Unit 4Ancient CivilizationsHumanities
Definition of Civilization
Dictionary meaning:
1. A society in an advanced state of social development (e.g., with complex legal and political and religious organizations)
2. The social process whereby societies achieve an advanced stage of development and organization
3. (archeology) a particular society at a particular time and place
4. The quality of excellence in thought and manners and taste
Philosophical meaning
Popular usage defines "civilization" along these lines: "an advanced state of human society, in which a high level of culture, science, industry and government have been reached." This definition is problematic for archeologists, anthropologists, and historians, because it contains an overt value judgment that civilization is better, more advanced, and superior to other forms of social organization.
Yet we know that some aspects of civilization seem in our judgment quite negative; large-scale warfare, slavery, coerced tribute, epidemic disease, and the subordination of women may come to mind. One renowned contemporary scholar, Jared Diamond, has even called agriculture leading to civilization "the worst mistake humans made in the history of the human race."3
Serious students of archaeology, anthropology, and history use a technical definition of civilization that describes without conveying value judgments. Civilizations, in this technical sense, are a specific type of human community: large, complex societies based on domestication of plants, animals, and people, plus other typical characteristics. (Culture is everything about a human community, its knowledge, beliefs, and practices; civilizations are a particular kind of culture.)
What are the characteristics of civilization carefully defined? The most influential theorist of civilization in the Western world during the first half of the twentieth century was a professor of prehistoric archeology, V. Gordon Childe (1892-1957), who taught at Edinburgh University from 1927-46 and at London University 1946-56. Childe's checklist for what constitutes a civilization still influences our thinking; here is his list summarized briefly:
§ Large urban centers
§ Full-time specialist occupations
§ Primary producers of food paying surpluses to deity or ruler
§ Monumental architecture
§ Ruling class exempt from manual labor
§ System for recording information
§ Development of exact, practical sciences
§ Monumental art
§ Regular importation of raw materials
§ Interdependence of classes (peasants, craftspeople, rulers)
§ State religion/ideology
§ Persistent state structures4