it encourages readers to become concerned with the fate

of the earth, civilization, and the environment.

Reading this book raises several questions in my mind. Firstly, would quality of life

decrease under a new type of society? The current approach to society allows for many comforts

and luxuries that other types of society cannot provide. Also, how would Quinn’s approach help

solve problems such as crime and felonies that have been attempted to be stopped by “old mind”

methods such as programs. Lastly, why can society not be improved by better “old mind”

thinking? Perhaps bureaucracy and the people involved in current bureaucracies are actually at

the heart of the problem, and simply a new form of government instead of a new form of

civilization would solve the problem. Maybe a completely new and radical approach is not

necessary. Another question I had after reading this book was “how exactly would Daniel

Quinn’s idea go ‘beyond civilization’?” Quinn was very vague in how we would go “beyond

civilization”, and gave no specific instructions or hints as to how one would do so. While his

vague suggestions were very interesting and if interpreted in the right way could lead to societal

changes, his constant ambiguity leaves the reader hanging without a clear way to help the earth,

or help humanity.

I would definitely recommend others to read this book because it showcases an

interesting and new approach to thinking about culture and civilization, as well as alternatives to

traditional problem solving regarding problems that have plagued civilization for ages. While

this book is radical and suggests a possibly unnecessary and extreme solution to a problem, it is

very interesting and allows one to think about things in a new, intuitive way that leads to new

ideas, solutions to problems, and answers to questions.