Is Jared Diamond’s 1997 bestseller a work of staggering genius, or a piece of intellectual garbage? Has it moved our understanding of humanity forward, or has it set us back by decades? Are these binary choices ridiculously limiting? Totally! In this episode Sebastian does his best to parse the good ideas from Guns, Germs, and Steel, while also engaging with some of the best and most memorable criticisms of the book. Tune-in and find out how cantankerous Zebras, the neglected history of India, and the Sapa Inca all play a role in the story.

Works Cited

Antrosio, Jason, 2011. “Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond: Against History.” Living Anthropologically website, https://www.livinganthropologically.com/archaeology/guns-germs-and-steel-jared-diamond/. First posted 7 July 2011. Last updated 7 June 2020.

Antrosio, Jason. 2013. “Eric Wolf, Europe and the People Without History (Rediscovered).” Living Anthropologically website, https://www.livinganthropologically.com/eric-wolf-europe-people-without-history/. First posted 26 January 2013. Revised 1 June 2021.

“’Guns, Germs, and Steel’ Reconsidered.” Inside Higher Ed, www.insidehighered.com/news/2005/08/03/guns-germs-and-steel-reconsidered.

Correia, David. “F**k Jared Diamond.” Capitalism Nature Socialism, vol. 24, no. 4, 2013, pp. 1–6., doi:10.1080/10455752.2013.846490.

Diamond, Jared M. Guns, Germs, and Steel the Fates of Human Societies. W.W. Norton & Company, 2017.

Lowrey, Kathleen (Ozma) et al. Savage Minds, 24 July 2005, savageminds.org/2005/07/24/anthropologys-guns-germs-and-steel-problem/.

Tomlinson, Tom. Reviews in History: Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, Institute of Historical Research, 1 May 1998, web.archive.org/web/20070927210040/www.history.ac.uk/reviews/paper/diamond.html.