Analysis Of Laura Spinney's End Of Days: Is Western Civilization

Most people understand that a good education is crucial for success in modern society. Reading, writing, and critical thinking are skills needed in almost every well paid job, but they could also be valuable tools to combat the political and social turmoil predicted for the following decades. Laura Spinney, the author of the NewScientist article, “End of days: Is Western civilisation on the brink of collapse,” believes that the end of civilization as we know it is approaching. While the consequences of this potential downfall could be significant and numerous, education is the key overcoming all of them. If applied on a mass level, education could even avert political crisis. Though it is impractical to expect an entire society to educate

According to Safa Montesharei, a researcher cited in Spinney’s article, there are two main factors which lead to the fall of civilization. These are resource depletion and inequality. Montesharei explained that, “collapse is irreversible only when the two coincide. ‘They essentially fuel each other.’” This is important because it shows that it is possible to avoid permanent collapse by either closing the gap between the elite and the impoverished, or by using innovation to solve the problem of resource depletion. Both of these issues can be eliminated with a well educated middle and lower class. An example of the value of education comes from George Orwell’s novel, 1984, in which the commoners were kept in constant poverty because they had no way of knowing how to improve their condition. This was the intent if the dystopian society of Oceania, for “...so long as they are not permitted to have standards of comparison, they never even become aware that they are oppressed.” (144). This is important because it shows that no one will be motivated to make the world a better place unless they know it can be done. Inequality is the result of an undereducated population, but if everyone learns to read, write, and think critically, they will be able to acquire high income jobs and break the cycle of poverty. Education may not seen significant on an individual level, but

When humans are critical thinkers who can evaluate sources for information bias, they are less likely to violently protest their circumstances. Instead, they will settle agreements civilly. Spinney pointed specifically to “the election of Donald Trump and the political infighting that surrounded his election,” as a primary source of conflict and a potential warning sign for the apparently inevitable decline of Western Society. This example illustrates the problem of political infighting in two ways. The first is by providing an example, and the second is by engaging in the conflict with pointed remarks about the US government. It is undeniable that the author of this article has a the bias of a European outsider critiquing American politics, and it is important to take this into consideration. Critical thinking is a skill that is developed by education and promoted in practice. When people are able to confront issues with a critical eye, they will see flaws in both sides of an argument, and they will be better able to address an issue. By furthering and using my own knowledge of critical thinking, I can ignite similar ideas in my peers. It is widely known that change is not possible without action, but action is not possible until someone sets an