ANTHR 206 LECTURE 17

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION PT 1

Lecture 18: Social Organization Outline

• Goals

• Framework of Reference

• Approaches and Methods

Goals

• Scale of Analysis: Macro, Meso, Micro (individual, gender roles)

• Study of distribution of wealth, prestige, and power

• Analyzing horizontal (spatial) and vertical (social stratification) aspects

• Degree of complexity in archaeological studies regarding social units

• Consideration of sex roles and gender in cultural contexts, although often not available in archaeological records

  • Family group interactions as the basic unit of social structure

  • The influence of contemporary groups on social dynamics

• Complexity in social organizations defined by:

  • The internal differentiation among societal elements

  • Research gaps in archaeological records

Archaeological Perspective

• Archaeologists must look beyond sociopolitical records due to limitations in resources:

  • Historical Records: Typically biased and incomplete (e.g., short time frame of 3000 years)

  • Ethnographies: Often biased and lacking comprehensive descriptions of non-industrialized societies; considered a relatively young science (approx. 200 years old)

• Four General Types of Societies Identified Using Historical and Ethnographic Records:

Framework of Reference

• Mobile Hunter-Gatherers (Bands)

• Segmentary Societies (Tribes)

• Chiefdoms

• States

MOBILE HUNTER-GATHERERS

• Described as the most primordial society type with a history spanning millions of years

• Characteristics:

  • Mobility: Extreme movement patterns for subsistence based on non-domesticated plants and animals, influenced by environmental and social factors

  • Egalitarian Nature: Equal access based on personal achievement (power, prestige, and wealth)

  • Economic Independence: Self-sufficient bands capable of meeting daily needs, with some reliance on social contracts between bands

  • Forms of exchange predominantly reliant on reciprocity strategies

SEGMENTARY SOCIETIES (TRIBES)

• Larger in population and geographical scope compared to hunter-gatherer bands

• Key features:

  • More permanent alliances between tribes/villages

  • Endogamous marriages seen as economic transactions (contrast with exogamous bands)

  • Sedentary lifestyle based on simple farming and animal husbandry, with some specialization and role differentiation

  • Increased competition for resources leading to potential conflict

CHIEFDOM

• Economic structure based on domestication of plants and animals

• New exchange forms emerge, emphasizing non-egalitarian redistribution

• Characterized by:

  • Larger geographical areas and economic interdependence with a central capital

  • Power is inherited and maintained within families

  • Limited potential for demographic growth

STATES

• Address limitations of previous social structures (chiefdoms and tribes) in demographic and geographical growth

• Key characteristics:

  • Limited reliance on kinship, delegating authority to professionals

  • Efficient channels for the movement of goods and wealth from peripheral areas to the center

  • Use of literacy, bureaucracy, and economic records to drive growth

  • Exchange primarily through market systems and redistribution methods

Archaeological Approach to Social Organization

• Investigating individual sites:

  • Analyzing size, activity structures, and dwelling functions

  • Settlement archaeology focusing on size and function comparisons (centers vs. satellites)

  • Study of goods flow and people movement illustrating political and social differentiation

Examination of Graves

• Analyzing grave architecture (including monumentality) and associated goods

• Investigating body treatment and spatial distribution of graves

• Review of monumental features providing insights into political and social differentiation

  • Notable opportunity for archaeologists to assign a "face" to historical records