Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny

New technologies arise that permit or encourage new, richer forms of non-zero-sum interaction; then (for intelligible reasons grounded ultimately in human nature) social structures evolve that realize this rich potential—that convert non-zero-sum situations into positive sums.5 † Thus does social complexity grow in scope and depth.

Immanuel Kant noted the “unsocial sociability” of man, with special emphasis on the “unsocial” part and its ironic consequences. “Through the desire for honor, power or property, it drives him to seek status among his fellows, whom he cannot bear yet cannot bear to leave.”

Still, on balance, over the long run, non-zero-sum situations produce more positive sums than negative sums, more mutual benefit than parasitism. As a result, people become embedded in larger and richer webs of interdependence.

My hope is to illuminate a kind of force—the non-zero-sum dynamic—that has crucially shaped the unfolding of life on earth so far.

Via this quest for status, “the first true steps are taken from barbarism to culture, which in fact consists in the social worthiness of man.” Thus commences “a continued process of enlightenment” as “all man’s talents are now gradually developed, his taste cultivated.”