Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

According to Harari, what are the three major “revolutions” that humanity has undergone? How does each revolution pave the way for the next? How has each impacted human quality of life? How has each impacted the planet we live on? How does Harari’s discussion of these revolutions relate to the book’s assertion that Evolution Has No Purpose and the book’s concern with Happiness and Meaning?

Teaching Suggestion: This prompt requires that students understand the Cognitive, Agricultural, and Scientific revolutions, their relationships to one another, and the effects each caused. You can tailor this prompt to your individual teaching situation by asking either for a general overview of these elements or for varying levels of supportive detail and analysis. If you think that your students will struggle to synthesize the necessary information to answer the final section of this prompt, you might have them fill out a graphic organizer, either as prewriting or during a class discussion, creating a reference for themselves regarding details of the three revolutions and their impacts.

Differentiation Suggestion: Working in groups of three on this prompt might be a helpful accommodation to English language learners, students with dyslexia or dysgraphia, and students with attentional or executive function issues.