animals is not as clear-cut as Harari imagines. However, this does not undermine the central claim. Even if chimps and other Homo species had access to simple traditions and societies, modern humans may have marked a point of inflection beyond which these skills generate exponential returns. Intersubjective reality is not solely a human province; animals occasionally penetrate the borders. But they never get far.
But we dismissed complex language as the difference between humans and animals because animals can do it too, even though the exact same applies here!
There are many ways in which humans are orders of magnitude ahead of animals.
This includes:
Language
Ability to learn by copying
Ability to walk on 2 legs whilst using 2 hands
Tool use
Complexity of culture
Complexity of social relations
Probably raw problem solving skills
Probably self awareness
And of course intersubjective reality
These are probably interrelated in many ways and I would be extremely sceptical of anyone saying one is the main cause for human dominance without further evidence.
But we dismissed complex language as the difference between humans and animals because animals can do it too, even though the exact same applies here!
There are many ways in which humans are orders of magnitude ahead of animals.
This includes: Language Ability to learn by copying Ability to walk on 2 legs whilst using 2 hands Tool use Complexity of culture Complexity of social relations Probably raw problem solving skills Probably self awareness And of course intersubjective reality
These are probably interrelated in many ways and I would be extremely sceptical of anyone saying one is the main cause for human dominance without further evidence.