In this episode we cover chapter 1 of David Graeber & David Wengrow’s book The Dawn of Everything, entitled Farewell to Humanity’s Childhood; or Why This isn’t a Book About the Origins of Inequality.

In doing so, we look at the following:

How the book’s underlying thesis: that human social structure is ultimately a matter of choice and experimentation, is fundamentally incoherent, and how this idea sets us up for future dramatic political failures, similar to those of Occupy Wall Street or the Great Peasant’s Revolt of 1381.

What the standard narrative of human origins actually is, vs. the caricature elevator pitch version that Graeber & Wengrow claim to be debunking.

Why most anthropologists believe that human beings began as egalitarian hunter-gatherers despite knowing about all of the evidence that Graeber & Wengrow present in order to argue the otherwise.

How and why Graeber & Wengrow flush down the toilet the analytical tools that they need in order to answer their own questions about how we got stuck in dominance hierarchies.

How social structure actually works.

How Graeber & Wengrow’s arguments are great material for right wing talking points.

Why there is room for deliberate social change in a world where social structure is largely a matter of conditions and relative bargaining power, rather than a matter of “choice”.


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0:00 Intro:
0:25 Why is it important to critique this book? Bad theory leads to political failure
1:39 Hierarchical societies always have bad political theory
4:28 The 1381 Peasant Revolt: how bad theory led to political failure
6:03 Occupy Walls Street: how bad theory led to political failure
13:35 The success and failure of The Dawn of Everything
15:06 The incoherent message of Dawn of Everything: social structure is a choice
18:51 The Dawn of Everything as Billy Madison’s Quiz Speech
20:04 Filling in the gaps of Dawn of Everything

21:03 Begin Chapter 1: Hobbes vs Rousseau vs Graeber & Wengrow
24:07 Hobbes vs. Rousseau in contemporary anthropology
26:20 Graeber & Wengrow vs. Big Bird and Dora the Explorer
31:14 Graeber & Wengrow vs. Revolutionary Anthropology
34:38 The standard narrative of human origins
37:31 Why is egalitarian origins the dominant narrative?
42:31 Why social structure changes or remains stable
49:01 The Tea Time of Everything: Why Graeber & Wengrow begin 40,000 years ago in Europe
50:17 When and why do people experiment with social structure?
52:10 Arguments against and for egalitarian origins
53:25 How the balance of power changes with agriculture over time
56:00 The right wing implications of Graeber & Wengrow’s arguments
1:02:59 Fear of materialism: why Graeber & Wengrow chose to make a mess
1:04:28 Hope for the future
1:05:19 Benjamin Franklin’s Letter
1:07:44 Next time and outtro

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