The Better Angels of Our Nature

by Steven Pinker
The Better Angels of Our Nature cover
Good Books rating 4.23
Technical:
  • ID: 261
  • Added: 2025-09-06
  • Updated: 2025-09-10
  • ISBN: 9780141959740
  • Publisher: Penguin UK
  • Published: 2011-10-06
  • Formats: 10
  • Reviews: 3
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Waterstones
Paperback • £18.99

In "The Better Angels of Our Nature," Steven Pinker challenges the common belief that the modern world is more violent than ever. Using extensive historical and psychological research, he documents a significant decline in violence across all forms—war, crime, and treatment of children—over thousands of years. Pinker attributes this decline to factors like the rise of nation-states, commerce, literacy, and rational problem-solving, which have fostered empathy and cooperation among people. Pinker further explores the internal human motives he calls the 'better angels'—empathy, self-control, moral sense, and reason—that help steer us away from violence. He also examines the opposing 'inner demons' that drive violent behavior, explaining how societal changes have enabled our better angels to prevail. This ambitious work synthesizes history, science, and philosophy to offer a hopeful and data-driven perspective on human nature and the future of peace.

Reviews
Barnes & Noble · 2025-09-06
comprehensive 4.20

The book explains the long-term decline in violence by outlining major historical trends and psychological forces that have shaped human behavior toward peace.

This review appreciates how Steven Pinker organizes the complex historical data into coherent trends and forces that have led humanity away from violence. The narrative covers transitions from prehistoric anarchy to modern state societies, emphasizing how centralized authority and commerce reduce violence. The review notes the book's detailed scope and systematic approach, making it a significant contribution to understanding the historical decline of violence.

Quick quotes

    The Better Angels of Our Nature is a tale of six trends, five inner demons, four better angels, and five historical forces.

    The first was the transition from anarchy to agricultural civilizations with cities and governments.

    A more or less fivefold decrease in rates of violent death came with the imposition of peace.

Goodreads · 2025-09-06
insightful 4.50

The book presents a compelling argument that violence has declined historically by exploring human nature's inner demons and better angels, mixing psychology and history effectively.

This review highlights the book's ambitious and provocative thesis that violence is on the decline, despite contemporary perceptions to the contrary. It emphasizes how Steven Pinker combines psychological insights with historical data to reveal the forces that allow our better angels—like empathy and reason—to prevail over violent impulses. The reviewer notes the book's capacity to challenge common fatalistic views about human nature and provoke deep discussion both in public and private spheres.

Quick quotes

    This groundbreaking book continues Pinker's exploration of the essence of human nature, mixing psychology and history to provide a remarkable picture of an increasingly nonviolent world.

    The key, he explains, is to understand our intrinsic motives - the inner demons that incline us toward violence and the better angels that steer us away.

    Exploding fatalist myths about humankind's inherent violence and the curse of modernity, this ambitious and provocative book is sure to be hotly debated in living rooms and the Pentagon alike.

The Independent · Marek Kohn · 2011-10-07
thoughtful 4.00

The book offers a detailed and engaging argument for the decline of violence, supported by extensive historical data and analysis of human motivations.

Marek Kohn appreciates Steven Pinker's thorough approach in documenting the decline of violence throughout history, drawing from a wide range of evidence and disciplinary perspectives. He highlights how the book delves into the causes behind this trend, notably the roles of empathy, self-control, and reason, while acknowledging the complexities and paradoxes involved. The review conveys admiration for the book's ambitious scope and its potential to shift readers' understanding of violence and human nature.

Quick quotes

    The Better Angels of Our Nature offers an engaging argument for the decline of violence.

    Pinker draws on a vast range of historical data to support his thesis that violence has declined both in the long run and the short run.

    He emphasizes the role of empathy, self-control, and reason as the motivations that steer us away from violence.

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