Big Research Questions about the Human Condition

Married, four children, six grandchildren; professor emeritus of history at the Centre for the Study of Cultural Evolution, Stockholm University; former secretary general for the humanities and social sciences, Swedish Research Council; former Vice-president of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences; et cetera

• List of Illustrations; Acknowledgements; I: Questions and Answers – Background, Motivations and Aims; Ii: Suggested Questions; 1: What Explains That Some Kinds of Knowledge Are Widely Accepted Whereas Other Kinds of Knowledge Are Rejected?; 2: Why Do Some Societal Processes and Phenomena Develop in a Circular or Repetitive Way Whereas Other Processes Evolve Along a Cumulative Trajectory?; 3: Why Do Social Norms Change, Despite the Fact that their Mission is to be Sustained? What Role Do Non-Conformist Individuals and Minority Groups Play in Cultural, Cognitive and Normative Change?; 4: Does a Gradual Extension of Our Lifespan (and the Rise of Welfare) Imply a Growing or Declining Ability to Postpone the Satisfaction of Our Needs and Desires?; 5: What Explains the Widespread Diffusion of Inequality and the Gradual Emergence of Egalitarianism Over the Centuries?; 6. Why Do People Appropriate Aesthetic Experience (Both as Producers and Consumers of Cultural Manifestations), and What Are the Individual and Societal Functions of Such Experiences?; What Lies Ahead?; Appendices; Notes; References; Index.

Jarrick’s is one of the best inquisitive minds in humanities today. He not only identifies the Big Questions but identifies ways forward. This is a book that should inspire funders and academic leaders. — Poul Holm, Professor of Environmental History, R, MEA Chair Humanities Class, Director, Trinity Centre for Environmental Humanities, Trinity College Dublin, Guest Professor, Department of Historical Studies, Gothenburg University, Honorary Research Associate, McDonald Institute, University of Cambridge