Contents

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Acknowledgments vii
4. Preface. From Big Structures to Small ix
5. Chapter 1. Introduction: Social Action and Structures 1
6. Chapter 2. From a Small Circle of Friends to a Long Line of Rivals 26
7. Chapter 3. The Preservation of Equality through Exchange Structures 72
8. Chapter 4. The Institutionalization of Inequality: Pecking Orders 104
9. Chapter 5. The Escape from Comparability and the Genesis of Influence Structures 151
10. Chapter 6. The Short Cut to Structure with Patronage Pyramids 189
11. Chapter 7. The Institution of Transitivity and the Production of Command Structures 232
12. Chapter 8. From Pyramid to Party 283
13. Chapter 9. From Structures to Institutions 321
14. References 343
15. Index 383