[How About This Book] Lines That Divided the World, Mirrors Reflecting Humanity

"World History Through 47 Borders":
Borders Born from Human Folly and Desire
Sykes-Picot Agreement, Detroit Case, and More
Countless Lines Remain Seeds of Conflict Today
Exclusive Economic Zones, Satellite Orbits, and Beyond
New Boundaries Expanding into Sea, Sky, and Space
To Understand Borders Is to Understand Humanity

The first border in human history is believed to have been the boundary dividing Lower Egypt and Upper Egypt along the Nile River around 4000 BCE. This boundary is thought to have been located near 30 degrees north latitude, just south of present-day Cairo. However, around 3100 BCE, when the two kingdoms unified, this border disappeared. Although the physical boundary vanished, the symbols of the two kingdoms remained for centuries in the regalia and emblems of rulers, continuing as symbols of royal authority. This demonstrates how the significance of a border can endure long after the line itself has faded.

The author, a British journalist who has long studied the history of borders, explores human history through 47 borders across the world, transcending time periods. Reminding us that a single thin line drawn on a map contains thousands of years of power, war, identity, and division, the author offers a fresh perspective on the boundaries of the world that we have long taken for granted.

The author selects 47 borders, layered over long periods of history, and unpacks their backgrounds and consequences from political, geographical, historical, and cultural perspectives. From the earliest borders of ancient Egypt, to the continental divide between Asia and Europe, to the arbitrary partitions of the Middle East and Africa by European powers, the 38th parallel and the still-tense Demilitarized Zone on the Korean Peninsula as a legacy of the Cold War, and even the emerging "border of space" that may soon become a new frontier. The author traces the reasons why humanity has continually drawn lines on maps, and the history of greed, ambition, and fear hidden within those lines.

In particular, the author points out that many of the lines dividing the world were born from human folly and vain desires. At the Berlin Conference of 1884, the European powers arbitrarily carved up the African continent. In the process, ethnicities, languages, and cultures were thoroughly ignored, with only imperial interests prioritized. It was a violent drawing of boundaries, carried out in the name of civilization.

These countless lines, born of ignorance and arrogance, continue to sow the seeds of conflict today. A prime example is the 1916 secret agreement between Britain and France, the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which divided the Middle East with a ruler-like precision. Setting borders based solely on imperial interests, while ignoring ethnicity, religion, and language, led to the complex divisions that define the Middle East today. A similar case can be found in Detroit, United States. The obsession with expansion and development undermined the city’s foundations, while racial discrimination and exclusion deepened internal divisions, ultimately resulting in the first bankruptcy of a major city.

The book examines the lines that separate "us" from "others," shedding light on human ambition, desire, greed, and the frailty that fears what lies beyond the border. It calmly explores what lines humanity has drawn, how those lines have shaped the world, and how people have existed within them. The message is clear: to understand borders is to understand humanity itself.

Borders are not relics of the past. Even now, new ones are being drawn. For example, the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) was established relatively recently under maritime law, and airspace has also been subdivided since the mid-20th century as air traffic expanded. Space remains the "final frontier." The author vividly introduces the debates surrounding the imaginary "Karman Line" that separates Earth's atmosphere from outer space, the competition to position satellites in orbit, and the diplomatic conflicts over safe zones on the Moon.

Through these dynamically changing borders, the author offers a multidimensional insight not only into historical decisions but also into the current international order and future changes. The question, "Where is humanity now, and where will we draw the next line?" leaves readers with profound reflection.

Conflicts across the world-such as the war in Ukraine, disputes in the South China Sea, border clashes between India and China, and the Gaza crisis-may differ in form, but their essence connects to the cases discussed in this book. With its case-based approach, this book serves as an excellent guide to developing geopolitical thinking.

World History Through 47 Borders | Written by John Elledge | Translated by Lee Youngrae and one other | 21st Century Books | 416 pages | 24,000 won