The most likely opposing viewpoints are the ones that are
already stated in the Prologue of the book. Many scholars have thought a lot about this
and have come up with the most plausible other explanations. Of these, the one that
seems most likely to me is that there is something about European culture that made
Europeans more open to change and advancement.
Having grown
up in a "primitive" culture in Micronesia, I know that people in such cultures can often
have a very different attitude towards life than Westerners. They can seem to be very
complacent and act as if there is no hurry. Everything can wait, there is no need to
worry about the future.
It could be that this sort of
cultural trait is responsible for the New Guineans' "backwardness." It could be that it
comes from the fact that their culture evolved in a relatively easy climate where
innovation and "hustle and bustle" were not necessary. Of the possible alternatives to
Diamond's view, this is the one that seems most plausible to me. This alternative says
that there is nothing wrong with New Guineans themselves but that their culture was too
easy-going and not really conducive to change and progress.
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