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The Collapse of Complex Societies

The Collapse of Complex Societies

£50.99

Part of New Studies in Archaeology

  • Date Published: March 1990
  • availability: Available
  • format: Paperback
  • isbn: 9780521386739

£ 50.99
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  • Any explanation of political collapse carries lessons not just for the study of ancient societies, but for the members of all complex societies in both the present and future. Dr Tainter describes nearly two dozen cases of collapse and reviews more than 2000 years of explanations. He then develops a new and far-reaching theory that accounts for collapse among diverse kinds of societies, evaluating his model and clarifying the processes of disintegration by detailed studies of the Roman, Mayan and Chacoan collapses.

    Reviews & endorsements

    'Tainter's model accommodates all levels of complexity and all kinds of evidence. It deserves to be widely read.' Antiquity

    'Tainter's is an attractive and compelling thesis, of a genre which is nearly extinct among domestic historians.' History Today

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    Product details

    • Date Published: March 1990
    • format: Paperback
    • isbn: 9780521386739
    • length: 262 pages
    • dimensions: 247 x 174 x 15 mm
    • weight: 0.536kg
    • contains: 31 b/w illus.
    • availability: Available
  • Table of Contents

    Acknowledgements
    1. Introduction to collapse
    2. The nature of complex societies
    3. The study of collapse
    4. Understanding collapse: the marginal productivity of sociopolitical change
    5. Evaluation: complexity and marginal returns in collapsing societies
    6. Summary and implications
    References
    Index.

  • Instructors have used or reviewed this title for the following courses

    • Archaeology Theory
    • Capitalism, Justice, and Sustainability
    • Civilizations and Collapse
    • Collapse: Culture and Catastrophe
    • Introduction to World Prehistory
    • Philosophy and the Environment
    • Rise and Fall of Ancient States
    • Sustainability and Community
  • Author

    Joseph Tainter

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