A Study On Christopher Boehm’s Theory Of The Origin Of Egality

Christopher Boehm’s theory of the origin of egality in human society can be generalized as following:first, the ultimate cause of the formation and maintain of egalitarian society is the three kinds of human nature:inclination to dominance, that to submission and that to dislike being dominated, which make human always living in societies of either orthodox hierarchy or reversed one, and the dominators and the dominated have been fighting against each other all the time. Second, the immediate cause of the formation and maintain of egalitarian society is an intentional leveling mechanism, namely, the egalitarian behavior of the subordinates. In small human societies prior to the appearance of state, the ordinary members living in the mobile foraging bands and the sedentary tribes gave up their little chances of becoming the chief in order to defend their political autonomy and, obtain and keep an equality with others. They united with each other under the guidance of egalitarian morals and values, formed a macro moral community, and kept watch on, opposed, or even punished the despotic leaders who abused their power and bullied other people, or the political upstarts who had strong desire to power, and created and maintained the equal or approximately equal interpersonal relation within the community finally.