The Dynamic Society: The Sources of Global Change

By Graeme D. Snooks

Book Overview

This book discusses the nature and process of change in human society over the past two million years. The author draws on economic, historical and biological concepts to examine the driving forces of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415137314
• ISBN13: 9780415137317
• Release Date: March 1996
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 512 Pages
• Weight: 2.18 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 1.3" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Review by Professor Paul van der Laar, Erasmus University

In this inspiring book Graeme Donald Snooks unravels the driving force of human society. His exploration starts at the beginning of life, some 4 billion years ago. Once we are able to understand the nature of life on earth, we may comprehend the dynamics of human society. The author is not afraid to challenge modern evolutionists by his claim that the development path of life can be explained by an empirical economic model. Charles Darwin's natural selection hypothesis was, in fact, influenced by Adam Smith. Evolution is, then, an economic rather than a physical problem - the struggle by species to gain access to scarce natural resources in order to survive. Snooks's economic model is based on the concept of 'materialist man'. The basic driving force of mankind is to maximise the probability of survival and material prosperity (accumulation and consumption of tangible goods and services) over his lifetime. Materialist man is not the homo economicus of economic theory. Snooks is very explicit about its value. Short-run equilibrium analyses contribute very little to our knowledge about long run dynamic processes. Materialist man tries to satisfy his demands in a highly competitive world, to which end he uses dynamic strategies: family multiplication, technology, conquest, and commerce. These choices are rational, because they aim at the maximisation of material returns, given expected benefits and costs. The ambitions of materialist man in human society have resulted in three technological paradigms: the Paleolithic Revolution (some 1.6 million years ago), the Neolithic Revolution (about 10600 years ago) and the Industrial Revolution (200 years ago). These fundamental changes in economic systems were the outcome of different dynamic mechanisms and dynamic strategies . . . At the end of his fascinating and exciting exploration, Snooks teaches the lessons of dynamic society. His evidence suggests that human nature is genetically determined, unchanging, and unchangeable. Without the materialistic drive, the survival of mankind during the past millions of years would not have been possible. The world of today is, perhaps, facing the exhaustion of the industrial paradigm, but according to Snooks the dynamic society provides an answer. In his view the stationary state, in which there is no room for further technologically based expansion, can only be laid down by ecological dictatorship. However, if we stop technological change as a dominant strategy, there is only one remaining, undesirable, strategy left over: conquest, a dangerous game in the nuclear era. Snooks believes that our environment needs protection, but we should not forget what history tells us. The dynamic society will produce a fourth paradigm shift, and it will come soon. This conclusion is based on the fact that the technological shift of the Industrial Revolution took only 100 years. It is uncertain what this will bring us. According to Snooks a substitution of solar energy for fos

History in the Upper Case

Professor Snooks has produced a magnum opus in "The Dynamic Society". He forwards an existential (empirical, inductive)economic model that elucidates not only the passage of human society from the beginnings, but encapsulates the rhythms of life itself.The key elements of the model are these - 1)A dynamic actor, "materialist man" (MM) who maximizes material advantage over the course of a lifetime. Snooks is at great pains to distinguish his dynamic MM from both homo economicus (a static concept), and other forms of analytical (passive and active) agents utilized in both the social and the physical sciences. 2) The strategic demands of MM drive history. These demands manifest themselves in "dynamic strategies", which Snooks identifies as Conquest, Commerce, family multiplication and Technological Change. 3) The waxing and waning of dynamic strategies define cycles and epochs, institutional frameworks, the rise and fall of civilizations, and the level of economic growth (=GDP/capita).The dynamic material model is a serious challenge to established modes of dialectical, idealist, material and institutional historiography. The serious practitioner and the ambitious student can hardly afford to be ignorant of the arguments of Professor Snooks.