Once upon a time, before there was war, men and women had equal importance. Civilization arose under these conditions and flourished for longer periods than our Western culture has existed. Our civilization is built upon the foundation of these earlier cultures. It sounds like a fairy tale. But the evidence is undeniable.
Before War is a fascinatingly multidisciplinary exploration of the early origins of human society. Looking at the compelling evidence from archeology, linguistics, and genetics — blended with further hints found in primatology, oral histories, and mythology — author Elisha Daeva makes a convincing argument against the inevitability of violence and other correlates of the patriarchy that so many claim is our human birthright. Early on, Daeva explains that she left her postgrad studies in neuropsychology at UCLA due to the “bias and politics in academia” — allowing her to spend the next twenty years reading broadly and studying with alternative mentors — and while that frees her to speak uncomfortable truths that go against the orthodoxy, it also sees her quoting often from Wikipedia and using casual language that smacks a bit of amateurism. Still: I was intrigued and persuaded by the evidence that Daeva has assembled here and would love to see it shared and discussed widely. (Note: I read an ARC through NetGalley and passages quoted may not be in their final form.)
It is no longer a matter of debate in academia (though Wikipedia has yet to catch up) that a small gaggle of cowherds known as the Yamnaya, Kurgans, or steppe nomads swept through Europe and replaced 75% of the existing human gene pool. The scientific papers politely pretend that this may have been a peaceful migration. But the archaeological record is full of burned villages. The genetics tell us that the indigenous males were replaced by the Yamnaya males…This total re-write of the genetic map of Europe, as well as a new system of family and property, happened over a mere few hundred years.
The brief version: Although patrist societies popped up a few times in human history (notably in Central America and China), Daeva argues that most human settlements were peacefully matrist (with free sex, communal sharing of resources, and names and property passed down the matrilineal line), surviving for thousands of years free of rape, war, or poverty. But six thousand years ago, rapid climate change (the desertification of formerly arable land) in the steppe region of Eastern Europe and Russia forced the peoples there to switch to pastoralism and then to invade the farming communities around them: killing the men, raping the women, and adopting (but weakening) their more advanced cultures. Further waves of invading “Kurgans” established themselves as strongmen leaders, which demoted the previous wave into a middle class — leaving any surviving indigenous people as an impoverished underclass — and initiating the patriarchal “package” of marriage, monogamy, sexism, and war that has dominated into our day. The evidence for this (and especially what is being learned today through genetics) seems incontrovertible.
Before War is filled with fascinating facts, but I was especially intrigued to learn of Marija Gimbutas — an anthropologist and archeologist who first proposed the idea of our peaceful matrist past and the invasion of the Kurgans — and the way that she had been dismissed by mainstream academia (due to her promotion by feminists and goddess-worshippers in the 70s); and especially the way that evidence from genetics has since proven her theories right. I was intrigued to learn that the famous ancient cave art of France and Spain is now thought to have been made by women; that women likely made as many early tools as men; that it was probably women who first planted seeds and initiated agriculture: so much of the work of the patriarchy involves erasing the contributions of women (*Daeva also explains the pressures that the patriarchy imposes on men — leading often to loneliness, homelessness, and suicide — and easily makes the case that it’s an unhealthy system for all of us.) This book is filled with citations and includes an extensive bibliography, but Daeva resists using an academic tone, to varying success. She often writes colloquially, as in:
• These female figurines and images were found in shrines, making it clear that they were religious objects. That is, they were probably not, as some modern dudes have suggested, porn dolls.
• This was a landmark moment in the psychology of the Western world: men steal the power from the Great Mother, who had for so long been the ultimate source of power in the universe. This was the turning point where history began. It’s been a shitshow ever since.
• Of course, there are a minority of douchebags, the Andrew Tates of the world…
And when Daeva concludes by envisioning what could come next — “after war” as it were — it all felt a little kumbaya:
Imagine children conceived in hot Tantric intentional rituals broadcast live as positive porn! Professional porn will go out of business with all the amateurs lovingly acting out the whole Kama Sutra. When a child is born, let’s greet her singing in a beautiful place, not in an antiseptic, anti-mammal room with bright lights. She will be breastfed and carried on the body whenever possible. She'll be given gentle discipline, and plenty of love and physical affection. Her boundaries will be respected. Her gifts will be nurtured. If she shows signs of mental illness or neurological difference, she will be taught how to manage it. If she exhibits antisocial behavior like bullying or selfishness, her friends and family will stage an innovation to gently but firmly let her know it’s not okay. Physical punishment and shaming will never be used.
Daeva imagines that families will become intentional units — couples or nonsexual companions will create contracts for childcare and support that will replace marriage and monogamy (unless a couple specifically opts for a traditional nuclear family) — and that mutual support and cooperation will be the norm at the level of clan, community, and nation. We’ll take most of the money back from billionaires, invest in education and health, and outlaw war between nations. I am willing to be convinced that we all lived peacefully together once upon a time, but beyond wishing it to be true again, it’s hard to see how we could get there again. On the other hand: if we allow authors like Steven Pinker, Yuval Noah Harari, and Jared Diamond (all of whom Daeva accuses of cherry-picking facts to support their theories of the inherent violence of humanity) to dominate the popular conversation, then we might never imagine even the possibility of a future without war. A worthwhile read that I hope gets some traction.
