About the Author
Peter Turchin is a Russian-American scientist who straddles multiple disciplines - history, evolutionary biology, and complex systems analysis. What I find most fascinating about his work is how he applies mathematical modeling to historical processes, something rarely attempted with such rigor.
Introduction: The Paradox of War and Cooperation
I must admit, when I first encountered Turchin’s central thesis, I was skeptical. The idea that war has been the primary driver of human cooperation seems counterintuitive at first glance. But as I delved deeper into “Ultrasociety,” I found myself convinced by the sheer weight of evidence and logical argumentation.
Turchin’s core argument is that humans are the most cooperative species on Earth precisely because we’ve been at war with each other for millennia. This constant conflict forced us to develop unprecedented levels of social organization and cooperation. It’s a provocative idea that challenges our romantic notions of peaceful human progress.
The Agricultural Revolution: When Cooperation Became Necessary
What struck me most was Turchin’s analysis of how agriculture changed everything. Around 10,000 years ago, as humans transitioned from hunter-gatherer societies to agricultural communities, something remarkable happened: we became sitting ducks.
Hunter-gatherers could simply pack up and move when threatened. But farmers? We were tied to our land, our crops, our stored grain. This vulnerability forced us to develop new forms of cooperation - from collective defense to complex social hierarchies. The very act of settling down made us more cooperative out of sheer necessity.
The Mathematics of Cooperation
This is where Turchin’s background in complex systems really shines. He doesn’t just tell stories about historical cooperation - he models it mathematically. His analysis of how group selection works at different scales is particularly compelling.
I was fascinated by his concept of “multilevel selection” - the idea that evolution operates not just on individuals, but on groups as well. In times of war, groups that cooperated better survived and thrived, while less cooperative groups were wiped out. This created an evolutionary pressure for cooperation that simply didn’t exist in peaceful times.
War as the Midwife of Civilization
One of the most controversial sections examines how war has consistently been followed by periods of remarkable cultural and technological advancement. Turchin’s analysis of historical data shows a clear pattern: after major conflicts, we see explosions of innovation and social progress.
The reason? War forces societies to organize at unprecedented scales. It requires coordination, specialization, and innovation. The infrastructure built for war - roads, communication systems, bureaucracies - often gets repurposed for peaceful ends once the conflict is over.
The Dark Side: When Cooperation Turns Predatory
What I appreciate about Turchin’s work is that he doesn’t romanticize this process. He’s brutally honest about the dark side of this evolutionary pressure. The same cooperative instincts that allow us to build hospitals and universities also enable us to create concentration camps and weapons of mass destruction.
The most chilling example he provides is how the cooperative structures developed during World War II were later used to implement the Holocaust. The same bureaucratic efficiency that won the war also enabled industrial-scale genocide.
Modern Implications: Are We Still Evolving?
Turchin’s analysis leads to some unsettling questions about our modern world. If war has been the primary driver of human cooperation, what happens when we achieve lasting peace? Are we losing the evolutionary pressure that made us so cooperative in the first place?
I found his discussion of modern “ultra-cooperative” societies particularly thought-provoking. He suggests that our current globalized, interconnected world may be creating new forms of cooperation that don’t require the crucible of war. But he’s also honest about the risks - without the external threat of conflict, will our cooperative instincts atrophy?
My Personal Take: A Necessary but Uncomfortable Truth
Reading “Ultrasociety” was an uncomfortable experience for me. Like many people, I’ve always believed that peace and cooperation go hand in hand. Turchin’s work forces us to confront the possibility that the opposite might be true - that our greatest cooperative achievements may have been born from our darkest conflicts.
I don’t agree with all of Turchin’s conclusions, particularly his more deterministic views on historical progress. But I cannot deny the power of his argument or the importance of his work. This book has fundamentally changed how I view human history and our potential future.
Final Verdict: Essential but Challenging Reading
“Ultrasociety” is not an easy read, either intellectually or emotionally. It challenges deeply held beliefs about human nature and progress. But it’s precisely this discomfort that makes the book so valuable.
If you’re willing to have your assumptions challenged and your worldview expanded, I highly recommend this book. Just be prepared to question some of your most fundamental beliefs about what makes human civilization possible.