How Societies Change

by Daniel Chirot

How do the world′s societies differ from each other? What were the reasons for change in the past, and do they help us in predicting change in the future? This stimulating text encourages students to ask these and other questions. Daniel Chirot explains how states and agriculture combined to create the world′s classic civilizations. He shows how the UK, a marginal agrarian civilization on the edge of Europe, produced through the last two sections delineate the chronic unsolved problems of the modern era, develop a simplified model of how societies work and how the study of social change can contribute to the resolution of societies′ most important problems.

153 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1994

Reviews

[Nick Navarre · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modernizationalists' views on how society became the way it is. Chirot mostly has some very western feelings about why we (as a society) got to be where we are. Modernization is a theory about society evolving on a linear path. Although I somewhat agree with his statements I would have to say there has to be more to society than simply evolving to the next stage in our process. A main point is that open, free-thinking societies adapt and work hard to be where they are.

It's an OK book, I read it for my Sociology course haha.

[Hong Qiu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short book that is worth reading. I read the 2012 second edition. The author provides a good overview of how societies change from early human society, agrarian societies to industrilized modern world.

[Ben Leong · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author provides a lot of useful facts pertaining to how humans have changed from the days BCE up until today. It is a fascinating book, but I feel that it should be classified under the genre of history instead of sociology.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introductory anthropological overview.

[Amanda Regan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author has a clear view on capitalism that skews a lot of his points. While still valid for much historical information on social change, it must be taken at it's opinionated face value.