Introduction

Political anthropology looks at where human hierarchy comes from. Have there ever been any societies where everyone was equal? And if so, why and how? Is the left wing dream of human political equality something that is possible? Or is it ever doomed to fail because hierarchy is so deep in our lobster, chimpanze, monkey, man, diana? As we'll see, hierarchy and equality are all about bargaining power. Who has it, who knows they have it, and who knows how to use it.