How Civilization Can Be Brittle

Imagine a world interconnected by trade, where empires flourish, boasting advanced architecture, organized militaries, and intricate legal systems. Now, envision that world collapsing within just a few decades. This is what happened around 1200 BC, during the Bronze Age Collapse.

This period witnessed several advanced civilizations' sudden and mysterious decline, including the Mycenaeans in Greece, the Hittites in Anatolia, and the Egyptian Empire. Archaeological evidence suggests widespread destruction, abandonment of cities, and a decline in literacy. Several theories have been proposed to explain this dramatic societal breakdown, ranging from natural disasters such as earthquakes and droughts to internal revolts and the invasion of the mysterious "Sea Peoples."

One thing that makes it difficult for historians to understand what happened is the loss of writing systems during this period. Along with writing, we lost other technologies for hundreds of years, such as advanced metallurgy (we lost the understanding of how to make bronze) and centralized government systems.

One of the most commonly cited theories to explain this collapse is the theory of general systems collapse. This theory proposes that societal collapse results from increased social complexity beyond a sustainable level, leading people to revert to simpler ways of life. We often take our civilization for granted, but it rests on a few foundations that can be brittle if not maintained sustainably.

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