Jared Diamond's Theory Summary

Jared Diamond went to New Guinea to originally research birds that lived there. Along his travels he met a man named Yali who he spent some time talking to, who then asked Jared the question Why is it that you white people developed so much cargo and brought it to New Guinea, but we black people had little cargo of our own? Jared at the time had no answer to Yali’s question, so he decided to do research on the question and wrote a book about it. His theory to Yali’s question was it’s not the people themselves but the environment. Jared then stated five things need for an area to develop such as domesticable plants and animals, population size and density, cultural diffusion and migration, climate/biome, and natural resources. Jared’s theory …show more content…
Oceania, however only has chicken and no plants. (Data Point 1: Domesticated Plants and Animals) Jared says areas need animals such as cows, pigs, sheep, and horses to grow and develop and plants such as potatoes, grain, corn, etc. Next, is population size and density with how that plays into a countries growth and need for things. Australia has no growth what so ever for hundreds of years, until the late 1800’s when the Industrial Revolution hits the globe. Then there is slow growth of cities on the coasts of Australia, with none in the middle part of it, yet Aboriginals may live in the parts that are unoccupied but are nomadic and far from one another. So far, Jared’s theory seems to hold up and show that Australia is under developed compared to the other countries. (populationconnection.org) Third, is cultural diffusion and migration. Before the Industrial Revolution, the only people who lived in Australia where the Aboriginals. These people are mostly hunters and gathers who travel when needed. Once, the Industrial Revolution took place, and colonialization then people started coming over to Australia to build cities mostly on the coast. When it comes to trading, Australia has no one to trade with east to west wise due to the ocean and could …show more content…
The theory does agree in most places of the world yet, some have found loopholes such as Australia and Japan. Both have defied the areas need to succeed such as domesticable plants and animals, population size, cultural diffusion, climate, and natural resources. Australia is a highly developed area, and is continuing to grow yet came from a time where there were no cities on it at all with no real plants or animals. Somehow this country found its path and stuck with it to become what it is today. Japan started out with few cities, no natural resource or plants and animals for agriculture and today is a booming powerhouse. Japan comes up with all technological advancements for the globe. In conclusion, Jared’s theory is pretty solid yet despite these issues countries have rose through the cracks and become fantastic civilizations