Podcasts History History Unplugged Podcast The History of Equality, and How Close Different Civilizations Were to Attaining It

The History of Equality, and How Close Different Civilizations Were to Attaining It

Published: Dec. 12, 2023, 11 a.m.

b'The most tried-and-true method of kings or politicians justifying their hold on power is by promising equality (this was the slogan of the French Revolution, along with liberty and brotherhood). All societies promise equality (regardless of how poorly they delivery), from the dawn of humanity through the Enlightenment to today.

Equality has been reimagined continually, in the great world religions and the politics of the ancient world, by revolutionaries and socialists, Nazis and fascists, and postwar reformers and activists.

Today\\u2019s guest is Darrin McMahon, author of Equality: The History of an Elusive Idea. We trace equality\\u2019s global origins and spread from the dawn of humanity through the Enlightenment to today. Equality has been reimagined continually, in the great world religions and the politics of the ancient world, by revolutionaries and socialists, Nazis and fascists, and postwar reformers and activists.
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