Evans-Pritchard and Fortes believed in an anthropology that was purer, more scholarly, more scientific than Malinowski's, at once more theoretical and more empirically validated. They saw themselves as the spear-point of an opposition to the dominant trend and as closer to the work of Radcliffe-Brown, although the divergences were not as great as they imagined. However the opposition needed to create its own programme, of research, of publications and of teaching, and that required a focus outside the London School of Economics.

Oxford seemed a possibility for both of them when Radcliffe-Brown arrived as Professor of Social Anthropology in 1937. Evans-Pritchard had already been giving lectures there for three years as Research Lecturer in African Sociology, the first post devoted to African studies in the country. However, he now wrote to Fortes saying that he felt something further could be done: ‘if I can keep afloat at Oxford you shall float as well.’ At the same time he suggests that Fortes come to Oxford from London to write up his notes and asks whether he can do this without too great a row. ‘With R-B, you, and me, we would have quite a decent nucleus for a school.’ This was the period of their most active collaboration. Plans for African Political Systems were put to the International African Institute and accepted in October of that year. Fortes sent the draft of the introduction to Evans-Pritchard which the latter rewrote ‘rather drastically’, omitted sections on the responsibilities and economic advantages of a chief, but in fact did not add many new points.