Analysis Of The Ends Of The World As We Know Them By Jared Diamond

Acclaimed author and University of California Los Angeles professor of geography and physiology Jared Diamond begins his essay, “The Ends of the World as We Know Them,” by talking about an age-old tradition: New Year’s resolutions. He claims that the beginning of a New Year is a time to reflect on the past and make appropriate changes based on the past, an idea which guides the essay.
He expresses concern about the new presidential term, stating that if a country begins to collapse, it does so very quickly. He asks what can be learned from history so that America does not suddenly demise as did many nations before it, but acknowledges that the answer will, like historical reality, be complicated. While some societies last thousands of years, others are built and collapse far more quickly, he claims. Nevertheless, there are five factors that are associated with the demise of a society, he says. These are: environmental negligence, climate change, foes, changes in trade patterns, and social, political, and economic responses to any of these changes. Diamond asserts that the relative importance of these factors varies from cases to case; there are no steadfast rules, and any combination of factors could foreseeably lead to a society’s demise.
He gives specific examples that support his claim. The collapse of a Polynesian society on

Easter Island three centuries ago was due solely to environmental problems, while medieval Norse colonies residing in Greenland fell because of changes in demographics, the development of enemies, and people’s responses to these shifts.
In the next few paragraphs, he further illustrates his point with the example of the Mayans of the Yucatan Peninsula, who were undone predominantly because of the way they handled environmental resources. The Kings were unconcerned because, by squeezing the commoners for money, they were able to remain insulated from the problems of society. In contrast, Polynesian settlements on the Pitcairn Islands of the southern Pacific Ocean fell due to something out of their own control, he claims. He explains that the islanders depended on imports of canoes, different crops, livestock, and oyster shells used for making tools from the island of of Mangareva, hundreds of miles away. Deforestation, subsequent erosion, and warfare led to the collapse of this trading system, and, by extension, Pitcairn society. He notes that these are not the only examples of societies that have died out due to these reasons; in fact, there have been thousands of societies that came to similar ends over the years.
He briefly mentions the Anasazi of the American Southwest as well as the Greenland Norse, ancient societies residing in the Fertile Crescent, the Khmer society of Angkor Wat, and the Moche of Peru as further evidence. However, many other societies, including civilizations in Japan, Tonga, Tikopia, the New Guinea Highlands, and Central and Northwest Europe, have managed to prosper for lengthy periods of time, he hopefully counters.
He asks why some societies survive and others plummet.

The answer, he says, is partially environmental. Societies in robust and fertile environments, he claims, are more likely to prosper than those in dry, cold, or otherwise difficult surroundings. But a good environment does not guarantee success, nor does a poor one dictate failure. He contends that the other half of the answer has to do with how a society responds to problems. Societies in Germany, Japan, and New Guinea, for instance, combatted deforestation through systematic efforts to restore the natural environment while the Mayans, made no such effort, and, consequently,

suffered.
He goes into more detail about Japan’s reforestation efforts after a triumph that culminated a one hundred and fifty year civil war, but opened the economy up for logging for construction, fuel, and fertilizer. To make sure they still had healthy forests, the shoguns took measures to reduce wood consumption and replant forests. Iceland also learned from their mistakes, and, after cutting down a lot of trees and stocking too many sheep, started instituting strict controls that ameliorated the erosion caused by deforestation.
He returns to the question of what Americans today can learn from history. He says that the most apparent lesson is to take care of the environment. He warns that consequences of environmental negligence now would be more severe now than ever before because of advanced technology, and resulting need for energy, and the interconnectedness of the world. Americans can also learn lessons from issues in group decision making. These issues arise predominantly from conflicts of interest or the pursuit of short-term gains irregardless of long-term consequences, he asserts.
History also teaches modern citizens two deeper lessons about what what separates successful and doomed societies, he claims. The first is that a society is destined to fail if its elites isolate themselves from the problems of the rest of society. He worries that this is going on in American society. In Los Angeles, he points out, many wealthy parents send their children to private schools, drink bottled water, and depend on private pensions. The elites, in turn, become isolated from problems in social security, public schooling, and municipal water supply that affect less wealthy individuals. He warns that if the situation of the poor deteriorates too much, protest is inevitable, a trend that is apparent throughout history. But if problems affect everyone, not just the poor, they are more likely to be addressed, and all of society benefits.
Another deep lesson that Diamond believes Americans can learn from history has to do with the reevaluation of values when they are no longer relevant. The medieval Greenland Norse refused to give up a pastoral lifestyle for a pagan hunting lifestyle (which they viewed as below them) even when it became too cold to support a pastoral lifestyle. As a result, the Greenland Norse were not able to support a society and died out soon thereafter. Britain was more successful in its reappraisal of values and decided to forego its status as ruler of a separate empire in favor of its inclusion in the European Union, he says.
He says that, in the New Year, Americans have to face their own reappraisals, however painful. Traditionally, America has been known as the land of plenty, and Americans have practiced unrestrained consumerism, he asserts. But it’s time to realize that this is not a viable option in a world of finite resources, he contends. He thinks that it is time to shift from short term missions, such as military deployments overseas to garner support from other nations, to think about the things that will more directly affect the future of the nation: public health, population, and the environment.
While many of his friends are pessimistic, he is hopeful about the future of American society for two reasons: humanity’s biggest problems are those which people imparted on themselves, and unlike previous societies, they have the ability to study and learn from the mistakes of societies remote from them in both space and time. He concludes by asking whether Americans will choose to learn from these resources.