Government during the Paleolithic Transition

Another very curious thing about Paleolithic societies is they seemed, according to Strayer, to lack a real defined form of government. They truly did not need one. Their societies were maybe 25 people large so they had no need for a well defined tribal society with different heads of state. However there was a slow transition from Paleolithic ways when agriculture was first introduced. No longer were tribes constantly roaming the wilds for food. Communities of people decided to grow food at a specific location and harvest those crops every year. This provided a unique change of perspective and thought. Strayer pointed out that different leaders were needed to protect the village and keep everything in a organized fashion. This sudden change in dynamic required that people needed to be in charge of other people for different jobs. I think it is fascinating that once people needed to settle down in one place, a primitive forms of government started to appear in societies that relied on farming for their yearly food supply as opposed to roaming the wilds following migrant animals. I would assume as societies and technology developed, the population would rise thus requiring additional infrastructure to be laid for a more advanced society. Nevertheless, we will most likely be getting to that in the next chapter so ill talk more about that later.