Pathways to Power: New Perspectives on the Emergence of Social Inequality (Fundamental Issues in Archaeology)

There Are Few Questions More Central To Understanding The Prehistory Of Our Species Than Those Regarding The Institutionalization Of Social Inequality. Social Inequality Is Manifested In Unequal Access To Goods, Information, Decision-making, And Power. This Structure Is Essential To Higher Orders Of Social Organization And Basic To The Operation Of More Complex Societies. An Understanding Of The Transformation From Relatively Egalitarian Societies To A Hierarchical Organization And Socioeconomic Stratification Is Fundamental To Our Knowledge About The Human Condition. In A Follow-up To Their 1995 Book Foundations Of Social Inequality, The Editors Of This Volume Have Compiled A New And Comprehensive Group Of Studies Concerning These Central Questions. When And Where Does Hierarchy Appear In Human Society, And How Does It Operate? With Numerous Case Studies From The Old And New World, Spanning Foraging Societies To Agricultural Groups, And Complex States, Pathways To Power Provides Key Historical Insights Into Current Social And Cultural Questions.-- Social Inequality And The Evolution Of Human Social Organization / T. Douglas Price And Gary M. Feinman -- On The Evolution Of The Human Capacity For Inequality And/or Egalitarianism / Kenneth M. Ames -- Degrees And Kinds Of Inequality / Robert D. Drennan, Christian E. Peterson, And Jake R. Fox -- Gimme That Old Time Religion : Rethinking The Role Of Religion In The Emergence Of Social Inequality / Mark Aldendorfer -- Who Benefits From Complexcity? : A View From Futuna / Brian Hayden And Suzanne Villeneuve -- Traces Of Inequality At The Origins Of Agriculture In The Ancient Near East / T. Douglas Price And Ofer Bar-yosef -- Decentralized Complexity : The Case Of Bronze Age Northern Europe / Kristian Kristiansen -- Bitter Arrows And Generous Gifts : What Was A 'king' In The European Iron Age? / Tina L. Thurston -- A Dual-processual Perspective On The Power And Inequality In The Contemporary United States : Framing Political Economy For The Past And The Present / Gary M. Feinman. T. Douglas Price, Gary M. Feinman, Editors. Outgrowth Of A Symposium At The [72nd] Annual Meeting Of The Society For American Archaeology Held In [austin], Tex., In 2007. Cf. Pref. Follow-up To Foundations Of Social Inequality / Edited By T. Douglas Price, Gary M. Feinman: New York : Plenum Press, C1995. Cf. Pref. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Social inequality and the evolution of human social organization / T. Douglas Price and Gary M. Feinman On the evolution of the human capacity for inequality and/or egalitarianism / Kenneth M. Ames Degrees and kinds of inequality / Robert D. Drennan, Christian E. Peterson, and Jake R. Fox Gimme that old time religion : rethinking the role of religion in the emergence of social inquality / Mark Aldendorfer Who benefits from complecity? : a view from Futuna / Brian Hatden and Suzanne Villeneuve Traces of inequality at the origins of agriculture in the ancient Near East / T. Douglas Price and ofer Bar-Yosef Decentralized complexity : the case of Bronze Age northern Europe / Kristian Kristiansen Bitter arrows and generous gifts : what was a 'king' in the European Iron Age? / Tina L. Thurston A dual-processual perspective on the power and inequality in the contemporary United States : framing political economy for the past and the present / Gary M. Feinman. Front Matter....Pages i-ix Social Inequality and the Evolution of Human Social Organization....Pages 1-14 On the Evolution of the Human Capacity for Inequality and/or Egalitarianism....Pages 15-44 Degrees and Kinds of Inequality....Pages 45-76 Gimme That Old Time Religion: Rethinking the Role of Religion in the Emergence of Social Inequality....Pages 77-94 Who Benefits from Complexity? A View from Futuna....Pages 95-145 Traces of Inequality at the Origins of Agriculture in the Ancient Near East....Pages 147-168 Decentralized Complexity: The Case of Bronze Age Northern Europe....Pages 169-192 Bitter Arrows and Generous Gifts: WhatWas a ‘King’ in the European Iron Age?....Pages 193-254 A Dual-Processual Perspective on the Power and Inequality in the Contemporary United States: Framing Political Economy for the Present and the Past....Pages 255-288 Back Matter....Pages 289-298 In a follow-up to their 1995 book Foundations of Social Inequality, the editors of this volume have compiled a new and comprehensive group of studies on the central questions of when and where hierarchy appears in human society, as well as how it operates