奇创岛

From «Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind»

Write an investigative report on a contemporary phenomenon using the 'fictional narrative' framework

You'll pick a real social phenomenon—like the LV/Hermès craze, Singles' Day, involution culture, tiger parenting, crypto hype, the 'decluttering' movement, 'Buddhist' attitude, or live-stream shopping—and use Harari's framework from *Sapiens* about 'fictional narratives sustaining large-scale cooperation' to identify the 'shared myth' behind it, analyze why people believe it, who constructs it, and how it might evolve or collapse. You'll produce a structured, analytical, and original investigative report.

Final work

An investigative report on the 'fictional narrative' of a contemporary phenomenon

Estimated time

1.5–3 hr

Submitted

…

Your final work

Purpose:Use Harari's fictional narrative analysis tool to perform an original 'narrative dissection' of a real contemporary phenomenon: identify the shared myth, analyze its three narrative pillars, trace constructors and beneficiaries, and produce an insightful, shareable, discussable analysis report.

Parts:

  • A specific, observable contemporary social phenomenon (concrete, happening now)
  • Phenomenon description: what it is, its scale, who participates, what it looks like on the surface
  • Core narrative identification: the 'shared myth' driving mass participation—what's the 'story' people believe?
  • Three-pillar narrative analysis: (1) Consensus layer—who believes and why; (2) Meaning layer—what sense of meaning or identity it gives participants; (3) Cooperation layer—how it enables strangers to collaborate, forming markets or collective action
  • Constructors and beneficiaries: who actively maintains this narrative, who benefits most
  • Harari comparison: which historical case from the book (Agricultural Revolution, money, empire, religion, capitalism) is most similar in narrative structure
  • Evolution and collapse projection: is the narrative strengthening or weakening? What conditions could trigger collapse?
  • Your original insight: after analysis, what new judgment do you have about this phenomenon that you didn't have before?

Use cases:

  • · Train 'narrative deconstruction' thinking—apply Harari's historical analysis method to contemporary reality
  • · Provide deep, framework-based interpretations of hot topics for content creation, speeches, or courses
  • · Explain to others 'why so many people participate in a phenomenon while you feel confused'
  • · Critical thinking training: distinguish the 'surface driver' from the 'narrative driver' of a phenomenon
  • · Career/business decisions: understand the narrative logic behind a market phenomenon and assess its sustainability

Pick a topic

Pick the topic closest to you, or write a custom one when you submit.

Personal Life

Learning / Growth

Family / Parenting

Work / Projects

Society / Public

Tools you'll use from the book

Three-Pillar Analysis Framework for Fictional Narratives

Harari argues that any 'shared myth' enabling large-scale cooperation among strangers relies on three pillars: (1) Consensus—everyone believes it; (2) Meaning—it gives people a sense of identity and direction; (3) Cooperation—it enables strangers to coordinate actions, forming markets, rituals, and organizations.

How to use it here:

Deconstruct your chosen phenomenon pillar by pillar: Who believes this narrative (consensus layer)? What sense of meaning or identity does it give participants (meaning layer)? How does it enable large-scale coordination among strangers—like purchases, gatherings, or collective action (cooperation layer)? Any narrative missing a pillar is hard to sustain.

Boundaries:

Be careful to distinguish between 'narrative-driven phenomena' (e.g., brand premiums, religious rituals) and 'real-need-driven phenomena' (e.g., food, safety)—many phenomena have both. In your analysis, point out which layer the narrative covers and which layer real needs cover.

Imagined Order Dissection Method

Harari reveals that 'imagined orders' have three features: they are embedded in the material world (buildings, laws, money), they shape desires (making people feel it's natural to pursue them), and they are believed to be objective reality (rather than human conventions). Contemporary social phenomena are often new forms of some 'imagined order.'

How to use it here:

Ask about your phenomenon: What material or digital infrastructure is it embedded in (apps, algorithms, ad systems, social pressure)? How does it shape participants' desires or fears ('buying it is dignified,' 'falling behind if not involuting')? Is it presented as 'natural' or 'designed'?

Boundaries:

Don't equate 'humanly constructed' with 'fake' or 'should be eliminated'—imagined orders have real social functions. The goal of analysis is to see clearly, not to dismiss everything.

Empire-Money-Religion Triangle Analysis

Harari argues that the three most powerful narrative systems in history—empire (political order), money (economic order), and religion (meaning order)—often operate in combination. Contemporary phenomena usually have a similar triangular structure: commercial logic (money) + platform power (empire) + meaning/identity narrative (religion substitute).

How to use it here:

Identify whether a similar triangle exists in your phenomenon: Who plays the 'empire' role (platform, brand, government)? How does the money logic work (who makes money, through what mechanism)? What is the meaning/identity narrative (what spiritual satisfaction do participants get)? How do the three reinforce each other?

Boundaries:

Don't force the triangle structure if it doesn't fit. If one corner is missing or unclear, that itself is a valuable finding—it indicates the narrative's operating mechanism may differ from historical prototypes.

Agricultural Revolution Trap Comparison

Harari uses 'the Agricultural Revolution was history's biggest fraud' to illustrate that *Homo sapiens* voluntarily gave up real present freedom for a fictional future promise. Many contemporary phenomena have the same structure: trading 'present costs' for 'future narrative gains.'

How to use it here:

Analyze your phenomenon: What real present things do participants give up to join this phenomenon/narrative? Is the 'future promise' they get in return real and deliverable? Is this exchange actively chosen by individuals, or pressured by the narrative system? If the promise can't be delivered, how do participants respond?

Boundaries:

An unequal 'cost-benefit' doesn't automatically mean participants are victims—some are fully aware of the trade-off and choose it. In your analysis, distinguish between 'being deceived' and 'choosing to participate in a costly system.'

Narrative Evolution and Collapse Model

Harari suggests that large-scale narrative systems in history go through a cycle: 'spread and expansion → internal contradiction accumulation → external shock triggers → alternative narrative emerges.' Contemporary phenomena can also be analyzed using this model to determine their current stage.

How to use it here:

Determine which stage your phenomenon is in: still rapidly expanding (new participants pouring in)? Already encountering internal contradictions (participants starting to question)? Being challenged by an alternative narrative (counter-movement, new trend)? Already collapsed or marginalized? What are the key variables that could trigger the next stage?

Boundaries:

Narrative evolution has no fixed timeline; the metaverse narrative might collapse in 2 years, while the consumerist narrative has lasted 100 years. Evolution speed depends on 'the organizational capacity of narrative beneficiaries' and 'feedback pressure from external reality.'

Work rules

Your work MUST include

  • A specific, observable contemporary social phenomenon (not a broad concept like 'all of consumerism')
  • Clear identification of the 'shared myth' or 'fictional narrative' core behind the phenomenon
  • Concrete analysis using at least two of the 'three pillars of fictional narrative' (consensus/meaning/cooperation)
  • Identification of the narrative's constructors and beneficiaries (not just describing participants)
  • Comparison with at least one historical case from the book (Agricultural Revolution/money/empire/religion/capitalism)
  • Your own projection of the narrative's evolution or collapse direction
  • At least one original insight—a judgment you didn't have before analysis but do after

Your work CANNOT just be

  • Just describing the surface of the phenomenon (participant numbers, market size, social impact) without narrative-level analysis
  • Stopping at empty labels like 'this is consumerism' or 'it's capital's conspiracy'—needs specific mechanism analysis
  • Only paraphrasing examples already in Harari's book—must do original analysis of a contemporary phenomenon not analyzed in the book
  • Analyzing every phenomenon as 'fake' or 'a scam'—it's about narrative structure, not moral judgment
  • Missing the 'constructors and beneficiaries' analysis—narratives never grow naturally without agents
  • Using abstract subjects like 'people' or 'the masses'—need to distinguish different participants' motives and situations

AI can help you here

Round 1: Help me choose a contemporary phenomenon to study

When to use: You want to write a phenomenon investigation report but haven't decided which phenomenon to study, or you're unsure if your chosen phenomenon fits Harari's framework.

I'm working on the '{{route name}}' project from *{{book title}}*, aiming to write an 'investigative report on the fictional narrative of a contemporary phenomenon.'

Based on my situation, please help me choose the best 1 topic from the list below and explain why.

My situation:
[Fill in your background: occupation, age group, the social phenomenon you've been most confused or strongly felt about recently, the life area you know best (consumption/workplace/family/education/investing)]

Available topics:
[Paste the topic list from the page]

Please analyze:
1. The most recommended topic and why it best matches my background (I have enough real experience to analyze)
2. Which of Harari's frameworks (three pillars of fictional narrative/imagined order/Agricultural Revolution trap/empire-money-religion triangle) has the most explanatory power for this phenomenon
3. How completing this report will specifically help me understand this phenomenon and my own behavior
4. 1–2 key questions I need to think through before starting analysis

Yellow placeholders need you to fill in before using the AI.

AI can help you organize ideas, but cannot make final judgments for you. Don't let AI fabricate experiences, cases, or misleading content.

Round 2: Help me identify the narrative structure

When to use: You've chosen the phenomenon to study but don't know how to apply Harari's framework specifically to it, or you can't find the core 'shared myth.'

The project I chose is '{{route name}}' from *{{book title}}*.

The contemporary phenomenon I've chosen to study is:
{{chosen topic}}

Please use Harari's framework from *Sapiens* to deconstruct the narrative structure of this phenomenon.

I need you to answer the following:
1. What is the core 'shared myth' behind this phenomenon? (Express in one or two sentences the 'story' that makes people believe and participate)
2. What are the three pillars of this narrative?
   - Consensus layer: Who believes? How is consensus formed and maintained?
   - Meaning layer: What sense of meaning or identity do participants gain?
   - Cooperation layer: How does it enable large-scale coordination among strangers?
3. Who are the main constructors and beneficiaries of this narrative?
4. Which historical case from the book is most similar in narrative structure to this phenomenon? Why?

Requirements:
- Don't give generic analysis templates; be specific to this phenomenon's characteristics
- Point out the most common mistakes when analyzing this phenomenon (e.g., turning 'narrative critique' into 'moral condemnation')
- If there are areas where Harari's framework has limited explanatory power for this phenomenon, point them out

Yellow placeholders need you to fill in before using the AI.

AI can help you organize ideas, but cannot make final judgments for you. Don't let AI fabricate experiences, cases, or misleading content.

Round 3: Help me check the quality of my report

When to use: You've finished the first draft of your investigative report and want to confirm the analysis is deep and the framework is correctly applied before submitting.

I'm submitting a project on Shufang Island.

Book: *{{book title}}*
Project route: {{route name}}
Contemporary phenomenon I studied: {{chosen topic}}

My first draft:
{{first draft}}

Please check against the following criteria:
1. Has the core 'shared myth' been truly identified (or is it just describing the surface)?
2. Do the 'three pillars of fictional narrative' (consensus/meaning/cooperation) each have specific correspondences, or is only one layer analyzed?
3. Is there an analysis of 'constructors and beneficiaries' (or is the narrative described as growing naturally without agents)?
4. Is there a comparison with a historical case from Harari's book (not just citing ideas from the book)?
5. Does the narrative evolution projection include specific trigger conditions and stage judgments (not just vague 'it might change')?
6. Is there at least one original insight (a judgment you didn't have before analysis but do after)?
7. Does the report avoid a 'moral condemnation' tone and maintain a 'narrative analysis' perspective?

Please output:
- Overall assessment (what is the core value of this report)
- What's already done well (point out specifically)
- What must be revised (in order of importance)
- What could be enhanced
- Suggested structure for the revised report

Yellow placeholders need you to fill in before using the AI.

AI can help you organize ideas, but cannot make final judgments for you. Don't let AI fabricate experiences, cases, or misleading content.

Submit my work