How do we define “advancement” of a civilization? Their technical ability? Their scientific understanding? Their cultural complexity? Their living standards? Their economic vitality? Their individual rights and freedoms? Their average capacity for individual fulfillment? Their life expectancies?
Silk Slippers of History
Voltaire* in the early eighteenth century asserted “history is filled with the sound of silken slippers going downstairs and wooden shoes coming up.” While this metaphorical explanation for the rise and fall of civilizations is unpopular these days, I think it has significant merit in explaining societies' evolution.
Society’s Origins
When I unearth an article that I can make applicable to writing and storytelling, I have no compulsions against sharing it with you. This week, that’s a paper from Science Advances on how societies initially arose: “Disentangling the Evolutionary Drivers of Social Complexity: A Comprehensive Test of Hypotheses.”
Soulsmith Review
I don't want to spoil anything in the excerpt, so you'll actually need to click on the post if you want to know what this one is all about...
IGC Publishing 