CHAPTER 1
Prehistoric Communal Institutions in the Middle East
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Comprehend the genesis of human beings and early societies.
OUTLINE OF CHAPTER
I. The Very Beginning
II. The Features of Prehistoric Communal Society
III. Economic Institutions and Technology
KEY TERMS
communal Society
A family
–
based collective
direct democracy
the economy
a more or less coherent system of ideas about how society works and how we should behave
within a given society
Institutions
sets of customs, laws, and norms that influence, enable, or constrain human behavior
natural selection
process whereby nature selects from the existing individuals the ones best suited for survival
under particular conditions; eventually this type of individual has the highest reproduction rate,
and over a long period of time that fact leads to changes in the species
Prehistoric
ANSWERS TO END OF CHAPTER REVIEW QUESTIONS
Comprehend the genesis of human beings and early societies.
1. How was natural selection important in the development of early humanoids?
Natural selection refers to the process in which nature selects those individuals best
2. What is the definition of a prehistoric society and why is it so difficult to learn about
these early communities?
3. What are some characteristics of early human society?
The four features of early human society include: 1) technology based on the use of early
4. What evidence is used to substantiate claims about early humans and early society?
List and explain the four basic institutions of human society.
5. List and describe the four basic features of society used as a framework for analysis in
this text. Using this framework, what are the basic features of prehistoric society?
The four basic features of society are:
6. What is an institution?
7. What is an economy?
8. What is technology? What are examples of technology in early communal societies?
Technology is the way that human beings produce goods and services. The technology of
9. What are economic institutions? What is the key economic institution in prehistoric
society?
Economic institutions are sets of relations between people doing economic activities and
10. Explain the importance of the communal group and the role of its members for ensuring
the survival of all its members.
The communal group worked collectively to obtain food and gather resources for tools to
11. Can there be more than one way a society could organize to produce and allocate what it
needs to survive and grow?
12. What are social institutions?
13. What is ideology as used in this text?
14. Give examples of ideas or systematic beliefs in early communal society.
15. We usually do not think of ideology as necessary for our day-to-day survival. In what
ways is it necessary for the survival of the members of the communal society?
16. How could prehistoric societies survive so long with little change and without major
technological advancements?
Describe the six ways in which the four basic institutions of society interacted in prehistoric
society.
17. List the six possible interactions of the four basic institutions of society. Give brief
examples of each interaction in prehistoric society.
1. Economic institutions with technology.
18. What is productivity? Why was productivity so low in prehistoric communal societies?
Productivity is the amount of output produced by each input. Productivity was low
19. What is a direct democracy? How does that differ from democracy as practiced in the
United States today?
20. What is sexist discrimination? Why was it not practical in a prehistoric society?
Sexist discrimination refers to the differential treatment of people based on prejudices or
21. What is racist discrimination? Why was it not a factor in prehistoric society?
22. What is the importance of the extended family?
The extended family was the main economic institution in prehistoric communal societies
23. Why is cooperation and collective action within the extended family so crucial for
survival?
Productivity was low due to simple technology in prehistoric communal societies. Thus,