Introduction to Anthropology Textbook Chapter 8 Authority, Decisions, and Power Political Anthropology

Authority , Decisions , and Power Political ! Figure For people all over the world , newspapers provide daily information about political actors and events . credit , clockwise from top left Tourist Couple by Pedro , BY Intensely Reading the Newspaper in by , BY Reading the Newspaper by , BY Reading Is Fundamental by , BY ) CHAPTER OUTLINE Colonialism and the Categorization of Political Systems Acephalous Societies Bands and Tribes Centralized Societies and States Modern Resistance , Revolution , and Social Movements INTRODUCTION What going on in the world ?

In your country ?

In your community ?

Visit any news site or pick up any newspaper , and look at the top stories . The most prominent news of the day usually involves one or more of the following the actions of leaders , social , legal issues , social protest , and forms of social violence . These are all elements of the sociocultural dynamics of commonly referred to as politics . The actors in this global drama are most often , or more , the people and groups representing . Britain is leaving the European Union . Russia is wracked with protests again Putin . has been taken over by a military coup . When people think about what going on in the world , they

often think about actions of or within . Our very notion of the world is primarily structured by the form . Just look at any globe . Because of this focus , it is tempting to think that politics essentially refers to the internal and external dynamics of . Anthropologists , with their attention to human history and sociocultural diversity , recognize that the is one system among many used by humans to make collective decisions and maintain social order . Over the past years , modern humans have developed a wide variety systems for managing power in coordination with the other elements of society . The state is a relative newcomer among political forms , dating back only a few hundred years . Much more common in human history are systems based on extended families and positions of formal leadership associated with those family systems . The anthropology was originally established with the goal of categorizing the diversity of political systems found all over the world . Initially , anthropologists one fundamental difference among political or not they have a centralized leader or leaders . Building on this distinction , anthropologists have explored how certain subsistence patterns coordinate with political systems . Anthropologists studying colonialism have described the global spread of the form as it dominated , incorporated , and sometimes eliminated other political systems . Though the political form now governs most societies , alternative forms of leadership and still exert a great deal of , either directly or indirectly . In some places , these alternative forms continue to exist , although they are marginalized by the power of the state . In other places , the alternative political structures have been destroyed , but the values associated with them persevere in the hearts and minds of contemporary peoples . Colonialism and the Categorization of Political Systems LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this section , you will be able to Trace the colonial origins of political anthropology . Identify European misconceptions about political organization . Discuss the importance of the book African Political Systems . Distinguish between acephalous and centralized political organization . Describe the association between modes of subsistence and political organization . Identify and briefly Max Weber three types of authority . As discussed in Work Life Value Economic Anthro , many European countries began developing formal colonial rule over other parts of the world in the late . Their main motivation was to secure the raw materials they needed to fuel their own growing industrial economies . As they began to establish their own governments in colonized societies , European administrators were highly by ethnocentric stereotypes of peoples . Typically , they assumed that societies either were ruled by overbearing tyrants or were chaotic with no political organization whatsoever . The establishment of colonial rule provided the administrative context for anthropologists to study non Western societies in countries under European domination . As cultural anthropologists conducted research in African colonies during the early part of the century , they made the surprising discovery that European assumptions about African political organization were completely misguided . In 1940 , British anthropologists Meyer and published a particularly important collection of essays written by a variety of anthropologists with ethnographic experience in societies all over Africa . This book , African Political Systems , completely invalidated the idea that Indigenous African politics were either oppressive or chaotic . The eight chapters all demonstrated that African societies were meticulously organized systems with institutions for political representation and collaborative . In their overview of the chapters , and make a primary distinction between centralized political systems , which feature rulers such as chiefs , and acephalous ( meaning headless ) societies , where power is exerted through families or village meetings rather than formal political . Africa featured a broad array centralized and acephalous forms of political organization , each one an effective means of

maintaining social order . In an effort to demonstrate the cohesion and stability of political forms , and applied a perspective to show how the various elements of each society together in a durable whole , reproduced through social action over time . With the resurgence of evolutionary social theory in the 19605 and , anthropologist Service drew from previous to propose four main forms of social organization , each with its own political system . His four main categories of social organization are band , tribe , chiefdom , and state , and they are linked to the subsistence patterns discussed in Work Life Value Economic Anthropology ( Service 1962 ) Gathering and hunting is associated with bands . Horticulture gives rise to tribal societies . are developed on the basis of agricultural surplus . And states rely on multiple modes of subsistence as well as military conquest and extensive regional trade , leading to the development of territories . Critical of the timeless representations of structural functionalism , such as Service were interested in understanding how societies moved from one category to the next in an evolutionary sequence . Contemporary political anthropologists are much more interested in history than evolution that is , they emphasize the importance of the past while rejecting the notion that all societies can be according to stages in an evolutionary scheme of development from simple to complex . Anthropologists are similarly critical of the approach that represents societies as timeless and unchanging . More often , political anthropologists explore the particular histories practices and institutions in the societies they study , emphasizing the equivalent political sophistication and unique historical trajectory of each society . While based on , political anthropology is also informed by models of political structure devised by sociologists . Sociologist Max Weber politics as the exercise of power ( or at least the attempt to exercise power ) Power is the ability to people shape social processes and social structures . In many acephalous societies , power is spread widely among members of a society , while in centralized societies , power is concentrated in one or more sociocultural roles . These roles are called positions of authority . Weber three types of authority traditional , charismatic , and ( Weber 1946 ) Priests and family elders exercise traditional authority , based on religious expertise or position in family structures . Charismatic authority is power exercised through personal qualities such as skilled oratory , extraordinary abilities , or social charm . Such power is persuasive , meaning it is based on the ability to convince others rather than force them to obey . authority is power that is by a legal role in society , such as prime minister or president . Once elected or assigned to a position , a person exercises the authority vested in that position . Such power is is , based on the legal ability to force people to obey . In the next two sections , well take a look at the four main types of social organization described by Service , along with the political forms associated with each . The two , bands and tribes , correspond with the category of acephalous societies noted by and . The last two , and states , are forms of social organization featuring centralized leadership . Throughout this chapter , we will consider the features of each idealized category , mindful that the diversity organization in the world is more ofa spectrum than a set categories . At one end of the spectrum , power is more widely shared among all members of a community , while at the other end , power is more centralized and formalized in bureaucratic institutions . Moreover , while each society is fundamentally structured by a particular model organization , must societies feature a variety of forms of authority , representation , and that intersect and interact with the dominant sometimes contradict and undermine it . While archaeologists often consider how one form of sociopolitical order might develop into another , cultural anthropologists are typically careful to avoid simplistic of cultural evolution . In this chapter , we take a approach between those two positions by detailing the categories of political organization and discussing common paths of social change from one system to another . However , important to emphasize that societies develop not along one single evolutionary path but through complex and often unpredictable processes of historical change .

Societies Bonds and Tribes LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this section , you will be able to the category of acephalous societies . Identify three types of acephalous political organization . Describe leadership in band societies . Outline the organization of lineage orders . Explain why many anthropologists avoid the use of the word tribe . the roles of chiefs and big men . Explain how systems complement lineage organization . Describe the village democracy of society . Any group without an leader is acephalous . When you go outwith a group of friends , how do you make decisions about where to go , how to get there , and who will pay for what ?

Probably someone makes a suggestion , people chime in with their own ideas , and you discuss things as a group and reach an informal consensus . This is what many small groups do . Until the early century , many Europeans believed that all humans were essentially and would relentlessly pursue their own personal interests without the moralizing forces of civilization to force them to be more cooperative . They assumed that any society without formal leadership and laws would necessarily be a chaotic of greed , coercion , and violence . Anthropologists discovered otherwise . Just as you and your friends easily make decisions without electing a leader or writing down rules , people who live in small communities do just fine without formal leadership and law . In such communities , power is not concentrated in any formal position of leadership but rather diffused throughout society . Elders or people with experience in certain areas may give valuable advice , but they do not have the power to enforce . Their authority is based on persuasive is , their ability to convince others and build group consensus . Certainly in any group there will be some people who want to exert power or force their own ideas on others , but without a formal mechanism allowing such people to enforce their will , others can generally ignore or evade them . The result is a mostly cooperative social order rather than chaos and strife . and described three types of societies . The corresponds to what we have called band societies , or living in small groups of 20 to 30 people . As we learned when we discussed the in Chapter , Work . Life , Value Economic Anthropology , such groups are strongly egalitarian , stressing equality , cooperation , and sharing . People make decisions through discussion and consensus . Those with knowledge and experience in particular areas may exert in those areas , but there are no formal positions of leadership . Social groups often face decisions regarding their mode of subsistence . As just one example , nomadic groups must decide where to camp and how long to stay there before moving on . Frank Marlowe , an anthropologist who studies the , describes how men sometimes suggest that it time to move on , but the group wo move until the women are good and ready ( Marlowe 2010 , 40 ) As the primary gatherers , women are best able to gauge whether food resources have been depleted in the area . When they have to walk too far to gather food , they agree that it time to move camp . On a daily basis , women going out in gathering groups must decide where to go and which resources to target , making such decisions through a quick conversation . Most people known someone in their family or group of friends who likes to tell others the best way to do things , and perhaps even wants to get their own way all of the time . This is the case in many small groups . Among the , if someone tries to tell other people what to do , the others just ignore that person . If the problem persists , people might just move to another camp to get away from the bossy person . Government and missionaries who try to tell the what to do are often met with the same general tendency to ignore or avoid potential authority .

While band societies have no political structure whatsoever , a second type of acephalous society relies on extended family structures councils to organize leadership , and resolution . Service ( 1962 ) referred to these as tribal societies . Service tribal form of social organization is associated with modes of subsistence such as pastoralism and horticulture , in which extended families control certain resources such as animals or land . Such communities are typically larger than bands , living in groups ranging from a few hundred to several thousand people . A cautionary note about the words tribe and tribal . Too often , the adjective tribal is used to describe seemingly irrational group loyalties and , particularly in societies . sometimes attempt to explain civil wars and guerrilla resistance in parts of the world in terms of ancient tribal hatred among various groups . The word tribe carries connotations of primitive and collective . In fact , many contemporary that are attributed to tribal animosity occur between groups that got along just before the colonial period of European domination . In , for instance , the horticultural and pastoral were engaged in cooperative relations and symbiotic forms of trade in times . Under a strategy of colonial domination , the Belgians privileged the with educational opportunities and jobs in colonial administration , which created resentment among the mostly agrarian . In this competitive context , group identities became and rigid . The 1994 genocide in is largely a result of these colonial processes fostering division , bias , and competition among these two groups . Because the word has been so often misused , some anthropologists have replaced the term tribe with the term ethnic group to describe large based on a sense of common ancestry and shared culture . Many anthropology texts do continue to use the term tribal to refer to a form of sociopolitical organization based on extended family groups . Many Indigenous groups also use the term to refer to their social groups . It one thing for people in a group to use the term tribe to refer to their own social group and quite another to use the word to describe a whole category of social organization . Service term never a category anyway , as it refers to communities with a great diversity of forms of political organization . Some rely primarily on extended family structures to provide authority and processes of , while others rely on special groups or councils and still others use both . As you will learn in Chapter 11 , Forming Family through Kinship , a lineage is a group of people related by a common ancestor through either the maternal or the paternal line . In lineage orders , communities consist of two or more lineage groups , each one with an elder or group of elders that plays a prominent role in establishing consensus and settling disputes within the lineage . Such leaders do not occupy formal positions of leadership , but rather exercise informal authority through their accumulated knowledge and their ability to persuade members of the lineage to follow their instructions . Like band societies , lineage orders tend to be fairly egalitarian . Some lineage societies , such as the of South , are segmentary lineages . These consist of family units called minimal lineages , which are encompassed by larger groups called maximal lineages , which are subsumed by even larger groups called clans . Minimal lineages are groups that trace descent from a common . In disputes between minimal lineages , people can recruit allies from the larger groups of kin , though there are no leaders in these larger groups . In this way , the mobilize their interlocking kin networks to maintain group cohesion and settle . In his ethnographic work , 1940 ) describes the as both independent and strongly egalitarian . Rather than accumulating wealth , people shared with others in their kin groups . However , was very common . Since there were no formal methods of settling , people responded to offenses and disputes by with clubs or spears . When someone was killed ( which was not uncommon ) the perpetrator would seek out the assistance of a special mediator called a chief , so named because they wore leopard skins to indicate their role . These mediators were not really chiefs at all , as their positions were informal and they had no power to coerce anyone or enforce . chiefs were outside the lineages of the disputing parties and therefore respected as neutral parties . Their role was to negotiate a settlement between the perpetrator and the victims family in order to avoid retaliation and an escalation . Typically , compensation took the form of cattle paid out to the victim family over a period of several years .

i ' i A . in FIGURE people in 1906 . culture has been described as both independent and strongly egalitarian . When conflicts grew intense , people consulted a chief to mediate between parties . credit People , 1906 by National Commons , Public Domain ) Another informal position of leadership , common to societies in and New Guinea , is the role of the big man . Although lineage orders are generally egalitarian , a man can distinguish himself through the accumulation , public acts of generosity , and the performance skills . Like chiefs , big men do not hold formal office and have no power to enforce their will . Their power is persuasive , not coercive . By sponsoring feasts and helping young men pay bride wealth , big men attract loyal followers who respect their authority and follow their commands . Big men settle disputes within communities and represent local peoples in their dealings with outsiders . Though the accumulation and prestige is necessary to become a big man , far more important is the equitable distribution of wealth and service to the community . Greed and are abhorred . Anthropologist Leopold ( 1963 ) described an incident among the of New Guinea in which a man who refused to share resources with the less fortunate in his community was punished by death . In some acephalous societies , communities are fundamentally organized through a system of groups called age sets . An age set is a group of similarly aged people in a community who share a common social status with permitted roles , activities , and responsibilities . An array of age sets may be organized into a hierarchical age grade system , dividing members of the community into children , youths , adults , and elders ( the term age set refers to the group , while the term age grade refers to the level in the hierarchy ) Most often , age sets are , with female and male versions of the same grade . In adolescence , males and females of similar ages are summoned at different times for initiation into the age set of their teenage years , either young men or young women . Strong lifelong bonds are formed through age sets , creating that cross lineage and clan boundaries in a community . The ( or ) of central Brazil have eight age sets , spaced approximately years apart ( Flowers 1994 1967 ) Children are not formally in an age set but constitute an undifferentiated group of socially immature beings . Boys between the ages of and 12 leave their family household and go to live in a bachelor hut . After about years , the set is initiated into the age set warriors through a complex set of rituals that takes about a year to complete . In the lower age sets , senior men teach young men the important skills of hunting , singing , and performing public ceremonies . Initiated men of all age sets attend councils every evening where community matters are discussed and debated . Girls have their own age sets and initiation rituals . When a woman has her child , for instance , she is awarded her formal adult name in a public ceremony and thereby enters the adult women age set . In addition to bands and lineage orders , a third and more atypical form of acephalous political organization is village democracy . Western students are often taught that democracy was invented in the ancient Greek city state of Athens . Considering themselves heirs to the classical political tradition , Europeans who established

colonial rule over African territories typically thought that they were bringing more enlightened ways of governing to African societies . But the of eastern were already practicing a highly effective form of homegrown democracy before the arrival of the British . Indeed , many anthropologists reject the notion that democracy was invented by the Greeks . Lacking formal rulers , most acephalous societies practice forms of discussion and that resemble democratic systems . In fact , the egalitarian and highly participatory form in such societies might be considered far more democratic than the form of representational democracy in large , Western societies , dominated by wealthy campaign donors and powerful lobbyists . In villages , an array of social groups provided arenas for public discussion and the representation of different interests and perspectives ( 1978 , Each group met frequently for discussion of current issues . A nuclear family formed a group headed by the father , and each lineage formed a larger group headed by a lineage elder . Women and men each had their own groups , and people were further divided into age grades ofpeople of roughly the same age . In some villages , there was even a group of very old women who inspected the town to maintain sanitation . At the highest level was a group of town elders comprising the leaders of other groups . After consulting on a particular issue , the elders would summon a general town meeting attended by everyone in the community . At this meeting , anyone could stand up and voice their opinion . Good contributions were cheered and applauded , while frivolous ones were jeered and dismissed by the audience of townspeople . The goal of group discussion at all levels was to reach consensus . With no formal positions , leaders had no coercive power . The role of group leaders was to chair discussion and facilitate the process of reaching consensus . Anthropologists have described similar systems through public councils in many societies all over the world , even in communities within or states . Anthropologists Audrey Richards and Adam formed a research group to compare and contrast forms of in councils , resulting in their book Councils in Action ( 1971 ) While in acephalous societies , councils are the main arena of public , councils play a more advisory role in societies with centralized authority . Societies and States LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this section , you will be able to Describe how lineage orders may develop into . Evaluate the economic , religious , and militaristic aspects of . Identify practices of popular representation in . Provide two detailed examples of . Explain integrative and conflict pressures of state formation . Enumerate the features of state societies . Describe social inequality in state societies . ideology and hegemony and explain their importance in state societies . As mentioned in the last section , lineage orders are commonly associated with horticultural and pastoral societies , as well as societies that practice some combination of the two . Recall from Work Life Value Economic Anthropology that such societies produce little beyond what they consume locally they produce substantial surplus . If conditions are favorable , some such societies may intensify their farming methods with the development of irrigation systems , terracing , or use of the plow . The organization of labor and resources necessary to develop terracing and systems of irrigation fosters stronger forms of community authority . These intensive methods generate agricultural surplus , which allows some members of the community to specialize in craft production as well as in forms of religious and political leadership . Agricultural surplus can also be traded with other communities in regional networks . These factors promote the local accumulation of wealth . The process of agricultural often results in the centralization . Big men or lineage elders acquire the authority to command the labor of others and control the storage and distribution of agricultural surplus . They take on the role regional trade . They oversee the construction of

infrastructure such as roads and irrigation systems . They organize groups of local young people to protect the community . They perform important community rituals to ensure agricultural productivity and community prosperity . Over time , such leaders may seek to hand down their leadership roles to their own kin in subsequent generations . As leadership becomes inherited , one lineage in a community may emerge as a royal lineage . Anthropologists refer to those with formal , inherited positions of community leadership as chiefs . Over time , a chief can expand their dominion to incorporate several towns and villages into a small chiefdom . Chiefs may form political alliances with other regional chiefs in large pyramidal systems consisting of various levels of village chiefs and regional chiefs , with one very powerful chief at the top . When a chiefdom expands to encompass multiple ethnic groups in a regional empire , the leader is referred to as a king . are a very common form organization , found in historical and contemporary societies all over the world . Archaeologists and cultural anthropologists have discovered in Africa , the Middle East , Europe , East and Southeast Asia , and North , Central , and South America . While there is considerable diversity in the way these various systems of chieftaincy operate , anthropologists have a set of elements common to many of them . The fusing of multiple forms is the feature of , common to all of them . Economic , political , religious , and military power are all concentrated in the position of the chief . In Mesopotamia , the cities of were initially ruled by religious priests who represented local gods and oversaw work on common lands . Over time , priests began to share their power with secular governors who maintained law and order , managed the economy , and led military campaigns . Eventually , religious and civil power became fused in the of the . As their power , they began passing down their to their sons , establishing dynasties . Central to the power of a control over economic resources such as land , agricultural surplus , and trade . Chiefs often hold land in public trust , determining who may farm where and also allocating farmland to newcomers . They have their own farming plots , commanding regular public labor to work on them . Farmers are obliged to channel a portion of their surplus to the chief , who holds it in storage facilities for public feasts or distribution to those in need . Chiefs regulate local trade and negotiate regional trade networks to benefit their own communities . They control the production and distribution of certain prestige goods , such as royal textiles and ornaments made , gold , copper , or shell .

Imperial Hawaii and FIGURE Statue of Chief , the founder and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii , in Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Building . Hawaiian chiefs used the wealth they accumulated to build public works and military . credit , BY ) developed throughout the Polynesian , including the peoples of Hawaii , Tahiti , and Tonga and the of New Zealand . In Hawaii , chieftaincy developed from the intensive cultivation of taro using systems of irrigation and terracing ( 2011 ) Hawaiian chiefs controlled the distribution of land , giving out subsistence plots in return for labor in their own gardens . They used accumulated wealth and communal labor to build roads , garden terraces , ponds , and military . Their power was reinforced by a belief system that chiefs as god responsible for agricultural prosperity and social welfare . Chiefs conducted important annual religious rituals to ensure the success of crops . They commanded public labor to build and refurbish shrines for the worship of local gods , personal gods , and high gods such as . Military forces were recruited and commanded by chiefs who used them to defend their and expand their territories . Militarism is another common feature of throughout the world . While the power of leaders in acephalous societies depends on their ability to persuade others to do what they say , chiefs have coercive power to force people to carry out their commands . The powerful West African chiefdom of was originally founded in 1700 as a military confederation of chiefs who united to defeat the neighboring . Under the ( the king ) the top chiefs commanded different divisions of the military , including the scouts , the advance guard , the main body , the right and left wings , and the rear guard . As commander in chief , the coordinated these divisions into a highly effective military machine that conquered a region larger than . Subduing neighboring groups enabled the to collect tribute in the form of agricultural surplus , trade goods , and slaves . Also common to many is the promotion of moral and religious ideology that supports the legitimacy of their rule . Like Hawaiian chiefs , chiefs were considered to be embodied links to the realm of the supernatural , and they conducted rituals and ceremonies for the of the community . Every 40 days , chiefs led processions to present ritual gifts of food and drink to the ancestors and ask for their blessings to ensure the fertility of the land and the wellbeing of the people . Although they wielded great power ,

chiefs were bound by a morality that compelled them to use resources such as land and gold for the good of the people rather than for private . FIGURE Nana Tutu II , the current , the title for the monarch of the people . The traditionally held the role of commander in chief of the military . credit Nana Tutu II , by Alfred , BY ) Europeans who colonized African societies often assumed that African chiefs were cruel despots who used violence and exploitation to enrich themselves and oppress their subjects . On the contrary , research by historians and anthropologists has revealed that many African were highly political systems that incorporated checks and balances on the rule of the chief . Among the ( the larger cultural group that includes the ) there were several avenues for popular representation and critique as well as a procedure for getting rid of inept and corrupt chiefs . At the advisory level , the guided by a council of elders as well as the queen mother , often his aunt , mother , or sister . The young men of the community formed a group called that had as one of its many purposes the responsibility to represent popular opinion to the chief and his advisors . If the people wished to depose their chief , they could communicate their wishes to the young men , who then conveyed the message to the queen mother , who would then advise the chief to mend his ways . If he did , the young men could seize him , touch his feet to the ground ( thus ritually him ) shoot off a gun , and declare him deposed . At that point , the queen mother would meet with the elders to nominate a new chief . In Akan societies , it was far easier to depose a bad chief than it is to impeach a bad president in the US political system . States Starting around years ago , a new form organization emerged independently in many parts of the world , including Mesopotamia , China , Egypt , India , and South America . As some societies in these areas became more populous and hierarchical , their leaders developed modes of governance that combined forms of economic extraction such as taxation and tribute with mechanisms of social control such as law and policing . These governments used public revenues to build infrastructure and monuments . They developed extensive bureaucracies to interpret and enforce laws and maintain social order . Large military forces defended and expanded control over territory , resulting in empires . The government

asserted a monopoly on the use of violence , meaning that only the government was allowed to use extreme forms of violence to control or punish anyone . Societies with this form organization are called state societies ( 2001 ) Many of the features of states mentioned above are common to the political organization of , and indeed states have generally emerged from the increasing centralization power in large . This concentration of power happens gradually over time , stimulated by a variety , some very general and universal and others more particular to the context of societies . Population growth and increasing social are among the more general pressures , while the militaristic threats of neighboring societies and the particular opportunities of regional trade affect societies in different ways . Attempting to explain the rise of the state , theorists emphasize two sets of forces that propel the process integrative pressures and pressures . Integrative pressures arise from the need for greater coordination in order to satisfy the needs of a growing population . As the population increases , agricultural production must also be increased to meet subsistence needs and for trade . Leaders are compelled to organize more complex irrigation systems and forms of landscape management , such as terracing and raised fields . These complex systems are built and maintained using public resources and labor . Increasing trade also exerts an integrative force , as leaders strive to maximize the wealth of their societies by stimulating production of agricultural and craft goods and establishing local markets and regional trade opportunities . As agriculture and trade become more complex , power becomes more centralized in order to manage the necessary conditions and infrastructure for economic growth . pressures arise from the need to manage both internal and external threats to the power of leaders and the integrity of their societies . Some theorists argue that political power becomes increasingly centralized as a leader builds a large military force and wages warfare to defend and expand territory . Conquering neighboring societies allows leaders to command regular tribute . In addition to conquest , military forces provide leaders with large cadres of loyal , supporters . Other theorists argue that internal tensions are just as pivotal to the centralization of power . State societies are built upon a system of social that is , they feature class and caste systems with unequal access to wealth and power . With the emergence of a class of privileged elites governing over urban craft workers and rural peasantry , leaders face new forms of inequality and potential . Systems of law and ideology are developed to command the cooperation groups . Archaic States The Aztecs In the century , the Aztec state of arose from a combination of integrative and pressures . Migrants to the area , the ( as they called themselves ) worked as mercenaries for other regional powers , then established their own city of on an island in the middle of Lake ( 2002 ) As newcomers , the were keen to build up the military might necessary to defend their new settlement . forces with two neighboring states to defeat the regional superpower and establish a Triple Alliance of three , which they came to dominate . To strengthen their position , they also sought to generate wealth through agricultural surplus , craft manufacture , and trade . At the height of its power in the century , the Aztec state comprised some 50 individual , each with its own ruler who served the Aztec king . The Aztec empire spanned most of central and southern Mexico .

262 Authority . Decisions . and Power Political Anthropology FIGURE A rendering of , the capital of the Aztec empire , by artist Diego Rivera . was a complex and professionally planned city , constructed on an island , and housing temples , pyramids , and palaces . credit Diego Rivera Mural of Mexican History Ceremonial Center at by Gary , Public Domain ) The Aztec state was constructed on a foundation of intensive agriculture , particularly the cultivation of maize . Beans , squash , chiles , cotton , cacao , and other produce also contributed to subsistence and trade . Farmers used a variety of cultivation methods , the most intensive being agriculture . are rectangular plots constructed out of layers of mud and vegetation piled up in a shallow part ofa lake and secured with anchoring poles . Using this cultivation method , farmers produced a hefty surplus , which was heavily taxed by the state . This surplus fed urban classes of , warriors , bureaucrats , and nobles . Farmers formed the class of commoners who lived outside the urban centers of government and trade . They lived in mud houses roofed with thatch and wore simple clothes with cloaks that were required by law to end above the knee . The agricultural base was by urban classes of craft manufacturers , including weavers , sculptors , goldsmiths , and feather workers . Many of these products were not for general use but reserved for rulers and nobles , giving these a class distinction above agricultural commoners . These were organized into guilds and lived in exclusive neighborhoods near the nobles they served . Also included in the urban classes were merchants who traveled throughout central Mexico , trading Aztec goods within and beyond the empire . The Aztecs were a highly militant society , valuing perpetual warfare as a political and religious necessity . All young men were expected to serve in the military , waging wars of conquest to collect tribute and captives . A class elites enjoyed high social status , living among other elite classes in major urban centers . This class was divided into two groups , the Eagle and Jaguar cults . At the top level of this highly society were nobles who could trace their ancestry back to the first Aztec rulers . Only nobles could live in stone houses and wear headbands , gold armbands , and jewels in their lips , ears , and noses . Nobles owned land and monopolized positions in government and religion . Each was governed by a noble ruler , considered a representative of the gods , who collected tribute from commoners , organized military campaigns , sponsored public feasts , and settled disputes . Government consisted of the ruler and their advisors , a bureaucracy for collecting tribute , system of high and lesser courts , and the lesser rulers of provinces and towns . At the very bottom of the class system were serfs and enslaved people , who were commoners who had gotten into debt been sold into slavery . People who fell on hard times economically could sell themselves or their kin into servitude . Through the coordinated labor of these classes , the Aztecs built a sprawling empire of tributary provinces all Access for free tit

channeling wealth to the core of three , headed by . The largest city in the Americas at the time , was a professionally planned symmetrical city with roads , canals , gardens , and markets . The center of the city was dominated by around 45 large stone buildings , including temples , pyramids , and palaces . The ruler palace had 100 rooms , each with its own bathroom . The city had a zoo , an aquarium , and botanical gardens . Life was congenial and luxurious for nobles who lived in such a beautiful and culturally stimulating environment . Life was not so great for the vast majority of commoners , serfs , and slaves who toiled long hours on the land , struggling to pay the tribute and taxes that supported the very luxuries that were denied to them . Why did they do it ?

Every state has a set of institutions for maintaining social order , such as law , courts , police , and military forces . The Aztecs had a complex legal system that banned drunkenness , adultery , and homicide , among other crimes . Even more important for the cohesion of social classes were laws that banned any behavior above one own social class . Commoners who wore elite forms , built elaborate houses , or tried to obtain property could be punished by death . Under these conditions , people tended to accept the social class they were born into rather than struggle to change their class status or the hierarchical system of classes as a whole . Even more powerful than state law was a set of ideas and practices threaded throughout the daily lives of Aztec at all levels of society . The official religion of the Aztecs emphasized the importance of continual in order to keep the world functioning . In the Aztec origin myth , the gods themselves to generate the world , offering up their own blood to put the sun in motion . This act of put humans in debt to the gods , with continual rituals of human required to appease them . Without blood , the world would end . Priests conducted ritual of men , women , and children throughout the year . Many victims were warriors captured in constant battles with neighboring states . Conquered provinces were required to provide a continuous supply to fuel the ritual calendar . and Hegemony are often shocked to learn about the prevalence of human in Aztec society . We might wonder , could people go along with such routine public violence conducted by representatives of the state ?

How did they not protest ?

Every society develops a set of dominant ideas that frame the existing social order as the way things should be . These ideas form a narrative about the way the world works and the roles groups in promoting social harmony and collective prosperity . Typically , a society has many competing ideas about the way the world works , each one the perspectives and experiences ofa particular group . The worldview of a particular group or class in society is called an ideology . Literary theorist Terry ( 1991 ) describes ideology as an intertwined set of ideas , values , and symbols that can be either conscious or unconscious . When an ideology transcends one group to become the dominant way nearly all people in a society think about social reality , it becomes hegemony . Hegemony is a strategic set of common sense ideas that support the social order . As a form of sociopolitical organization , the state requires the vast majority of citizens to lead lives of hard labor and in order to support classes of artisans and nobles who live in great cities full of bustling trade , luxurious goods , and monumental architecture . Tearing the heart from a victim on a public altar may seem shocking , but the logic of serves as a metaphor for the bodily of commoners required to endure lives of hardship to support the of the state . To manage the inequality of classes and ensure the cooperation of all groups , the Aztecs came to embrace the hegemonic notion that was necessary to ensure the very existence of the world . The wealth of all state societies , past and present , rests on the hardship of manual laborers at the bottom of the social hierarchy . The dominant ideas of any state are ways the inequality inherent to all states . These ideas are highly variable . Some societies emphasize religious ideologies of or the dangers of eternal damnation . Others celebrate economic ideologies of economic growth and consumerism . In American society , for instance , some believe it is necessary to keep the minimum wage very low in

order to protect economic growth , an idea not so far removed from notions . In recent decades , the American system has offset these low wages by supplying people with a vast array of cheap consumer goods . The relentless stream of advertising pervading social life continuously the consumerist mantras of and satisfaction . Ironically , however , those goods are cheap because American manufacturers have relocated their factories to parts of the world where they can pay workers even less than they would pay Americans . The dominant ideology of consumerism draws attention away from the conditions of work and production and toward the ideals of choice and leisure . As both Aztec and American societies demonstrate , the economic and political systems of state societies are deeply entwined , and this relationship is often in the dominant ideas of a society . Political economy is the study of the way political and economic realms frequently reinforce and sometimes contradict one another over time . Modern LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this section , you will be able to Distinguish nation from state and describe how the two are linked in modern . the concept of imagined communities . Identify the importance of colonialism in shaping postcolonial . Describe the of postcolonial studies . Explain the fragility of postcolonial states . Provide two examples of the consequences of globalization for national identities and politics . Before 1400 or so , the world was a variegated array of empires , kingdoms , and with their tributary societies , loosely linked by trade with acephalous societies at the . The contemporary globe is an economically integrated order fundamentally organized into . How did this happen ?

The is a hyphenated two entities , the state and the nation . As discussed earlier , the state is an institution exercising centralized rule over a territory . States have bureaucracies that make , interpret , and enforce law . States collect taxes and use them to build infrastructure and public works . States organize and regulate the economy . States maintain monopoly on the use of force through the military and the police . Because states tend to be militant and expansionist , they also tend to form empires , dominated by one ruling group . Ancient empires did not attempt to absorb their tributary societies into one common ethnicity or peoplehood . Ancient states were by territory and bureaucracy alone , with no effort to achieve cultural uniformity . The nation is a much more idealistic and cultural notion . A nation is a sense of cultural belonging or peoplehood . A cousin of the word native , the term nation refers to the original inhabitants ofa territory , those who were born there . Nations often claim a common language as a sign of group membership . Nations tell a common origin story about where they came from , and they ritually commemorate that story in a ritual calendar of feasts and holidays . Nations claim a common destiny , a special future or sacred duty assigned to them by God . And , nations promote certain social norms and values , evaluating individuals and groups according to those ideals . The concept of nation is close to the notion of culture as communal and unchanging . A is a state with a common culture , in some cases a dominant ethnicity . Political scientist Benedict Anderson ( 1983 ) argues that all modern states deliberately cultivate this sense of peoplehood for those living in the state . They draw from a large repertoire of methods to summon the loyalty of their citizens and reinforce the legitimacy of the state system . Through practices both within and beyond the government , state societies encourage their citizens to imagine themselves as part ofa larger community of people in a harmonious society bound by a common history and common destiny . Government promotes national identity through practices such as elections , taxes , schools , and the dramas of law making , interpretation , and enforcement . Modern states rely on meaningful public rituals and symbols , such as , anthems , pledges of allegiance , national holidays , historical monuments , and national museums . Outside of government , the mass news media highlights the importance of the daily actions of the state , providing continual coverage that the attention of citizens on the state as the central power in society .

Modern ( es 265 As a citizen of a , you will never know all of the members of your national community . Such communities are far too large to generate organic social groups based on interaction . Without all of the practices and rituals listed above , you might not even consider member of the larger political community at all . Because of this , Benedict Anderson refers to nations as imagined communities . By imagined , Anderson is not arguing that such communities are simply imaginary or not real , but rather that national identity is a powerful sense of unity that is strategically constructed by the state and mass media . The of western Europe grew out of an assemblage of kingdoms and territories , some of them once incorporated into the Holy Roman Empire . From the to the century , the states of Europe slowly emerged , one by one , as the various European powers entered into peace agreements that established international borders and sovereignty over territories . In general , the wars and treaties of political elites meant very little to the common farmers and traders living in these territories . Among English commoners , for instance , their sense of community was not much affected by the continually changing map of territories that constituted the state of England . What did make a difference for European commoners was the development of the printing press around 1440 . The printing press targeted a growing population of literate commoners . Driven by the capitalist motive , printers sought to reach the widest possible audience . Thus , they printed their books , pamphlets , and newspapers in local languages rather than in Latin , which was the language of elites and the Catholic Church . For each emerging , mass media helped standardize a diversity of dialects into one common language that could be used to spread common messages and carry out common practices such as schooling , law , political campaigns , and government bureaucracy . FIGURE Depiction of the printing process using an early press . The printing press made available ideas and news to common people in their own language , helping to cement identities . credit Daniel Commons , Public Domain ) Of course , the printing press did not singlehandedly create the modern of Europe . Around the same time that the press began churning out mass discourse , a rising class of capitalist merchants was gaining economic power , hoping to displace forms of political leadership associated with the church and the feudal monarchies . The felicitous coincidence of class motivation and printing technology combined to propel the development of European . For Max Weber , the is associated with the complete formalization of is , power concentrated in bureaucratic institutions with legal authorities . The legal and political systems of bureaucracies often purport to be based on rules and procedures rather than social status or identities . For instance , in the American system , the ability to vote is based on legal citizenship , not social class , gender , or ethnic identity . However , legal and political bureaucracies reserve the power to

determine who is and who is nota citizen as well as procedures for voter registration and voting in elections . Through these procedures , certain categories ofpeople can be barred or discouraged from voting , resulting in racial or ethnic bias . of color are less likely to have photo ( such as a driver license ) then laws requiring such ID to vote may constitute forms of racial discrimination . French philosopher Michel ( 1978 , 2007 ) describes such power to and control populations of citizens as . A special form exercised in modern states , includes ways of regulating the bodies of citizens , such as practices associated with birth , death , sexuality , wellness , illness , work , and leisure . The ability to count and categorize the inhabitants ofa state is a form of The ability to people who have certain illnesses or bodily conditions or have engaged in certain behaviors is a form of . When you walk through a body scanner in an airport security station , you are experiencing a form of . While Weber focused on institutions in which power is concentrated , describes as a diffuse form of social control , widely practiced by citizens both within and outside state bureaucracies . In American society , people routinely carry on their bodies ( in a pocket or purse ) wherever they go . The information on this identity card links to bureaucratic associated with a person citizenship status , criminal history , voter registration , and many other data sets . Bureaucratic power is thereby melded to bodies of modern citizens . Colonial and Outside of Europe , a similar array of kingdoms , lineage orders , and village democracies patterned much of the rest of the world . Recall that ancient state societies had emerged at various times in Mesopotamia , Egypt , China , India , and Central and South America . Kingdoms were prevalent forms of centralized rule on most continents as well . All around these highly centralized societies were smaller and acephalous communities . The continent of Africa , for instance , featured large , centralized states and kingdoms such as Egypt in the north , Zimbabwe , and in the east and in central Africa and a multitude of kingdoms across West Africa , including the great empires of , Mali , and ( Monroe 2013 ) As noted in the discussion of acephalous societies , communities outside of these great kingdoms and states were politically organized , with forms of leadership , and dispute settlement that maintained social order . British historian Basil ( 1992 ) has argued that African societies such as the and Zulu were , or states in formation , at the time of European colonization . Between 1400 and time frame during which European were African societies were undergoing similar developments as militant kingdoms consolidated large territories of empire . Based on intensive agriculture and extensive trade networks across the continent ( and beyond ) such highly centralized societies had state bureaucracies , populations , systems of law , and monumental architecture . They also had dominant ideologies that emphasized the accumulation and appropriate distribution of wealth . In other words , many African societies were state societies well on their way to becoming modern .

Modem 267 Caliphate Empire Empire of Egypt Kingdom of 12 Nok Culture Mali Empire Empire Kingdom of Kan 33 State ' Kingdom . Great Zimbabwe Empire El FIGURE states and empires in Africa . Note how different these are from the way Africa is divided into nations today . credit African civilizations map , by Jeff Commons , GNU Free Documentation License ) Instead , colonialism happened . As we learned in Work Life Value Economic Anthropology , the growth of industrial capitalism prompted the major European powers to seek access to raw materials and markets for their goods . Many set their sights on the mineral wealth and agricultural potential of Africa . European representatives met in Berlin in to negotiate their territorial interests on the African continent . Laying out a map of the continent , they drew boundaries around the areas they hoped to control , though they knew very little about the land or peoples in much of those areas . They agreed that they could maintain exclusive claim on those areas only if they established government administrations to rule over the people who lived there . By the early century , Europeans had established colonial government over nearly all societies in Africa , subordinating local African political systems under European rule . As the whole point of colonialism was to secure resources to fuel European colonies , the colonial states established by Europeans were authoritarian , militaristic , and extractive . They invaded African territories and slaughtered Africans who would not submit to European rule . They forced Africans to work on colonial projects such as mines and roads . They made Africans pay taxes to fund the colonial enterprise . And they designed and controlled African economies to channel

to European merchants and manufacturers . Oddly , as European pulled away from direct control over their own economies , European colonial states exerted complete control over colonial economies . Moreover , as European became increasingly participatory and democratic , European colonial states were managed in ways that were repressive , authoritarian , and openly violent . Because of colonial rule , the two forces that contributed to the rise of the modern in wealthy capitalist class and the printing prevented from playing the same role in African societies . Africans were deliberately sidelined from the trade and were not allowed to start factories , preventing a class capitalists from developing under colonial rule . Instead , colonial rule established a system of governance in the colonies consisting of a militant authoritarian state apparatus governing over local African political systems , including , lineage orders , and a few scattered band societies . In places where there were chiefs , colonial used those chiefs to carry out colonial policies , often against the wishes and interests of the chiefs own people . In places where there were no chiefs , colonial authorities often forced Africans to pick one to perform those duties . In some colonies , African political institutions were banned altogether . Anthropologists working on political issues in previously colonized states ( such as most African ones ) often combine historical and contemporary research to understand the intersection of local and foreign that make up this complex picture . In one form or another , colonial processes shaped the development of political systems in Africa , the Middle East , South and Southeast Asia , the Caribbean , the Americas , and eastern Europe . The of postcolonial studies emerged in the , combining history , anthropology , political science , and area studies in an effort to understand the diversity , complexity , and legacy of colonialism throughout the world . Fragile ' States and States The Legacies of Colonialism The study of African politics provides an excellent example of the weaving of local culture and colonial history in the making of contemporary postcolonial societies . Journalists and political scientists frequently lament the political instability states and their susceptibility to popular unrest , ethnic , coups , and corrupt leadership . Some refer to African states as fragile states or failed states . A fragile state is a government that can not adequately perform the essential functions of a state , such as maintaining law and order , building basic infrastructure such as roads and bridges , guaranteeing basic amenities such as electricity and clean water , and defending its citizens against violence . Such a state is fragile because it is susceptible to popular uprising , coups , civil war , and foreign invasion . A failed state is a state that can no longer perform any state functions at all . Many anthropologists are critical of this simplistic and way of governments . Rather than viewing the world as a set states in isolation , anthropologists pay attention to historical processes of interaction among states that have shaped global patterns of inequality . Examining the notions of state fragility and state failure through a critical lens , anthropologist note how some states have become more powerful while others have struggled to meet the needs of their peoples . At various times over the past 30 years , many African states have as fragile or failed , including , Sierra Leone , Cote , Mali , Zimbabwe , and the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Since 2005 , the Fragile States Index has ranked all states in the United Nations according to a set of key political , economic , and social indicators . Among the top 50 most fragile states in the 2020 index , all but two have experienced some form of colonial rule , and 35 of the top 50 most fragile states are African states . For more information on fragile states see States Index ( Why do so many African states face such problems ?

How did colonialism contribute to the current fragility states ?

As an example , take the postcolonial West African state of . What can an anthropological approach tell us about contemporary politics in ?

Most African countries won independence in the middle of the century . Once free from colonial domination , new classes of African political elites won control over the colonial apparatus of the state , including its colonial institutions and boundaries and its bureaucratic rule over African and acephalous societies . In other words , at independence , the structure of the state as it

had existed under colonialism remained essentially unchanged . The new leaders of these African states faced the challenge and economically restructuring their states while holding together the diverse groups existing within colonial boundaries , groups frequently pitted against one another under colonial rule . As an additional stress , were limited and unpredictable . Leaders such as , the prime minister and , later , the president of , sought to reform the state to make it serve the interests of Africans . He started schools and hospitals and built roads , bridges , and dams in an effort to do all the things a state should do to command the loyalty of its citizens . He used symbols of chiefdom to promote his own political power , even though he was not a chief or even from a royal lineage . His administration reduced the regional power of chiefs in an effort to enhance the centralized power of the state . was wildly popular at , but over time , economic and regional factors challenged his rule . Some cocoa farmers felt they were being exploited to fund grand projects urban elites . Facing widespread criticism , became increasingly autocratic , throwing political opponents in . FIGURE , the prime minister and later the first president of , is shown on the right in traditional cloth clothing . On the left , he is seated ( center in the front row ) with the Gold Coast Cabinet . leadership was characterized by successful reform efforts at , but he eventually developed autocratic tendencies and was overthrown by a military coup . credit ( CO by The National Archives , Public Domain ( by ) In 1966 , nine years after declaring independence from the British , was overthrown by a military coup that accused him of corruption and political repression . Over the next 15 years , endured four more military coups and two ( brief ) elected governments , an exceptionally long string of political instability . Each military its takeover by claiming the previous regime had been massively each one eventually became the target of the same accusations of corruption . Political instability , popular unrest , military coups , similar narrative describes the political development of many other African states . The commonality of political crisis in Africa has prompted many journalists and policy experts to wonder what is wrong with African states . What is the underlying problem ?

Postcolonial studies suggest that we must think both culturally and historically to understand how postcolonial societies function . Postcolonial states are very often fragile states not because they are doing something wrong but largely because of the legacies of colonialism . In many African societies , colonialism tainted political systems while also constructing a repressive , authoritarian state . Recall our earlier discussion of checks and balances in the system of chieftaincy practiced by the . Akan chiefs were expected to act in the interests of their people or else face the consequences . Ifa community became unhappy with their chief , the could eventually depose the chief by force . Though had many civic duties , the term itself literally means war people , referring to

their role in defense and in deposing bad chiefs . British colonial rule put Akan chiefs in a contradictory position . Forced to act as agents of colonial rule , chiefs were ordered to collect colonial taxes , supply teams of forced labor , and enforce unpopular colonial laws . At the same time , chiefs were presented with new economic opportunities in the colonial as selling off land and pocketing the further undermined their commitment to the welfare of their own people . As their positions became increasingly , some chiefs succumbed to the temptations of embezzlement , extortion , and authoritarianism . Fed up with these corrupt chiefs , many groups took action . In the , a spate of uprisings deposed unpopular chiefs throughout the southern part of the colony . Fearing the consequences of African popular protest , British colonial officials quickly suppressed the uprisings and forbid the from any further action against their chiefs . So , to be clear , British colonialism corrupted the institution of African chieftaincy and then forbade the exercise of African protest against that corruption . ahead to that long period of political instability in in the latter half of the century . anthropologist Maxwell ( 1989 ) argues that this colonial history of corruption and protest has shaped postcolonial politics in . Just as the pressures of colonialism undermined and tainted the Akan chieftaincy , the mission of the postcolonial state undermined and tainted the presidency . Just as groups were motivated by allegations of corruption to rise up and depose their chiefs , the military rose up time and time again to depose leaders accused of corruption . and Globalization In the latter part of the century , increasing global of trade , people , technologies , communication , and ideas all coalesced in a strong but uneven wave of globalization rippling across the globe . To be clear , the world has always been integrated by such flows , but advanced technologies combined with the drive of corporate capitalism forced a sudden acceleration of these processes roughly from the late into the 20005 . As people , objects , and messages began to travel across national boundaries with increasing frequency and speed , many scholars argued that would lose their relevance as structures of economic and political order for their populations . Some scholars thought that globalization would result in the erasure of cultural and national differences , replacing global diversity with a uniform culture based on American corporate capitalism and consumerism . Would globalization result in the of the world ?

As global researchers with a powerful toolkit of methods , anthropologists were uniquely poised to address this question . In short , the answer was an emphatic No ! Rather than diminishing the importance of local structures and identities , globalization has transformed and enhanced them . Consider the increasing popularity of global travel . Why would anyone go anywhere if things were the same wherever you went ?

Many invest heavily in their distinctive cultures , monuments , and environmental features in order to attract global travelers keen to experience something new and different . Consider another strong force of globalization , the increasing tendency for large corporate manufacturers based in the United States to relocate their factories to poorer countries where labor is cheaper and environmental regulation may be weaker . Initially , this technique undermined the power of and local communities to challenge corporate practices . Over time , however , the resulting loss of jobs in the United States has generated a great deal controversy . This loss of class jobs has resulted in rising levels of inequality in American society . Some politicians call for the American government to create incentives and regulations to keep American jobs within American borders . Ironically , then , globalization may provoke citizens to enhance the power of their . In poorer countries , globalization has resulted in increased environmental damage as globalized industries take advantage of looser regulations . Industrial pollution and the dumping of hazardous waste by global corporations pose serious threats to the health of local communities in many countries . Responding to these threats , local peoples turn to their governments to enact environmental protections . Moreover , the forces of globalization have created a strong network of transnational resistance to environmentally destructive practices with organizations such as the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution

( and the United Nations Environment Program ( In the wake of Benedict Anderson ( 1983 ) formulation of as imagined communities , many anthropologists have considered how globalization creates transnational forms of imagined community alongside the nation . Cultural anthropologist Arjun ( 1996 ) argues that globalization freed popular imagination from the constraints of the nation , creating multiple realms of imagined community national borders . postulates dimensions of global , constructing realms of activity and imagination ethnicity , technology , media , and ideology . The global environmental movement , for instance , constitutes a transnational imagined community based on ideas of environmental sustainability . Through media and communication technologies , people all over the world join in the discussions and activities of this imagined community . has also pointed to the darker consequences of globalization for national and transnational politics . While globalization might seem to be associated with free and , the forces of have also resulted in a proliferation of forms violence , especially violence against ethnic , racial , and religious minority groups ( 2006 ) With increasing global , many communities are subject to increased cultural mixing and pressures for change . With rising immigration , for instance , national communities may be forced to reformulate notions of common language , practices , and values . While some citizens of a national community may embrace a more cosmopolitan and multicultural identity , others may experience a sense of insecurity and threat to their way of life . This insecurity is particularly keen among those and poor groups that suffer from the increased inequality brought about by globalization . describes how cultural and economic insecurity can provoke majority ethnic and racial groups to acts of violence against minority groups in their national communities . Seeking an elusive and imaginary national purity , dominant groups seek to reassert their power over political , economic , and cultural institutions . politics in the United States and politics in some countries are both dangerous and sometimes violent responses to the common forces of globalization . SE PROFILES IN ANTHROPOLOGY Laura Nader , FIGURE Laura Nader ( right ) engaged in conversation . credit Financial Times Club Dinner by Financial , BY ) What was proven in the last election is that the United States is not an electoral democracy , by which I mean the two parties stranglehold on power has made it impossible for other voices to be Nader ( in 2005 )

Personal History Born and raised in , Connecticut , Laura Nader grew up in a family with strong commitments to community and public service . Her mother , Rose , was a politically minded schoolteacher who frequently wrote letters to the editor of the local newspaper . Her father , owned a restaurant where local people met to talk about community and political issues . Laura parents challenged her and her siblings to debate political issues and develop their own opinions . Area Nader earned a BA in Latin American studies from Wells College ( Aurora , New York ) and then went on to study anthropology at Harvard , earning a from Radcliffe College in 1961 . Nader areas of interest include politics and law , in particular how the system operates as a form of social control . Accomplishments in the Field For her dissertation , Nader studied local courts in the village of in southwestern Mexico ( 1990 ) She discovered that the legal system in was shaped by a strong emphasis on harmony rather than conviction and punishment . When arose , the courts brought people together face to face to engage in discussions aimed at reaching reconciliation and balanced solutions . Rather than focusing on blame and criminality , the legal process sought to restore community solidarity and consensus in the wake of the rift . Nader traced this harmony ideology to the context of colonial conquest by the Spanish , showing how missionaries and colonial administrators emphasized the moral value of harmony in order to dominate and pacify Indigenous peoples . She argued that local peoples in villages such as have appropriated harmony ideology to their own ends , adopting methods of resolution in order to prevent outside authorities from interfering in their affairs . Bringing the lessons of her research back home to the American legal system , Nader argued that harmony ideology operates as a strong force against Americans against large corporations . Though the American system is focused much more on blame and conviction , large corporations are able to evade the consequences of wrongful actions by using sophisticated legal procedures and forcing monetary settlements . Many such settlements include stipulations preventing people from publicly talking about the controversy , essentially purchasing the silence of complainants . Though governed by harmony ideology , the goal of such legal processes is not the restoration of good relations among community members but rather the forcing of capitulation and silence on complainants . Nader comparative work on the law in and the United States is vividly portrayed in the ethnographic Little Injustices ( 1981 ) Importance of Their Work In 1960 , Nader was the woman hired for a anthropology position at the University of California , Berkeley . From 1984 to 2010 , she taught an innovative and popular course called Controlling Processes , exploring dominant ideologies and techniques of power in complex industrialized societies such as the United States ( the author of this chapter took this course at Berkeley in 1990 ) Nader own research controlling processes that shape law and justice in many societies , exploring how citizens participate and challenge these hegemonic legal processes . Throughout her career , she has worked to make legal anthropology a force forjustice reaching beyond the scholarly arena into public life . She has been a visiting professor in law schools at Yale , Stanford , and Harvard . Resistance , Revolution , and Social Movements LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this section , you will be able to the concept of social movement . Distinguish between political parties and social movements . Identify the goals of the Arab Spring . Describe how democratic institutions may fail to represent majority and minority groups . Give an example of how anthropologists study social movements . Explain how Indigenous groups have formed social movements to protect Native lands and cultures . Politics includes all activities associated with governing a society . Thus far , we focused on the institutions and practices of government . But politics happens both inside and outside the realm of government . In fact ,

what happens outside of government may be even more important to understanding how a society is ruled . Outside of government , people respond to social and political conditions with commentary , critique , and social action . They form groups to express their views and demand social change . These groups are called social movements . FIGURE Arab Spring protest in . This widespread social movement spread throughout the Arab world in the early , voicing popular demands for greater participation in government and a more equitable distribution of wealth . credit Tunisian Revolution by Chris , BY ) In the early , a series of protests spread across the Arab world from to Libya , Egypt , Yemen , Syria , Iraq , and many other countries ( 2019 ) Through marches , demonstrations , and armed rebellions , people called for an end to oppressive governments and poor living conditions in their countries . Fueled by the expansion of social media , this large and diverse social movement came to be called the Arab Spring . At the heart of the movement were demands for more participation in government ( a political demand ) and a more equitable distribution of wealth ( an economic demand ) There are many different kinds of social movements . Some social movements express resistance to current social conditions . When groups gather to protest the outcome of an election or the passing ofa law , they show their disagreement with government actions without necessarily suggesting action or redress . Other social movements campaign for reforms . In response to police shootings , for instance , protesters might call for changes in the training and routine practices in their communities . More ambitious still are social movements calling for revolution . A revolution occurs when a social movement successfully changes the structure of the political through peaceful actions or violence . Many social movements are rooted in political economy that is , they work to change political and economic conditions and the relationship between those two realms . In democratic societies , political parties are social movements that have transformed into formalized political institutions . Political parties play a routine , conventional role in democratic societies . For instance , in American society , the Democratic Party consistently argues that the government should play a role in organizing and regulating the economy , while the Republican Party consistently argues that government should avoid economic interference . Political parties are fully integrated into the political system of democratic societies , structuring elections , lawmaking , government policy , and even the judicial process . Political parties may fail to represent the views of some even majority opinion . In the Congress , the views of a very wealthy minority exert a strong over the laws that are passed . Political scientist Martin ( 2012 ) conducted public opinion research among groups of poor , and wealthy Americans and then compared the views of these three groups to the policy actions of government . found that when poor people and rich people disagree on an issue , government policy nearly always supports the views of the wealthy . This effect is largely due to the role of money in American

politics , with the wealthy actively seeking to government policy through lobbying and campaign contributions . So what can people do when the formal mechanisms of democracy fail to represent their views ?

The vast majority of social movements are less like political parties and more like the Arab Spring that is , most social movements are informal groups engaging in activities outside of the formal realm activity . Social movements often originate in a particular incident or string of incidents , such as mass shootings , sexual assaults , police violence , or environmental disasters . When people feel that the truth of such incidents is hidden , obscured , or misrepresented by government and media , they may dramatic ways to publicize the truth and demand action . French philosopher Michel ( 2001 ) used the term parrhesia to describe how people are morally inspired to engage in risky public speech in order to speak truth to power . In the wake of the global crisis of , many Americans became worried about the role of the sector in creating economic inequality and instability . In September 2011 , a group of protesters met in Park in Manhattan to protest rising inequality and corporate over American politics . Over time , this movement , known as Occupy Wall Street , spread to cities throughout the United States and then the world , and members of the movement articulated a platform of sociopolitical goals that included a more balanced distribution , and working conditions , regulation , bankruptcy protection for student loan debt , and a freeze on home foreclosures . Protesters set up a participatory community in the park , organizing a form of through working groups and democratic consensus . Some protesters camped in tents , while others visited the park each day . In November 2011 , police in riot gear forcibly removed protesters from Park , arresting some 200 people in a single day . In many countries , extractive industries such as mining and logging produce forms of environmental damage that threaten the health and livelihoods of local peoples . When governments fail to intervene , farmers often join with urban activists to form aimed at environmental reform . Anthropologist Li ( 2015 ) has explored the emergence against multinational mining corporations in Peru . In 2004 , peasants gathered to protest a mining operation that would have leveled the mountain of . While company viewed the mountain as an obstacle to the extraction of minerals , urban activists and peasant leaders described it in sentient and supernatural terms , as a sacred place of spirits . Li also studies the response of mining to popular demands for accountability . When local people protest against the degradation and pollution of their lands , corporations often respond with technical that are presented as fair solutions . For instance , when blood tests revealed high levels of lead in children living near a Peruvian mining operation , the mining company responded with a program to bus those children to a distant kindergarten , thus reducing the number of hours of daily exposure to mining pollution . Many Indigenous peoples encompassed by contemporary engage in social movements to gain formal political recognition and to protect their lands and cultures . Work Life Value Economic Anthropology discussed efforts by the , the Bedouin , and the to protect their by forming with global allies and engaging in sustained public protest . As discussed in Chapter , Language and Communication , Indigenous groups such as the and the have formed social movements around the revitalization of language and culture . In 2016 , a group Rock Sioux and other Native Americans began campaigning to protect Native lands and cultures from the damaging effects of a proposed oil pipeline , the Dakota Access Pipeline . Running under waterways and across Native territories , the pipeline threatened the water supply of Native peoples as well as many sites , archaeological and otherwise , considered sacred by Native groups . Thousands of Native Americans and environmentalists gathered in multiple camps to protest the building of the pipeline over several months . Despite the protests , the Trump administration allowed the construction of the pipeline to begin in 2017 . In January 2021 , however , a US Appeals court vacated the Army Corps of Engineers construction permit and called for extensive environmental review of the project .

FIGURE A coalition of Native American groups protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline . Thousands of Native Americans , joined by environmentalists , spent months protesting the pipeline construction , many living in makeshift camps near the proposed construction site . credit Rally against the Dakota Access Pipeline by Fibonacci , BY ) As the examples above illustrate , most social movements combine protests against conditions with more general agendas involving justice , equality , democracy , and political economy . When the power of money overwhelms the formal political institutions ofa democratic society , social movements provide an alternative means expression and potential . ACTIVITY Courtroom Observation Visit your local county courthouse to observe the legal process in action . Sketch a map of the courtroom , indicating various areas of activity . Note how the structure of the room shapes and guides the activities . What categories of persons ( roles ) are to certain areas ?

How does the organization of the room indicate the relationships of these categories ofpeople to one another ?

What are the main roles in the court proceedings ?

What bodily postures and behaviors are associated with each role ?

What forms of voice ?

How is authority enacted ?

How do other participants respond to these forms of authority ?

Pay close attention to the proceedings . How might your knowledge of linguistic anthropology inform your understanding of the pronouncements and conversational exchanges in this setting ?

Do you see notions of race and ethnicity played out in the courtroom ?

Key Terms acephalous societies communities with no formal positions of leadership . age sets groups of people of roughly the same age who play a distinctive role in society with important social obligations and abilities . systems tend to be associated with acephalous societies . Arab Spring a series of protests that spread throughout the Arab world in the early , demanding an end to oppressive government and poor living conditions . in Akan societies , the group men charged with protecting the town , performing public works , and representing public opinion . could depose corrupt and unpopular chiefs . authority the exercise of power based on expertise , charisma , or roles of leadership . band societies communities of in which leadership is temporary , situational , and informal . big man an informal leader who has gained power by accumulating wealth , sponsoring feasts , and helping young men pay bride wealth . centralized societies communities in which power is concentrated in formal positions of authority , such as chiefs or kings . chief the inherited of leadership in a chiefdom , combining coercive forms of economic , political , judicial , military , and religious authority . societies in which political leadership is regionally organized through an or hierarchy of chiefs . are associated with intensive agriculture , militarism , and religious ideologies . agricultural plots created from layers of mud and vegetation in the shallow part of a lake . clans large kin groups that trace their descent from a common ancestor who is either not remembered or possibly mythological . coercive power the ability to enforce judgments and commands using socially sanctioned violence . colonial states state governments imposed by foreigners to rule over local peoples . failed state a state that can not perform any of the essential functions of a state . fragile state a state government that can not adequately perform the essential functions ofa state , such as maintaining law and order , building basic infrastructure , guaranteeing basic amenities , and defending its citizens against violence . hegemony a powerful ideology that has become generally accepted by most groups in society as common sense . Hegemony emphasizes the norms and values that support the existing social order . ideology an organized set of ideas associated with a particular group or class in society . Ideologies are used to explain how various realms of nature and society work , including such realms as economics , politics , religion , kinship , gender , and sexuality . imagined communities citizens of a joined together by rituals and practices that give them a collective , imagined sense of community . king hereditary ruler of a empire based on a chiefdom . chief an informal mediator in society who negotiated settlement in the case of homicide . lineage orders societies in which extended family groups provide the primary means of social integration . Leadership in these societies is provided by elders and other temporary or situational . nation a sense of cultural belonging or peoplehood based on a common language , common origin story , common destiny , and common norms and values . National identities are actively constructed by states . a political institution joining the apparatus of the state with the notion of cultural belonging or peoplehood . parrhesia courageous public speech inspired by a moral desire to reveal the truth and demand social change . persuasive power the ability to others without any formal means of enforcement . political economy study of the ways in which political and economic realms continually reinforce and sometimes contradict one another over time . politics all elements of the sociocultural dynamics of power postcolonial studies an field that combines history , anthropology , political science , and area studies in an effort to understand the diversity , complexity , and legacy of colonialism throughout the world . power the ability to people shape social processes and social structures .

societies that exhibit some but not all of the features of state societies . reform the call for systemic changes to address social problems . resistance the expression of disagreement or dissatisfaction with the social order may be explicit or implicit . revolution the replacement of one social order with a different one , often to create enhanced justice , equality , stability , or freedom . segmentary lineage a kind of lineage order in which family units called minimal lineages are encompassed by larger groups called maximal lineages , which are subsumed by even larger groups called clans . social movement an organized set of actions by a group outside of government aiming at achieving social change . social the division of society into Summary All societies have ways of exercising authority , making decisions , and settling disputes . In the , anthropologists distinguished between those societies with informal means of accomplishing these functions and those with formal roles and systems for doing so . In acephalous societies such as bands and lineage orders , leadership is situational and temporary , and people make decisions using discussion and consensus . Leaders in such societies have persuasive power but no formal means of enforcing their will . In centralized societies such as and states , various forms of power are condensed in the formal hereditary role of the leader . As military leaders , chiefs and kings have coercive power to collect taxes and tribute , enforce their commands , settle , and wage war to enlarge their territories . As societies become more centralized , they also become more , with social groups ranked according to wealth and power . Critical Thinking Questions . Of Weber three forms of authority , which ones can you identify in your own society ?

How do these forms of authority interact ?

What are the limitations of informal leadership in acephalous societies ?

Are there some forms of community action that might be impossible or ?

What kinds of activity become possible with formal positions of leadership ?

In your own culture , are there groups that provide structure and organization to groups that are ranked according to wealth , power , or prestige . state societies large , societies with highly centralized leadership , bureaucracies , systems of social control , and military forces exerting exclusive control over a territory . tribal societies an older term used by anthropologists to refer to pastoralist and societies in which extended family structures provide the primary means of social integration . tribe an term used to describe ethnic groups or groups organized by lineage . Avoided by many anthropologists now because of connotations and . village democracies acephalous societies in which an array of social groups provide arenas for discussion and consensus . With social and centralized rule , systems of ideology and hegemony develop to support the social order . Modern combine the state apparatus with a strategically cultivated sense of peoplehood based on common culture . European colonialism imposed an authoritarian state form to rule over local forms of political organization such as and lineage orders , often those original political forms . The structural and social problems of many postcolonial states are rooted in the destructive processes of colonialism . Outside of the formal realm of government , people seek to social and political conditions through social movements . Some social movements provide a means of expressing dissatisfaction , while others press for forms of social change or complete reorganization of the political order . society ?

How do these groups promote social norms and values ?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of living in a state society ?

Which groups most ?

Which groups least ?

What can those groups do to improve their situation ?

In what ways is your own an imagined community ?

What rituals and institutions construct this community ?

What is the common origin story , and how is it told in ritual and monuments ?

them ?

If so , describe your experiences . What . If many postcolonial states are fragile due to the thoughts and feelings are associated with damaging effects of colonialism , what might be participation in social movements ?

done to repair the damage and enhance their . How do social movements achieve social change ?

functionality ?

What methods do they use ?

Which ones seem to . What social movements can you identify in your be most effective ?

own society ?

Have you participated in any of Bibliography Anderson , Benedict . 1983 . Imagined Communities Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism . London Verso . Arjun . 1996 . Modernity at Large Cultural Dimensions . University of Minnesota Press . Arjun . 2006 . Fear Numbers An Essay on the Geography . Duke University Press . Erin . 2019 . What Was the Arab Spring and How Did It Spread ?

National Geographic , March 29 , 2001 . States and Civilizations , Archaeology In International Encyclopedia ofthe Social and Behavioral Sciences , edited by James Wright , Basil . 1992 . The Black Man Burden Africa and the Curse ofthe . New York Times Books . Terry . 1991 . Ideology An Introduction . London Verso . Timothy . 2011 . Chiefs , and Power in the Evolution of Political Systems . Social Evolution ( 1940 . The A Description ofthe Modes and Political Institutions ofa People . Oxford Clarendon Press . Flowers , Nancy 1994 . In South America , edited by Johannes , Vol . of Encyclopedia of World Cultures , edited by David . New York Hall . Meyer , and , 1940 . African Political Systems . London Oxford University Press . Michel . 1978 . The History of Sexuality . Vol . An Introduction , translated by Robert Hurley . New York Pantheon Books . Michel . 2001 . Fearless Speech . Edited by Joseph Pearson . Los Angeles ( Michel . 2007 . Security , Territory , Population Lectures at the College de France , Edited by Michel . Translated by Graham . New York Macmillan . Martin . 2012 . and Economic Inequality and Political Power in America . Princeton , Princeton University Press . Joe . 2016 . Showdown over Oil Pipeline Becomes a National Movement for Native Washington Post , September , Elizabeth , comp . 1978 . Worlds An Anthology of Oral Histories and Historical Descriptions . Philadelphia Institute for the Study of Human Issues . Junker , Laura 2015 . Archaeology In International Encyclopedia ofthe Social and Behavioral

a Bibliography 279 Sciences , edited by James Wright , Laura 2001 . Gale Literature , Gale Literature Resource Center . Updated April 23 , Li , 2015 . Unearthing Conflict Corporate Mining , Activism , and Expertise in Peru . Duke University Press . Marlowe , Frank 2010 . The of . Berkeley University of California Press . David . 1967 . Society . Oxford Clarendon Press . Monroe , Cameron . 2013 . Power and Agency in African States . Annual . Nader , Laura . 1990 . Harmony Ideology Justice and Control in a Mountain Village . Stanford , CA Stanford University Press . 2005 . Laura Nader Speaking Out . Weekly On , January , Maxwell . 1989 . Rebellion , Revolution , and Tradition Coups in . Comparative Studies in Society and ( Holly . 2002 . Culture Sketches Case Studies in Anthropology ed . Boston . Leopold . 1963 ) 1972 . Economy . New Haven , Human Relations Area Files Press . Richards , Audrey , and Adam , 1971 . Councils in Action . Cambridge Papers in Social Anthropology . Cambridge Cambridge University Press . Service , 1962 . Primitive Social An Evolutionary Perspective . New York Random House . Weber , Max . 1946 . Politics as a In From Max Weber Essays in Sociology , edited and translated by and Wright Mills , New York Oxford University Press .