Relational origins of inequality

Transformations of credit in 16th-century England illustrate how interpersonal transactions cause changes in inequality. Despite the efforts of such outstanding scholars as Eric Wolf, Don Kalb, and Timothy Earle, inequality has lost the prominent position it once occupied among anthropological concerns. As a result, anthropologists are missing the opportunity to intervene in important debates about inequality in history and the social sciences. A primitive general theory of inequality centering on the dynamics of interpersonal relations identifies one way in which anthropological investigation can contribute to those debates.