TEST 3 2013.3.9雅思阅读真题赏析
READING PASSAGE 1
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on Reading Passage 1 below.
Classifying Societies
Although humans have established many types of societies throughout history, sociologists and anthropologists tend to classify different societies according to the degree to which different groups within a society have unequal access to advantages such as resources, prestige or power, and usually refer to four basic types of societies. From least to most socially complex they are clans, tribes, chiefdoms and states.
Clan
These are small-scale societies of hunters and gatherers, generally of fewer than 100 people, who move seasonally to exploit wild (undomesticated) food resources. Most surviving hunter-gatherer groups are of this kind, such as the Hadza of Tanzania or the San of southern Africa. Clan members are generally kinsfolk, related by descent or marriage. Clans lack formal leaders, so there are no marked economic differences or disparities in status among their members.
Because clans are composed of mobile groups of hunter-gatherers, their sites consist mainly of seasonally occupied camps, and other smaller and more specialised sites. Among the latter are kill or butchery sites—locations where large mammals are killed and sometimes butchered—and work sites, where tools are made or other specific activities carried out. The base camp of such a group may give evidence of rather insubstantial dwellings or temporary shelters, along with the debris of residential occupation.
Tribe
These are generally larger than mobile hunter-gatherer groups, but rarely number more than a few thousand, and their diet or subsistence is based largely on cultivated plants and domesticated animals. Typically, they are settled farmers, but they may be nomadic with a very different, mobile economy based on the intensive exploitation of livestock. These are generally multi-community societies, with the individual communities integrated into the larger society through kinship ties. Although some tribes have officials and even a “capital” or seat of government, such officials lack the economic base necessary for effective use of power.
The typical settlement pattern for tribes is one of settled agricultural homesteads or villages. Characteristically, no one settlement dominates any of the others in the region. Instead, the archaeologist finds evidence for isolated, permanently occupied houses or for permanent villages. Such villages may be made up of a collection of free-standing houses, like those of the first farms of the Danube valley in Europe. Or they may be clusters of buildings grouped together, for example, the pueblos of the American Southwest, and the early farming village or small town of Çatalhöyük in modern Turkey.
Chiefdom
These operate on the principle of ranking—differences in social status between people. Different lineages (a lineage is a group claiming descent from a common ancestor) are graded on a scale of prestige, and the senior lineage, and hence the society as a whole, is governed by a chief. Prestige and rank are determined by how closely related one is to the chief, and there is no true stratification into classes. The role of the chief is crucial.
Often, there is local specialisation in craft products, and surpluses of these and of foodstuffs are periodically paid as obligation to the chief. He uses these to maintain his retainers, and may use them for redistribution to his subjects. The chiefdom generally has a center of power, often with temples, residences of the chief and his retainers, and craft specialists. Chiefdoms vary greatly in size, but the range is generally between about 5000 and 20,000 persons.
Early State
These preserve many of the features of chiefdoms, but the ruler (perhaps a king or sometimes a queen) has explicit authority to establish laws and also to enforce them by the use of a standing army. Society no longer depends totally upon kin relationships: it is now stratified into different classes. Agricultural workers and the poorer urban dwellers form the lowest classes, with the craft specialists above, and the priests and kinsfolk of the ruler higher still. The functions of the ruler are often separated from those of the priest: palace is distinguished from temple. The society is viewed as a territory owned by the ruling lineage and populated by tenants who have an obligation to pay taxes. The central capital houses a bureaucratic administration of officials; one of their principal purposes is to collect revenue (often in the form of taxes and tolls) and distribute it to government, army and craft specialists. Many early states developed complex redistribution systems to support these essential services.
This rather simple social typology, set out by Elman Service and elaborated by William Sanders and Joseph Marino, can be criticised, and it should not be used unthinkingly. Nevertheless, if we are seeking to talk about early societies, we must use words and hence concepts to do so. Service’s categories provide a good framework to help organise our thoughts.
Questions 1-7
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1 There’s little economic difference between members of a clan.
2 The farmers of a tribe grow a wide range of plants.
3 One settlement is more important than any other settlements in a tribe.
4 A member’s status in a chiefdom is determined by how much land he owns.
5 There are people who craft goods in chiefdoms.
6 The king keeps the order of a state by using an army.
7 Bureaucratic officers receive higher salaries than other members.
Questions 8-13
Answer the questions below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet.
8 What are made at the clan work sites?
9 What is the other way of life for tribes besides settled farming?
10 How are Çatalhöyük’s housing units arranged?
11 What does a chief give to his subjects as rewards besides crafted goods?
12 What is the largest possible population of a chiefdom?
13 Which group of people is at the bottom of an early state but higher than the farmers?
Reading Passage 1. Classifying Societies
词汇详解
classify v. 分类;把……列为密件(class除了大家熟悉的“班级”的意思外,还有“等级,种类”的意思。例如,在生物学中,class就指“纲”。所以classify就有“分门别类”的意思。在雅思阅读中还有一种分类题,题目中就有“Classify the following information as referring to”这样的要求。此外,如果文件比较机密,需要单独分类,那么就会归入机密级别“classified”。)
establish v. 建立,创建(该词是由前缀e“进入”、词根stable“稳定”以及后缀ish组成。)
sociology n. 社会学(词根socio代表“社会”,ology代表“学科”。)
anthropology n. 人类学(词根anthropo代表“人类”,ology代表“学科”。研究人类学的人经常说anthropology是覆盖面最广的学科“has the widest coverage”,因为只要是和人类相关的内容,没有人类学家不研究的。该学科也有诸多分支“branches”,例如:physical anthropology主要研究人体;anatomy也就是研究人体解剖;cultural anthropology主要研究人类文化;social anthropology主要研究人类社会等。)
unequal adj. 不平等的;不相称的
prestige n. 威望,声望
complex adj. 复杂的,合成的 n. 综合体(同义词有complicated、intricate、involved和knotty,但是这些词汇各有侧重。complex指复杂的不可避免“unavoidable result of a necessary combining”,但这并不意味失败“does not imply a fault or failure”,例如:a complex recipe。complicated则强调问题理解、解决或解释上的困难“great difficulty in understanding, solving, or explaining”,例如:complicated legal procedures。intricate则指不同部分之间互相交错到几乎无法分别掌握的地步“different parts are interlaces as to make it nearly impossible to follow or grasp them separately”,例如:an intricate web of deceit。involved通常指极端的复杂且经常杂乱无章“extreme complication and often disorder”,例如:a rambling, involved explanation。knotty则指复杂和杂乱的情况使得问题解决或理解近乎不可能“suggests complication and entanglement that make solution or understanding improbable”,例如:knotty ethical questions。)
clan n. 宗族;氏族;大家族;宗派(在家族、氏族中通常有着祖先崇拜“ancestor worship”,那些早期祖先的物件也通常被神化“deify”。)
tribe n. 部落,部族(中文成语“一丘之貉”的英文就翻译成“jackals of the same tribe”。)
chiefdom n. 首领的地位,首领的权威;酋邦(该词来自chief“酋长”。英文中有句俗是“too many chiefs and not enough Indians”,意思就是说“大家都争着做领导,而没有人愿意做小兵”。)
state n. 国家;州;状况,情况 v. 规定;陈述,声明(state表示“国家”时,和country以及nation的侧重点完全不同。country强调的是土地及土地上的一切,包括山川河流、丰富的物产以及生活在这里的人民,但不包括政府。例如:I love my country, but I hate the government。nation则强调的是具有共同祖先、文化、语言的一群人。而state则主要指政治体制、政府,例如:police state、nation-state、city-state等。police state中文翻译过来就是“警察国家”,通俗地讲就是用警察或秘密警察来维持国家秩序和统治,通常制造白色恐怖,实施暴政,粗暴地干涉人们生活的社会,是一个贬义词。nation-state指的是“单一民族国家”,有一个相对单一的民族自己统治自己。city-state就是“由一个城市建立的国家”,自己管理自己,尤其是古希腊的城邦。当然,今天也有一些这样的国家,例如新加坡“Singapore”、迪拜“Dubai”等。在口语中,人们也简单地把美国称为“The States”。)
scale n. 规模;比例;级别;鱼鳞 v. 测量;刮……鳞片(在口语里关于scale的表达有很多,例如:scale up和scale down,分别指“使变大”和“使变小”。off the scale则指“超出正常标准”,可以是好事,也可以是坏事。例如:China was just off the scale, hard to get your head round. 中国超出了我的想象,让人难以形容。Indeed, sovereign debt levels remain off the scale and unemployment continues to inch upward across the board. 实际上,主权债务水平依然高得离谱,失业率也在继续小幅攀升。)
seasonal adj. 季节的,季节性的;周期性的
exploit v. 开采,开发;利用;剥削(exploit表示“利用”时相当于utilise,是一个中性词,例如:exploit one’s talents。但是作为“剥削”使用时则是一个彻头彻尾的贬义词。)
undomesticated adj. 未驯服的,未驯化的(来自形容词domestic,而domestic又来自于拉丁语的domus,是“房子”的意思,所以domestic的意思就是“家里的,家庭的”,进一步延伸为“内部的”。例如:domestic cat家猫。domesticate的意思就是“使成为家庭的一部分”,主要指“驯化动物或植物”。)
kinsfolk n. 亲属,亲戚,亲人(相当于relative,同义词还有blood、clan、kin、family、lineage等。)
descent n. 下降;血统;斜坡(该词来自descend,其中前缀de代表“减少,移除”,词根scend代表“攀爬climb”,所以descend的字面意思很明显,就是“下降”。与该词根相关的词汇还有:ascend上升;transcend超越;condescend屈尊等。)
disparity n. 不同;不等;不一致(来自形容词disparate“完全不同的”。)
mobile adj. 移动的;流动的;易变的(手机就是mobile phone,中国移动就叫做China Mobile。作形容词表示“移动的”的意思时,相当于movable、portable。该词还可以表示“易变的”,例如:mobile face“多变的脸”。)
consist v. 由……组成;存在于(该词作为“组成,构成”时,经常用在consist of这样的词组中,而且是主动语气,例如:The search engine mainly consists of three parts. 搜索引擎主要是由三个部分组成。consist表示“存在于”时,等同于lie in,例如:Liberty consists in the absence of obstructions. 自由在于没有阻碍。)
camp n. 营地;阵营;兵营 v. 宿营,露营(camping就是“露营活动”了,campsite是“露营地”,camp fire就是营地的“篝火”。camp作为“阵营”时有这样一个说法:have a foot in both camps,相当于中文的“脚踏两条船,两面讨好”。)
latter adj. 后者的;较后的(the latter是“后者”,the former就是“前者”。在英语中这样的指代很多,考生一定要弄清楚这些指代分别指的是什么。)
butchery n. 屠场;肉贩(来自名词butcher“屠夫”。其实butcher也可以作动词使用,意思是“屠宰,屠杀”。英语中有一个习语叫做“as fit as a butcher’s dog”,就是形容某人“极其健康”。)
mammal n. 哺乳动物(来自于拉丁语mamma,意思是“乳房”。)
insubstantial adj. 无实体的,无实质的,非实在的(该词是由否定前缀in和substantial构成的。substantial的意思是“大量的,牢固的,实质的”。人们常说的“巨大进步”,英文中就叫做“substantial improvement”。)
dwelling n. 住处,处所,寓所(来自动词dwell“居住,住”。住在象牙塔里,人们就常说成“dwell in an ivory tower”。)
temporary adj. 临时的,暂时的(词根tempor来自于拉丁语tempus,意思就是“时间”。)
debris n. 碎片,残骸
residential adj. 住宅的,适于作住宅的;与居住有关的
subsistence n.存活,生存;生计(来自动词subsist“维持生活,生存下去”,中文中“靠……生存下去”的英文表达就是“subsist on something”,例如:We can barely subsist on this amount of money. We need more! 我们仅靠着这一点点钱维持生计。我们需要更多!)
cultivate v. 耕作,种植;栽培(该词词根cult来自于拉丁语单词cultus,意思是“培育”。考生熟悉的culture也来自于这个单词,culture除了“文化”的意思外,还有“种植,培育”的意思,例如:aquaculture水产养殖;aviculture鸟类养殖;apiculture蜜蜂养殖;horticulture 园艺;floriculture养花等,在生物学上甚至还可以指微生物的“培养液,培养基”。)
nomadic adj. 游牧的;流浪的(nomad是名词,意思是“游牧的人”。所谓游牧就是没有固定居所,哪里能生存就往哪里去,或者漫无目的地游荡“roam aimlessly”。早期人类过的就是一种游牧生活,到处搜寻食物“forage”和狩猎“hunt”,后来人类学会了驯化植物和动物“domesticate plants and animals”,这时农业和畜牧业诞生了,人们便settle下来了。)
intensive adj. 加强的;密集的
livestock n. 家畜,牲畜
integrate v. 使一体化,使整合,合并(该词来自于拉丁语单词integer,就是“whole, entire的意思”。)
kinship n. 亲属关系(来自名词kin,意思就是“亲戚”。在英语中有这样的一些表达:kith and kin,意思是“朋友和亲人”,kith是较老的对朋友的称呼。one’s next of kin指的是“某人最直系、最亲近的亲戚”,或者叫做“近亲”。)
pattern n. 模式;花样,图案;榜样,典范 v. 模仿;形成图案(pattern something after something指的是“仿照……的样子建造,仿制”。)
homestead n.宅地;田产(指的是“房子和相连的土地”,通常是祖辈上留下来的。)
isolate v. 使隔离,使孤立
permanent adj. 的,永恒的,不变的 n. 烫发(同义词有:ceaseless、dateless、deathless、endless、eternal、immortal、everlasting、perpetual等。permanent作“烫发”时常用简写形式“perm”,例如:She got her hair permed at the salon.)
cluster n. 丛;簇;群 v. 丛生;群聚(英语中“cluster around…”和“cluster together”是常见的固定搭配,分别指“簇拥在……的周围”和“簇拥在一起”,相当于“bunch around…”和“bunch together”。)
pueblo n. 印第安人村庄
ranking n. 社会地位;顺序(国外学校或大学的排名就叫做“school/university ranking”。英国大学最权威的排名每年由The Sunday Times发布在https://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/University_Guide/。而美国大学最权威的排名由US News & World Report发布在https://www.usnews.com/rankings。)
lineage n. 血统,世系
ancestor n. 祖先,祖宗(来自动词antecede“先前,先行”,其中前缀ante代表“在……之前”,cede代表“行走”,所以该词字面意思就是“走在前面”;antecessor就是“前任者,前辈”。中文有一种说法叫做“光宗耀祖”,英文就可以翻译成“to bring honor to one’s ancestors”。)
hence adv. 因此;从此
stratification n. 层化;分层(来自名词stratum“岩层,社会阶层”。值得一提的是stratum的复数形式是strata。stratify就是“使分层”,stratification就是stratify的名词形式。该词近义词有caste、order、class等。)
specialisation n. 特别化;专门化
craft n. 技术,手艺,技艺;狡诈 v. 手工制作;精巧地制作
surplus adj. 过剩的;多余的;n. 剩余额;顺差;盈余(该词由super和plus组合而成,其意不言自明了。同义词有:overflow、overplus、plethora、redundancy、superfluity、excess、surfeit等。)
foodstuff n. 食物,食品,粮食
periodical n. 期刊;杂志 adj. 周期的,定期的(period本身的意思就是“周期”,所以periodical就有“周期的,定期的”意思。periodical作为“期刊”的意思也很常用。期刊的类别有很多,有学术研究期刊“scholarly and research journals”,还有行业期刊“professional, trade and industry journals”,最后还有大众杂志“popular magazines”与报纸“newspapers”。如果考生关注雅思考试的文章来源,就会发现有相当一部分的A类阅读文章来自于New Scientist杂志,建议考生将其作为泛读材料使用。)
obligation n. 义务,责任(来自动词oblige“强制,强迫”。英语中有很多关于oblige的表达,例如:oblige someone to do something就是“要求某人做某事”。)
maintain v. 保持,维持;抚养,赡养(该词由manu和tain构成,其中manu代表“手”,tain代表“持有”。汽车的维修和保养就叫做“maintenance”。)
retainer n. 家臣,侍从(来自动词retain“持有,保留”。由词根tain组成的词汇还有:sustain 维持,支撑;attain获得,获取;contain包含;detain拘留等。)
redistribution n. 重新分配
vary v. 变化;不同(该词在图表作文中用处颇大,词组“vary between…and …”就可以代表“两者之间的波动”,例如:The daytime temperatures vary between 80 and 90 degrees. 日间气温在80度与90度之间波动。)
feature n. 特征,特点;容貌,面貌;故事片 v. 以……为特色;由……主演(电影海报或介绍中经常会出现这个词,这里的feature就是“……做主演”。产品介绍和广告中也经常会出现“features…”,这里就是说该产品有什么特色。)
explicit adj. 明确的;详述的;不隐瞒的(该词来自动词explicate“解释,说明”。它的反义词是implicit“含蓄的”。implicit来自动词implicate“牵涉,涉及”。)
enforce v. 强迫人服从;实施,执行;加强(该词字面意思很清楚,en“进入”,force“力”,所以enforce就是“执行,实施”的意思了。那些执法队伍、公安、城管之类的都是“law enforcers”;说某人是执法工作人员,就可以说他“work in the law enforcement”。)
distinguish v. 区分,辨别;引人注目(在重要的场合中,尊敬的来宾的英文表达就是“distinguished guests”。作“区分”时,表达区别A与B,人们常用词组“distinguish A from B”和“distinguish between A and B”。)
tenant n.房客;佃户(英语中有一句俗语叫做“An empty house is better than a bad tenant.”字面意思就是“空房子比坏房客强”。)
bureaucratic adj. 官僚的,官僚主义的(来自名词bureau“局,办事处”。该词最初指的是一种“写字台,办公桌”,可能早期在欧洲只有政府才有这样的桌子,所以后来就用来指政府的局或机关了。美国的FBI就是“Federal Bureau of Investigation联邦调查局”,中国的公安局叫做“The Bureau of Public Security”。)
principal adj. 最重要的;主要的 n. 首长;校长;主要演员,主角(该词作为“主要的,首要的”时,同义词有很多,例如:arch、capital、cardinal、central、chief、dominant、key、leading、primal、primary、paramount等。principal作为“校长”时,通常指的是中小学的校长,大学校长一般叫做“president”。)
revenue n. 岁入,税收,收入
toll n. 通行费;长途电话费;钟声 v. 鸣钟(高速公路不收费就是“toll free”,收费公路就是“toll roads”,进出高速公路都有toll gate“收费站”,toll booth里会有人发卡和收费。toll-free telephone number是“免费电话”。当toll作为“鸣钟”时,常搭配的说法是“death toll”,指的是“死亡人数”,例如:The estimated death toll could eventually reach 240. 当局估计遇难人数最终可能达240人。)
typology n. 类型学;象征主义,象征论(该词是由type和ology构成,所以字面意思就是“不同类型的学问”了。另外一个单词topography“地形学”与其长相相似,但是也很好区分,因为它是由top加上表示“绘画、书写”的graphy组成,所以字面意思就是“绘制表面的样子”,再进一步延伸就是“地形学”了。)
elaborate v. 详细制定;详尽阐述 adj. 复杂的;精心制作的(该词是由表示“出去”的前缀e加上词根labor构成,所以该词字面意思就是“制作”。对某事物进行详尽解释通常用“elaborate on something”的表达。)
framework n. 构架,框架;结构
题目详解
Questions 1-7
解答
1. 利用细节信息“clan”和“economic difference”定位于原文Clan部分的个分段落的最后一句话“there are no marked economic differences or disparities in status among their members”。原文在这里清楚地提及氏族成员间不存在明显的经济差异或地位的不同。题目信息与原文信息一致,所以正确答案为True。
2. 利用细节信息“farmers of a tribe”和所种植的“plants”定位于原文Tribe部分的个分段落。虽然这里提及部落的食物主要来源于耕种的作物和驯化的牲畜(their diet or subsistence is based largely on cultivated plants and domesticated animals),但是并未提及农民种植的作物种类或者是否种植了各种不同的作物。题目信息在原文信息的基础上无法判断,所以正确答案为Not Given。
3. 利用细节信息“settlement”和“tribe”以及顺序性原则定位于原文Tribe部分的第二个分段落的第二句话“Characteristically, no one settlement dominates any of the others in the region”。原文明显提及没有任何一种定居形式比其他定居形式更重要,而题目却说有一种定居形式比其他任何形式都重要。题目信息与原文信息明显相反,所以正确答案为False。
4. 利用细节信息“chiefdom”和“status”定位于原文Chiefdom部分的个分段落的第三句话“Prestige and rank are determined by how closely related one is to the chief…”。这里原文明显提及地位(原文的“rank”对应题目的“status”)是由个人与酋长(chief)的亲近程度或关系所决定的,而题目却说是由成员所拥有的土地数量决定的(how much land he owns)。题目信息与原文信息不相符,所以正确答案为False。
5. 利用细节信息“chiefdom”和“craft goods”以及顺序性原则定位于原文Chiefdom部分的第二个分段落的句话“Often, there is local specialisation in craft products…”。原文的“local specialisation”就是指专门生产“craft products”的职业或人员。题目信息与原文信息一致,所以正确答案为True。
6. 利用细节信息“king”、“state”和“army”定位于原文Early State部分的个分段落的句话“the ruler (perhaps a king or sometimes a queen) has explicit authority to establish laws and also to enforce them by the use of a standing army”。这里的“establish laws”以及“enforce them”对应题目中的“keeps the order”,而且都是通过利用“army”来实现。题目信息与原文信息一致,所以正确答案为True。
7. 利用细节信息“Bureaucratic officers”和“salaries”以及顺序性原则定位于原文Early State部分的个分段落,但是这里并没有提及“Bureaucratic officers”的收入情况,而只是提到“The central capital houses a bureaucratic administration of officials; one of their principal purposes is to collect revenue...”,也就是他们的职能。题目信息在原文信息的基础上无法判断,所以正确答案为Not Given。
Questions 8-13
解答
8. 利用细节信息“clan”和“work sites”定位于原文Clan部分的第二个分段落的第二句话“…work sites, where tools are made or other specific activities carried out”。原文这里明显提到在“clan work sites”中制作的东西是tools,所以正确答案是tools。
9. 利用细节信息“tribes”和“settled farming”定位于原文Tribe部分的个分段落的第二句话“Typically, they are settled farmers, but they may be nomadic with a very different, mobile economy…”。原文这里提到部落中最典型的生活方式是固定的农耕,除此以外也可以是游牧的(nomadic)的生活,所以正确答案为nomadic。
10. 利用细节信息“Çatalhöyük”和顺序性原则定位于原文Tribe部分的第二个分段落的最后一句话“Or they may be clusters of buildings grouped together, for example…the early farming village or small town of Çatalhöyük in modern Turkey”。原文这里明显提及Çatalhöyük的房子是“grouped together”,所以正确答案为grouped/grouped together。
11. 利用细节信息“chief”和“crafted goods”定位于原文Chiefdom部分的第二个分段落的前两句话“Often, there is local specialisation in craft products, and surpluses of these and of foodstuffs are periodically paid as obligation to the chief. He uses these to maintain his retainers, and may use them for redistribution to his subjects”。原文这里明显提及多余的(surpluses)“craft products”和“foodstuffs”被定期地进贡给酋长,而酋长可能再把这些东西分发给自己的臣民(use them for redistribution to his subjects),所以正确答案为foodstuffs。
12. 利用细节信息“population”和顺序性原则定位于原文Chiefdom部分的第二个分段落的最后一句话“Chiefdoms vary greatly in size, but the range is generally between about 5000 and 20,000 persons”。原文提及人口规模在5000到20,000之间,所以正确答案为20,000。
13. 利用细节信息“early state”和“farmers”定位于原文Early State部分的个分段落的第三句话“Agricultural workers and the poorer urban dwellers form the lowest classes, with the craft specialists above…”。原文这里很明显地可以看出,农民和贫困的市民构成阶层,在他们上面的是“craft specialists”,所以正确答案为craft specialists。
参考译文
社会分类
尽管人类在历史的不同时期建立了多种不同类型的社会,但社会学家和人类学家仍倾向于按照社会中不同群组可以接触到诸如资源、地位或权力的不同程度把不同的社会划分为四种基本类型。从最简单到最复杂依次为氏族、部落、酋邦和邦国。
氏族
氏族是由狩猎者和采集者组成的小规模社会,通常不超过百人,他们通过季节性的迁徙来开发和利用野生(未经驯化的)食物资源。大多数目前尚存的采猎者族群都是这种社会形式,例如坦桑尼亚的哈扎族或非洲南部的桑族。氏族的成员通常是通过血缘或婚姻联系在一起的亲属族人。这些氏族缺乏正式的领导,所以在氏族成员间也就没有明显的经济差异或地位的不同。
由于氏族是由迁徙的采猎者组成的,他们的活动场所就主要有季节性驻扎的营地和其他小一点但有特殊作用的地方。后者包括猎杀或屠杀大型哺乳动物的猎杀场或屠宰场以及制作工具或进行其他特定活动的工作场地。这样一个族群的(活动)大本营及其居住的遗迹也许能够证明他们没有真正意义上的居所或只有临时居所。
部落
部落一般要比采猎者的群体大,但是也不过几千人,他们的食物主要来自于种植的农作物和驯化的家畜。他们通常是典型的定居下来的农民,但是他们也可能过着一种非常不同的基于牲畜密集利用的移动经济式的游牧生活。部落通常是多群体社会,由不同的单一群体通过血缘关系融入到一个更大的社会中去。尽管有些部落存在官员,甚至“首都”或政府所在地,但这些官员缺乏有效地运用权力的经济基础。
部落最典型的定居方式是固定的农业庄园或村落。比较有特点的是,在特定的区域内,没有任何一个定居形式超过其他定居形式而占据主要地位。相反,考古学家发现,要么是单独的定居式庄园,要么是定居式村落。其中,这些村落可能是由一些独立的房子组成,例如欧洲多瑙河流域的最早期的农庄;或者它们可能是由集群的房子构成,例如美国西南部的印第安人村落和当今土耳其Çatalhöyük的早期农业村庄或小镇。
酋邦
这种社会形式依靠等级顺序(即人与人之间的不同社会地位)的原则运转。不同的家族(家族是一群声称有着共同祖先的人)按照声望来划分等级,并且地位高的家族和该社会整体都是由一个酋长所统治。声望和等级地位都是由个人与酋长的远近关系所决定,而且并不存在真正的阶级分化。酋长的角色至关重要。
通常,酋邦社会中有自己专门的工艺品的制造与生产链,剩余的工艺制品和食物会被定期地进贡给酋长。酋长则利用这些贡品来维持自己的家臣,而且也可能将它们重新分配给自己的臣民。酋邦通常有一个包含了庙宇、酋长及其家臣和工艺品工匠住宅的权力中心。酋邦的规模各不相同,但是通常在五千到两万人之间。
雏形邦国
这种社会形式保留了许多酋邦的特征,但是其统治者(可能是一个国王或者有时候是一个女王)拥有明确的权力来制定律法,并通过一支常规军队来实施它们。社会不再完全依靠血缘关系来维持:社会已经分化成不同的阶层。农民和更贫穷的市民构成了阶层,工艺品工匠高一个等级,祭司和统治者的家族则更高一等。统治者的职能和祭司的职能通常是区分开来的:宫殿与庙宇也有所不同。社会被看成是一个被统治者家族所拥有的领土,而在这片领土上,居住着有义务缴纳赋税的子民。中央首都拥有一个由官员组成的官僚行政机构;他们存在的主要目的之一就是收取收益(通常以赋税或捐税的形式出现),然后分配给政府、军队和工艺品工匠。许多早期的邦国构建了复杂的分配体系来维系这些必要的服务。
这个由埃尔曼·塞维斯提出,并由威廉·桑德斯和约瑟夫·马里诺详尽阐述的简单社会分类法有可以批判的地方,而且它不应该被轻率地使用。然而,如果我们企图研究早期社会,我们必须使用其相关的术语和概念。塞维斯的分类为我们提供了良好的能帮助我们组织思想的框架。