David Wengrow

David Wengrow, an esteemed archaeologist and anthropologist, delves into the complexities of ancient societies and the roots of slavery in conversation with the hosts. He challenges conventional beliefs about hierarchy, suggesting prior egalitarian cultures existed even before agriculture. Wengrow unveils fascinating findings from archaeological sites, like the comfort of pyramid builders, and sheds light on the intricate labor dynamics of ancient Egypt. His insights weave a rich tapestry, questioning what we think we know about history and social structures.

The Wrong Boys are joined by David Wengrow to talk about changing human history (starting with the past) and his new book, co-authored with the late David Graeber, on myths about the origins of human society, why both Hobbes and Rousseau are wrong, and why human history may be less set in stone, and more full of playful, hopeful possibilities, than we tend to assume.Support our show on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/srslywrong Links:Buy “The Dawn of Everything”: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/616885/the-dawn-of-everything-by-david-graeber-and-david-wengrow/9780771049828How to Change the Course of Human History: https://www.eurozine.com/change-course-human-history/Hiding in Plain Sight: Democracy’s indigenous origins in the Americas: https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/democracy/hiding-plain-sightGraeber and Wengrow on the Myth of the Stupid Savage (Video – 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvUzdJSK4x8David Graeber & David Wengrow Teach-Out (Video – 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNbWlD-lqYQGraeber/Wengrow: Paleolithic Politics & Why It Still Matters (Video – 2015): https://vimeo.com/145285143Slavery and Its Rejection Among Foragers on the Pacific Coast of North America: A Case of Schismogenesis? (Video – 2018): https://www.college-de-france.fr/site/philippe-descola/seminar-2018-03-22-10h00.htmUnfreezing the Ice Age: The Truth about Humanity’s Deep Past (2021): https://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/oct/19/unfreezing-the-ice-age-the-truth-about-humanitys-deep-pastForget ‘Liberté’ – 17th-Century Indigenous Americans Knew a Lot More About Freedom Than Their French Colonisers (2021): https://novaramedia.com/2021/10/19/forget-liberte-17th-century-indigenous-americans-knew-a-lot-more-about-freedom-than-their-french-colonisers/Rethinking cities from the ground up (Wengrow, 2019) – https://medium.com/whose-society-whose-cohesion/rethinking-cities-from-the-ground-up-73d92059b15fCorrection: The Wrong Boys mispronounce the word “Teotihuacan” (Saying ‘Teo-teh-hoo-i-can’)- It is actually pronounced “Teo-Tiwa-Khan” (/teɪˌoʊtiːwəˈkɑːn/) Opening Theme Song by E JuneClosing Theme Song by Spam Risk:https://spamrisk.bandcamp.com/album/s-t

David Wengrow, archaeologist and co-author of The Dawn of Everything, challenges conventional narratives of human history, discussing topics such as the origins of inequality, misconceptions about the agricultural revolution, contradictions within the family unit, interpreting violence in prehistoric societies, reimagining human nature and history, and the experience of co-writing the book with David Graeber.

David Wengrow, archaeologist and UCL professor known for co-writing The Dawn of Everything, guides a lively tour of deep human history. He challenges standard rise-of-inequality stories. He highlights diverse political experiments, seasonal hierarchies, nonagricultural cities, imperial violence behind capitalism, and how Indigenous critiques reshaped Enlightenment thought.

Astra Taylor interviews archaeologist David Wengrow on The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity, his new book co-authored with the late David Graeber. Support us at Patreon.com/TheDig Check out Hannah Arendt by Samantha Rose Hill reaktionbooks.co.uk/display.asp?ISB=9781789143799

In this engaging discussion, David Wengrow, an archaeologist and co-author of The Dawn of Everything, shares groundbreaking insights into the origins of human civilization. He challenges traditional narratives, presenting archaeological evidence of complex societies long before agriculture. Wengrow and Yanis Varoufakis explore non-hierarchical urban life, rethink economic myths surrounding barter, and discuss how indigenous critiques have shaped Enlightenment thought. Their conversation invites listeners to reconsider historical assumptions and envision a more nuanced future.

David Wengrow, Professor of Comparative Archaeology and co-author of The Dawn of Everything, explores Ukraine’s six-thousand-year-old Cucuteni-Trypillia megasites. He discusses how massive, circular settlements functioned without central rulers. He questions standard tales of inevitable hierarchy and highlights participatory assemblies, ritual practices, and how these finds reshape ideas about early urban life.

We cover the first part of chapter 3 of David Graeber and David Wengrow’s book The Dawn of Everything: ”Unfreezing the Ice Age”, and we investigate the authors’ claims that human inequality has no origins based on archeology from upper paleolithic europe.    In doing so we also look at the difference between dominance hierarchy and democratic hierarchy, and what the necessary criteria are in order to establish a a dominance hierarchy.   We also discover that Graeber & Wengrow actually have no arguments for why human inequality supposedly has no origins! all music by *69 *PLEASE* SHARE AND LET PEOPLE (ESPECIALLY MATT CHRISTMAN) KNOW ABOUT THIS SERIES!! TRANSCRIPT BIBLIOGRAPHY YOUTUBE CHANNEL (live action! graphics!) RSS FEED PATREON tweeter: @worbsintowords https://archive.org/download/10.3-smurfs/10.3%20-%20SMURFS.mp3

David Wengrow, archaeologist and author exploring deep human history. He discusses prehistoric human diversity and how populations mixed. He critiques Victorian race science and modern attempts to rank ancient intelligence. He highlights North Africa’s early architectural influence and examines political innovations like sortition and ancient assemblies.

David Wengrow, an archaeologist at University College London and co-author of the bestseller 'The Dawn of Everything,' challenges the traditional narratives of human history. He discusses how our ancient ancestors were often playful and collaborative rather than brutish. The conversation delves into the complexities of early agricultural societies, critiquing the view that agriculture brought freedom. Wengrow emphasizes the need for a reimagined approach to societal structures, rooted in mutual aid and active participation, to address modern challenges.