ANT 2000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Woodhenge, Food Security, Mississippian Culture
21 Dec 2017
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Module 5: civilization- early cities and states/cities before and beyond states. What is civilization: a term with ethnocentric connotations, notions of refinement, and progress, literally, living in cities , traditional hallmarks: cities, writing, craft specialization, monumental architecture, stratification, state-level government. From villages to cites: v. gordon childe- the urban revolution, characteristics of cities, large populations, public services and institutions, economic specialization, sociopolitical stratification, centralized planning and governance. Uruk, the world"s first city: by 5,500 years ago, it covered over 100 hectares with population of over 10,000 people, population eventually reached 50,000, surrounded by 7-meter-high wall with guard towers. Included a massive ziggurat: strict sociopolitical hierarchy, center of early writing. Defining the state: political institution established to manage and defend a complex, stratified society with a defined territory, states generally have authority to: make and enforce rules, levy taxes, redistribute surplus labor and wealth, use military force.
