Book review Collapse

Book review of Collapse- How societies choose to fail or succeed

Powerful, admonitory and educational, all adjectives that classify Jared Diamonds work Collapse-Why societies choose to fail or succeed. This work is an eye opener and takes the reader on a journey through the rise and fall of societies of the past two thousand years. He does not look back to judge but to help understand the necessary changes in our modern globalised society. The work written from an American stand point relates to a modern example of the state of Montana, which although it being one of the most ecological states starts to feel the effects of environmental damage. He relates the issues to individual people and therefore gives the issue a face. Under this consideration Diamond takes a look at a row of societies, including past societies such as the Vikings, Mayas or the inhabitants of the Easter islands, but also analyses modern societies such as Rwanda, New Guinea and Australia. Often the failures among these societies are due to environmental damage amongst the five issues of environmental damage, climate change, hostile neighbors and friendly trade partners and most significantly the societies. Not every society is influenced by these factors by realizing where they failed and where they succeeded we can see where we need to change in order to balance our modern world. The issues are growing; they are not new just simply on a larger scale. However Diamond presents us with evidence, explaining in detail the scientific methods, of how previous societies dealt with the issues. He applies his assessment to the moral structure of the industries and individuals in the modern world. If everybody read Jared Diamonds work Collapse soon society would recognize its flaws. There is a possibility to learn from the past to not treat our environment in an endless storage of resources that we can plunder. Those who want to know what history can teach us and how we need to change are recommended to read the compelling work of Diamond as it is not only educational but also entertaining.