Early Intermediate Period: Mosely Vs. Malpass

In their discussions of the rise and fall of different social organizations and civilizations, Mosely tends to focus on environmental changes while Malpass emphasizes sociopolitical forces. As they describe the changing cultural forces of the era, Moseley utilizes a straightforward voice and often mentions specific dimensions and other numerical data pertaining to archaeological sites to support his arguments, while Malpass uses a slightly more conversational tone and often cites the work, theories, and data of other archaeologists and authors throughout his discussions of the Early Intermediate Period. Mosely’s chapter reveals his bias towards an evolutionary view of cultural change, in which development is influenced by the natural environment in which the culture has grown, while Malpass’ chapter reveals his bias towards a more …show more content…
In his opening sentence, this view is already apparent: “As the influence of the Chavín religion waned during the period after 200 B.C.E., cultures in the area began to develop more individuality in politics, art, and religion” (Malpass, 2016, p. 116). This focus on the development of leadership, religion, and the interactions of individual cultures becomes the basis for his discussions of the Early Intermediate cultures. This is again evident in his reasoning for the fall of the Moche: while he does mention the droughts focused upon by Moseley in passing, he then states that, “Perhaps the rulers who had tied their power to the supernatural forces that had been so benign were unable to maintain their control when environmental and social crises appeared” (Malpass, 2016, p. 128). While he does acknowledge the potential effects of environmental change in causing instability, he credits the accompanying unraveling of leadership with a higher importance in the Moche