Writing Quote by Jared Diamond
““• “To us today, it is tempting to ask why societies with early writing systems accepted the ambiguities that restricted writing to a few functions and a few scribes. But even to pose that question is illustrate the gap between ancient perspectives and our own expectations of mass literacy. The intended restricted uses of early writing provided a positive disincentive for devising less ambiguous writing systems. The kings and priests of ancient Sumer wanted writing to be used by professional scribes to recorded numbers of sheep owed in taxes, not by the masses to write poetry and hatch plots. As the anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss put it, ancients writing’s main function was “to facilitate the enslavement of other human beings.” Personal uses of writing by nonprofessionals came only much later, as writing systems grew simpler and more expressive””
About This Quote
Source Book: Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond, 1997
Early writing was deliberately limited to elite control, reinforcing social hierarchies and delaying mass literacy.
In simple terms: Writing was kept for elites, not the masses.
Key Takeaway
Recognize how control of information shapes power.
Themes
power
control
literacy
social hierarchy
Mood
critical
reflective
Type
historical
analytical
When to use this quote
- historical analysis
- education reform
- technology adoption
- policy making
Key Concepts
elite dominance
information asymmetry
cultural evolution
Questions to Reflect On
- How does control of communication affect social equity?
- What parallels exist today in digital information control?
A Different Perspective
Limits on early writing hindered broader societal development.
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