Vague description of non-fiction book I haven't read

[rissabby]

A few (or two) weeks ago I was watching the news on PBS (Public Broadcasting System in the US). Jeffrey Brown was interviewing ... someone. During the interview he mentioned that the guy had written a book about things getting better for humanity. That we've been getting less violent, from our early known history till now.

I wasn't paying enough attention to get more than that. But, I'd like to take a look at the book.

I went to the PBS news site today and couldn't find anything.

I'm hoping someone else saw the interview/news story and remembers more than I. Or that someone can recognize the book from my sketchy memory of it.

PS. It doesn't seem to be in the piece the called, "This artist is taking on America's history of violence" with Carrie Mae Weems.

FOUND by Rydra_Wong. It's "The Better Angels of Our Nature", by Steven Pinker.

Comments

[rydra_wong]

During the interview he mentioned that the guy had written a book about things getting better for humanity. That we've been getting less violent, from our early known history till now.

Steven Pinker? It sounds like there are two books it could be -- "The Better Angels of Our Nature" and his follow-up, "Enlightenment Now":

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Better_Angels_of_Our_Nature
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/books/review/steven-pinker-enlightenment-now.html

[rissabby]

Thank you! I'm sure you're right. The Better Angels ... was the one. And, thanks also for the link to wikipedia.

[monksandbones]

I'm pretty sure it's Steven Pinker, The Better Angels of Our Nature or Enlightenment Now.

I will say, though, that I know a lot of medieval historians who violently disagree with his argument in The Better Angels of Our Nature. Here is a pretty savage critique of Enlightenment Now from a historian of the enlightenment.

[rissabby]

Thank you. It was Better Angels...
I'll look around for critiques from medieval historians. To me that's a lot more interesting than The Enlightenment (but I read the article you linked to also).

[calzephyr]

You can try tweeting him - or perhaps something on his feed rings a bell?

https://twitter.com/jeffreybrown