The next apocalypse : the art and science of survival

The next apocalypse The art and science of survival

Chris Begley

Book - 2021

"In an age of pandemics, climate change, and political unrest, you don't have to be a prepper to worry about the future or to wonder how you can prepare for it. Many of us conjure up images of a post-apocalyptic world where life is simple, our needs and goals clear. We imagine the desolate, barren world of Cormac McCarthy's The Road, where starting fires, building shelters, and even picking locks are our most valuable skills. But as underwater archeologist, anthropologist, and survival instructor Chris Begley argues in The Next Apocalypse, an apocalyptic disaster will look nothing like our fantasies, and if we want to prepare for it, then we must look to history. Drawing on three decades of archeological and anthropological r...esearch on civilizations as diverse as the Maya, the Roman Empire, and the Angor Watt, Begley shows that apocalypses hardly ever result in the disappearance of an entire population. The collapse of the Maya civilization in the thirteenth century is a case in point. Though the Maya left behind a great many vacated cities and complexes, the people survived. In fact, there are still five million Maya alive today. Much as we see with the current immigration crisis in Central America, overpopulation and drought, followed by famine and warfare, drove the Maya away from once-flourishing cities. Such migration is one of the hallmarks of the apocalypse that Begley envisions. He discusses the various scenarios that could lead to mass migration, from climate change and disease to war and political collapse, and how we might prepare for them. Planning for the apocalypse isn't simply about learning how to find food and water or to start a fire. Those skills won't hurt. But first and foremost, we'll need to learn how to navigate the complex social and political dynamics that will inevitably emerge as migration, food shortages, and war bring out our most primal instincts. Rather than viewing people on the move as potential looters and trying to protect our own stockpiles, we'll need to see them as people in need, who might possess skills that are useful to us all. The ultimate test of our survival won't be whether we can adjust to a world without technology or other modern conveniences. It will be how we respond to the loss of culture and sense of common humanity that give our lives purpose and meaning. If we want to survive the apocalypse, then the thing to do isn't to run to our hideouts; it's to rebuild our communal bonds. And that begins with helping others. Combining the experiences, insights, and acumen of an adventurer with the scholarly perspectives of an archeologist and anthropologist, Begley transforms our understanding of the fall of civilizations and challenges us to build a future rooted in empathy, humanity, and a commitment to the common good"--

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Subjects
Survivalism.
Disasters > Social aspects.
Emergency management > Social aspects.
Published
New York, NY : Basic Books, Hachette Book Group 2021.
Language
English
Main Author
Chris Begley (author)
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
vii, 279 pages ; 25 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN
9781541675285
  • Prologue
  • Introduction
  • Part I. The Past: Archaeology of the Apocalypse
  • Chapter 1. When Things Fall Apart
  • Chapter 2. Why Things Fall Apart
  • Chapter 3. How Things Fall Apart
  • Part II. The Present: Envisioning the Apocalypse
  • Chapter 4. Apocalyptic Fantasies
  • Chapter 5. Apocalyptic Fears
  • Chapter 6. Reading and Writing the Apocalypse
  • Part III. The Future: The Next Apocalypse
  • Chapter 7. Likely Scenarios
  • Chapter 8. Who Survives and Why
  • Conclusion
  • Acknowledgments
  • Bibliography
  • Notes
  • Index
Review by Booklist Review

Killer viruses, nuclear war, zombie uprisings, an asteroid crashing into earth, catastrophic climate change--there's no limit to the myriad end-of-the-world scenarios people imagine and worry about. Begley, an archaeologist and wilderness-survival instructor, explores "what actually happens in a catastrophe, how we make it through, and why we think about all of this in the ways we do." He looks to the past--the collapse of Maya civilization, the decline of the Roman Empire, the decimation of Native American societies--for lessons on how future apocalypses might develop. Environmental changes, sociopolitical dynamics, infectious diseases, and colonialism can be causative factors. He also briefly considers apocalypse-themed religious texts, literature, and movies and ponders concepts of disaster, starting over, and resilience. How we view the future shapes it and our current actions. He cites a University of Cambridge researcher who calculated the average duration of a civilization to be 336 years. Over time, things inevitably fall apart. Begley expertly explains how a doomsday can occur (and includes suggestions on short-term survival) but goes easy on the doom, preferring knowledge and preparation over fear and panic.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Archaeologist and survivalist Begley debuts with an insightful look at the history of natural and man-made disasters and how people have survived them. Seeking guidance for dealing with climate change, pandemics, and other future threats, Begley examines how ancient Romans, Mayans, and Indigenous tribes in North America responded to catastrophes. In many cases, Begley notes, cataclysmic events caused a shift from urban to rural settings, and societies with "greater flexibility and adaptability in the scale and location of centralized leadership" were better equipped for survival than more rigid civilizations. He investigates the potential causes, including "drought, deforestation, warfare, and the increasing cost of maintaining the elites," that caused a decline in Mayan civilization in the ninth century, and describes how Indigenous people in North America formed "multi-tribal villages" to survive the onslaught of European settlers and their diseases in the 17th and 18th centuries. Begley stresses the need to adapt to changing circumstances and the loss of familiar comforts, and the importance of "the ability to recognize competence and the ability to evaluate data and information." Extensively researched and evenhanded, this is a valuable resource for preparing for the next crisis. (Nov.)

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

A wilderness survival instructor looks at past catastrophes to inform our responses to future ones. Archaeologists study how cultures and civilizations fall, and Begley, an underwater archaeologist and anthropology professor, begins with three once-flourishing civilizations that collapsed: "the Classic Maya civilization in Central America and Mexico, the Western Roman Empire around the Mediterranean, and the many Native American societies in eastern North America after the arrival of European colonizers." Disease wiped out 90% of North American tribes, jungles teem with abandoned Maya cities and monuments, and the "decline and fall" of Rome remains a staple of literature and "the most discussed decline globally." Yet, unlike fictional apocalypses portrayed in countless books and movies, these were not sudden events. Maya culture waxed and waned for centuries, and few Romans understood the forces that were leading to their eventual fall. Thankfully, Native Americans have worked for centuries to maintain what they can of their culture. Apocalypses in Hollywood--and in the minds of doomsday preppers--destroy civilization, leaving a few groups behind, mostly heroic, well-armed men who fend off unruly mobs, usually from cities and thus unable to take care of themselves. Begley points out that this is not how humans respond to disasters in real life. Social breakdown is fleeting, and people "rise to the occasion." The author emphasizes that the most important skill for the future is not self-defense but the ability to cooperate. After an insightful overview of the fantasies and realities of catastrophes, the author describes what to do if you get lost in the wilderness: These are the lessons he teaches in his survival course. They have little to do with the book's major theme but make entertaining and educative reading: Staying warm, dry, and hydrated must be the first priorities. While food is necessary, you can survive without it for a few days. Solid pop-science analysis of apocalypses and survival. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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