According to the text, humans began to become attached to physical objects and belongings. Buying and selling goods became a large source of enjoyment for humans, which is why we became so attached to consumerism. Just look at how our society works today. Everyone has to have the newest phone, the nicest shoes, the fastest car. This is partly due to America’s rampant and infectious capitalism, which is all I’ve ever been exposed to while living here. Our culture is heavily influenced by the market and state. We live our lives based on the regulations put in place by the state. The market dictates what we want to buy, whether we want to work to have money to buy it, how and when we want those things and so on. It’s all in place to give humans a “quantitative happiness”.
Historians should always play a role in considering the future of mankind. They should be looking to the past, observing not just humans past mistakes, but also a time before humans. They should look at how the earth went through changes such as the meteors that wiped out dinosaurs or its natural cycles like ice ages. All of these events that occurred before humans were even part of the picture can help us determine what kind of future is in store for us. Even if humans aren’t around for much longer, we might be able to get an idea of what might come after us. It’s both important and fascinating that we look to the past in order to see into our future, as determining where our society could be heading is important for our growth and survival as a species.