Today’s episode is the first in a series of conversations about what causes human societies to fall apart and what might come next. David talks to Luke Kemp, author of Goliath’s Curse, about how we build our structures of authority and how they can fail. How were human societies organised before we had governments? What drove the creation of the first hierarchies of domination? Why did rising inequality so often lead to societal collapse? What does this teach us about the vulnerability of our own societies? Out now on PPF+: a bonus episode to accompany our recent exploration of the past, present and future of nuclear warfare in which David discusses John Hersey’s Hiroshima (1946), the definitive account of what it’s actually like to be on the receiving end of a nuclear attack. To get this and all our bonus episodes plus ad-free listening sign up to PPF+ https://www.ppfideas.com/join-ppf-plus Join us on 11th March for a joint LRB/PPF event: The Slow Death of Democracy, with Lyse Doucet, Christopher Clark and Thant Myint-U. Tickets are available now https://www.tickettailor.com/events/londonreviewofbooks/2062789 Tickets are on sale now for our new film season at the Regent Street Cinema in London – starting on 19th March with James Marriott talking to David about Whit Stillman’s Metropolitan. Details of all our film events are here https://www.ppfideas.com/events Sign up now for our free fortnightly newsletter and you'll receive our 50th edition straight to your inbox https://www.ppfideas.com/newsletters You can find out everything you need to know about this podcast – who we are, what we do, plus merch, events and full lists of our episodes and PPF+ bonus episodes on our website https://www.ppfideas.com Luke Kemp’s Goliath’s Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse is available now https://bit.ly/4aFczds Next Time: Societal Collapse – The Modern Age Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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1 hr and 10 mins