Summary Of The Siuai By Marvin Harris

Main Argument and Thesis
The main point of the article is that for the majority of human existence, humans lived in egalitarian societies.

Supporting Evidence
The author, Marvin Harris, supports his main point by providing historical examples and illustrating his arguments throughout the article. For example, Harris references the Siuai when explaining big men, the !Kung when explaining political power and leadership, and the Cherokee when explaining how chiefs are integrated into societies. By providing historical examples, Harris adds credibility to his argument; each societal example is further evidence supporting his claims. Because Harris illustrates each of his arguments by either referencing a historical example or describing a general structure, the reader is able to better understand Harris’s arguments, making the
Harris then explains the structure of these smaller-scale populations and describes the importance of reciprocity within their culture. After this brief introduction, Harris explains the reciprocity-based culture in greater detail, explaining the reasoning behind cultural components. Headmen are introduced as leaders who do not carry any legitimate power within the societies. Harris then introduces the concept of freeloaders, explaining that in a society based on communal possessions, it is difficult to steal without being identified because of the small community structure. The author introduces the redistribution form of exchange, explaining that headmen-redistributors work hard and retain smaller portions of resources for themselves in order to benefit the greater society. At the close of the article, Harris explains that humans must recognize the cultural changes that have occurred over time as humans have moved away from an egalitarian