Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies Chapter Summary & Analysis - Epilogue "The Future of Human History as a Science" Summary

Epilogue "The Future of Human History as a Science" Summary and Analysis

Diamond starts the epilogue by answering Yali's original question, "I would say to Yali: the striking differences between the long-term histories of peoples of the different continents have been due not to innate differences in the peoples themselves but to differences in their environments" (pg. 405). Diamond then presents a brief outline of his theory and the ultimate and proximate causes of these differences between societies. The causes include the continental differences in wild plant and animal species that could be domesticated, the orientation of axis for a continent, the relative isolation of peoples, and the continental differences in the size of landmass and population.

Diamond sees his work as the starting point for other investigations and studies in this area. He identifies certain areas where subsequent research might take place including, the role of intercontinental differences, how these factors also apply on smaller geographical scales and shorter time periods,...
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