This book attempts to expand the reader’s mind. Harari seeks to explain sapiens’ biological and social development, which explains how today’s society developed and functions, including how religions and political ideologies have been formed, from tribal deities limited to specific regions or nations, to world religions and ideologies that cross tribal and national boundaries. The main purpose of this book is to link the biological aspect of humans’ development with the social evolution process. The first section deals with the cognitive revolution, in terms of how sapiens reacted to their surroundings. The second section describes the agricultural revolution (ca. 10.000 BCE), and the consequences this has had on humans’ basic characteristics and society. The third section illustrates the concept of social order, and the myth behind our understanding of money, empires, and structural authorities.

Harari defines religions and ideologies as human constructed systems that provide human order. The fourth section describes the significance of the capitalist ideology and having a free market. Harari elucidates, not only the religious beliefs of others, but also the individualist perception in our modern days.