Marriage and Inequality in Classless Societies

Download or read book Marriage and Inequality in Classless Societies written by Jane Fishburne Collier and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 1993-02-01 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study presents three ideal-typic models for analyzing inequality in kin-based, non-stratified societies that are commonly described as bands, tribes or ranked societies (but not chiefdoms). Each model discusses the organization of inequality associated with a particular way of validating marriages. The book is a serious and complex attempt to understand the bases and dynamics of inequality in classless societies. It offers a sophisticated argument for the position that there is a culturally-structured basis for women's universal subordination. An important strength of Collier's theoretical interpretation is that it makes the case for universality of subordination without slipping into biological reductionism.