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"Refreshingly unpolemical and at times even witty, McNeill's book brims with carefully sifted statistics and brilliant details."―Washington Post Book World
The history of the twentieth century is most often told through its world wars, the rise and fall of communism, or its economic upheavals. In his startling new book, J. R. McNeill gives us our first general account of what may prove to be the most significant dimension of the twentieth century: its environmental history. To a degree unprecedented in human history, we have refashioned the earth's air, water, and soil, and the biosphere of which we are a part. Based on exhaustive research, McNeill's story―a compelling blend of anecdotes, data, and shrewd analysis―never preaches: it is our definitive account. This is a volume in The Global Century Series (general editor, Paul Kennedy). 40 b/w photographs, 15 maps- Sales Rank: #125818 in Books
- Brand: McNeill, John Robert
- Published on: 2001-04-17
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.20" h x 1.20" w x 6.10" l, 1.38 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 448 pages
Amazon.com Review
J.R. McNeill, a professor of history at Georgetown University, visits the annals of the past century only to return to the present with bad news: in that 100-year span, he writes, the industrialized and developing nations of the world have wrought damage to nearly every part of the globe. That much seems obvious to even the most casual reader, but what emerges, and forcefully, from McNeill's pages is just how extensive that damage has been. For example, he writes, "soil degradation in one form or another now affects one-third of the world's land surface," larger by far than the world's cultivated areas. Things are worse in some places than in others; McNeill observes that Africa is "the only continent where food production per capita declined after 1960," due to the loss of productive soil. McNeill's litany continues: the air in most of the world's cities is perilously unhealthy; the drinking water across much of the planet is growing ever more polluted; the human species is increasingly locked "in a rigid and uneasy bond with modern agriculture," which trades the promise of abundant food for the use of carcinogenic pesticides and fossil fuels.
The environmental changes of the last century, McNeill closes by saying, are on an unprecedented scale, so much so that we can scarcely begin to fathom their implications. We can, however, start to think about them, and McNeill's book is a helpful primer. --Gregory McNamee
From Publishers Weekly
Our profligate, fossil fuel-based civilization is ecologically unsustainable and creates perpetual environmental disturbance, says Georgetown University history professor McNeill, but he remains undecided as to whether humanity has entered a genuine, full-blown ecological crisis. Nevertheless, the evidence he presents in this comprehensive, balanced survey is alarming. Soil degradation now affects one-third of earth's land surface, though intensive fertilizer use and genetic engineering of crops have masked the ill effects. From Mexico City to Calcutta, from China to Africa, megacities choke on air pollution as economic development takes priority over other concerns. Acid rain has decimated lake and river life, crops and forests across Europe and North America. International in scope, McNeill's kaleidoscopic, textbookish history hops from Soviet phosphate mining in the Arctic to deforestation by white settlers in southern Africa, documenting the pollution of oceans and seas; the unchecked "harvesting" of fish and whales; environmentally influenced, disease-producing shifts in human-microbe relations; disruptive invasions by new species (sea lampreys in the Great Lakes, rabbits in Australia); and the massive impact on ecosystems resulting from urbanization, population growth, wars, oil spills, nuclear power accidents. McNeill's study underscores the mixed consequences of environmental and political decision making. For example, the Green Revolution fed additional millions, but it also promoted monoculture and strengthened landed elites in Asia and Latin America. The book closes with a capsule history of the environmental movement, gauging its successes and influence. This scientifically informed survey makes a useful resource for environmentalists, scholars, globalists, biologists, policy makers and concerned readers. 40 photos and 15 maps not seen by PW. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
McNeill (history, Georgetown Univ.) offers a concise synthesis of humanity's relationship to and alteration of the environment during the 20th century. Divided into 12 chapters, each with a brief introduction and summary of the topics discussed therein, his volume examines Earth's lithosphere, pedosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. McNeill interprets the human impact on the earth politically, economically, and socially, noting that history and ecology cannot be separated, as each influenced the other. Whether it be defoliants used to fight a war in Vietnam, the construction of military-industrial complexes, or the production and consumption of consumer goods, the environmental damage was severe but not always irreversible. As a history of causes and consequences, McNeill's volume will be a welcome addition to environmental history collections and will appeal to the general reader who wants a quick overview.
-Patricia Ann Owens, Wabash Valley Coll., Mt. Carmel, IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Most helpful customer reviews
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Reframing the 20th Century
By Jake Zirkle
J.R. McNeill’s Something New Under the Sun: An Environmental History of the Twentieth-century World provides a compelling look at the unprecedented environmental impact humans have had on the planet during the previous century. Professor of history at Georgetown University, McNeill has created a work that has transcended the bounds of a single discipline and evolved into a work that spans many. Within the covers of Something New Under the Sun, McNeill discusses a plethora of environmental issues and does so with great sense of professionalism.
It is not often a work is created that overloads the reader with facts and relevant information while remaining extremely readable. The denseness of McNeill’s book does not impede upon one’s ability to enjoy the reading process. The information within a book is certainly the most important aspect of the work, but the ability of the author to create something that flows and maintains the reader’s interest should be of equal note.
McNeill supports the concept of Anthropocene, which is proposed epoch that begins when the human population first starts to make a significant impact on the ecosystem. This entire work supports this theory and McNeill states that “this book is anthropocentric.” He also adds that “this book is about people and the environment. It is not concerned with ecological changes that humans had no role in bringing about, nor with those that, whatever their causes, have little chance of affecting human affairs.”
A true interdisciplinary work, Something New Under the Sun combines ecology, statistics, environmental science, biology, sociology, economics, and professional history to create something unique. It is the uniqueness of environmental history that makes it so compelling. McNeill uses every resource at his disposal to create a complete analysis of the impact humans have had on the environment in the twentieth century. This approach has effectively reframed the twentieth century because it provides a very non-traditional examination of a heavily studied time period. This particular time period contains both World Wars and many other status-quo changing events, yet McNeill is able to largely ignore these topics and focus on the environmental issues. This reframing is one of the most important accomplishments of this book because it is not often a historian is able to provide a completely new look at greatly studied time period.
It is of note that McNeill never portrays a sense of impending doom, nor does he fall victim to pessimism, but rather he attempts to stay emotional disconnected. This provides legitimacy to his work because he is not being weighed down by an inherent emotional reaction. This approach allows this book to reach a wider audience because it does not come across as an emotional appeal, but instead it provides a thoughtful examination of all available evidence.
Interestingly, McNeill states that he believes 20% of all humans who have ever lived were born after 1940. This is astonishing, but not unbelievable. While the many advances that were made in the last century people are living longer and birth rates have risen greatly. McNeill attributes this to the strides made in public health and an increase in agricultural production. With this tremendous increase in both population and technology the impact on the environment is certainly high.
The issue of government intervention in environmental issues is something that is of great importance and often debated. McNeill notes that many of the world’s wealthier countries respond to environmental issues and make an attempt to correct them, but many poor countries make little to no effort. This is presumably because these countries have more important issues to address such as feeding their people or stabilizing their country. These poor countries may not be hostile to environmental intervention, but rather they simply cannot afford to intervene.
Something New Under the Sun is a tremendous work that seamlessly blends many different disciplines into one cohesive narrative. McNeill successfully demonstrates the impact that humans have had on the Earth over the last century and does so in a very well-written manner. While this book contains a tremendous amount of information, it is suitable for the professional or novice historian.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Environmental History Rocks
By Richard Reese (author of Understanding Sustainability)
A verse* in the Old Testament proclaims, “there is no new thing under the sun.” These words come from a low-tech era when nomadic herders diminished their ecosystem so slowly that little change was noticeable to the passing generations. Something New Under the Sun is the title of J. R. McNeill’s environmental history of the twentieth century. It describes a high-tech era when industrial society got thoroughly sloshed on cheap energy, and went on a berserk rampage, smashing everything.
With the emergence of agriculture, the relationship between humankind and the ecosystem took a sharp turn onto a bumpy bloody unsustainable road. There are a few places where agriculture wrecks the land at a slower pace. A region spanning from Poland to Ireland typically receives adequate rain in gentle showers, the lay of the land is not steep, and the heavy soils are not easily eroded. When the farming methods from this region were exported to North America, where heavy rains are common, it resulted in severe erosion.
Many agricultural systems flamed out and vanished long ago. China has beat the odds, and remained in the farm business for over 3,000 years. This is often cited as proof that sustainable agriculture is possible. But McNeill points out that their longevity is the result of sequentially replacing one unsustainable mode with a different unsustainable mode. They will eventually run out of tricks and flame out. A process that regularly pulverizes soils and depletes nutrients cannot have a long-term future, and irrigated systems usually flame out faster.
Food is one thing that humans actually need. McNeill describes how agriculture has become far more destructive in the last hundred years. It produces more food, degrades more land, and spurs population growth, seriously worsening many other problems. Readers learn about erosion, heavy machinery, synthetic fertilizers, salinization, pesticides, herbicides, water mining, and so on. Our ability to continue feeding a massive herd will face huge challenges in the coming years.
In addition to troublesome agriculture, we stirred fossil energy and industrialization into the pot, and it exploded. The twentieth century was like an asteroid strike — a tumultuous pandemonium never seen before, that can never be repeated. Tragically, this era of roaring helter-skelter is what most people today perceive to be “normal.” Life has always been like this, we think, because this is how it’s been since grandma was born. History Deficiency Syndrome leads to a life of vivid hallucinations. There is a highly effective antidote: learning.
The “normal” mindset is trained to focus on the benefits, and ignore the costs. With a bright torch, McNeill leads his readers down into a sacred cave, where the walls are covered with images of our culture’s darkest secrets. In this vast grotto, we record the many, many things that are never mentioned in the daylight world above, because they clash with our myths of progress and human superiority — similar to the way that dinosaur bones make creationists twitch and squirm. The bones contradict the myths, an embarrassing dilemma.
So, with the swish of a magic wand, we’ve made the bones invisible in our schools, workplaces, newsrooms, churches, and homes. We keep them in the cave. In the normal daylight world, we are constantly blasted by a fire hose of frivolous information, ridiculous balderdash, and titillating rubbish. The myths are safe. The world was made for humans. We are the greatest.
McNeill points out that a major cause of twentieth century mass hysteria was that millions of people were enslaved by “big ideas.” Some ideas are absorbed by cultures and never excreted, even stupid ideas, like the obsession with perpetual economic growth, our insatiable hunger for stuff and status, our stunning disregard for the generations yet-to-be-born.
“The overarching priority of economic growth was easily the most important idea of the twentieth century.” We created a monster that we could not control — it controlled us. Economists became the nutjob gurus of the wacky cult of growth, and society guzzled their toxic Kool-Aid. Crazy economists, who preached that society could get along without natural resources, won Nobel Prizes. They became respected advisors to world leaders. In every newscast, you repeatedly hear the words “growth” and “recovery.” These are the yowls and howls of an insane asylum.
Environmentalists often sneer at the multitudes who fail to be enraged by the catastrophe of the week. They assume that the herd understands the issues. But the daily info-streams that deluge the mainstream world have almost nothing in common with McNeill’s model of reality. Few people in our society have a well-rounded understanding of our eco-predicaments, including most environmentalists. This world would be a much different place if McNeill’s perception of history became the mainstream, and folks could readily comprehend the harms caused by our lifestyles. Ignorance is enormously costly.
One wee bright spot in the twentieth century was the emergence of Deep Ecology, a small group of renegade thinkers that enthusiastically denounced the dead end path of anthropocentricism. For the first time in 300 years, Western people were spray-painting naughty insults on the cathedrals of Cartesian thinking — “We do not live in a machine world of soulless dead matter!” Deep Ecology succeeded in channeling bits of wisdom from the spirits of our wild ancestors.
On the final pages, McNeill does not offer an intoxicating punch bowl of magical thinking. Our future is highly volatile, even the near future is uncertain. History has little to say about sudden mass enlightenment and miraculous intelligent change. “The reason I expect formidable ecological and societal problems in the future is because of what I see in the past.”
The book is thoroughly researched, well written, and hard to put down. Readers are taken on a sobering voyage of discovery, where there are thrills and chills around every turn — mercury poisoning, radiation nightmares, soil mining, deforestation, and on and on. It’s fascinating to observe the spectacular ways that brilliant innovations backfire. Human cleverness is amazing, but it is dwarfed by our amazing un-cleverness. We weren’t made to live like this.
At the same time, human genes are about 98 to 99.4 percent the same as the genes of chimps and bonobos, our cousins who have never lost their path. They’ve been healthy, happy, and sustainable for over a million years. Circle the superior species in this picture. We have a sick culture, but our genes are probably OK. Cultures can be changed. We need to become aware of reality. We need to turn off our glowing screens, open the door, and rediscover our home and our identity. Happy trails!
* Ecclesiastes 1:9 “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Great Read
By Tina Zhang
I bought this for my class. This book contains so much great information that I will have to re read it again and again to do the knowledge justice.
There are things I already know before I read this book, but it connected dots together to reveal something completely new. For the vast majority of this book I didn't know before, the author skillfully organized them together to present a vivid and gripping tale of how human changed the environment, directly/indirectly, intentionally/accidentally, under technology, culture and politics impacts.
The read provoked sadness, frustration, fear and many other emotions and it is one of the best books I read. Highly recommend for anyone who wants a stimulating learning experience to understand men and nature.
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