Authoritarianism and Patriarchy from Ancient Egypt to the Present: A Conversation with Kara Cooney

Recent years have witnessed a stark rise across the globe in populist leaders whose policies are implicitly, or even explicitly, authoritarian. The policies of these leaders are sometimes at odds with their populist rhetoric in that they reward the elite few at the expense of the masses. Yet this trend is not new. As far back as ancient Egypt, we see authoritarian leaders collecting and retaining wealth and power in the hands of the elite. What are the parallels between the authoritarian governments of the past and the present? How can we use the past to cast a critical eye on our own social patterns and willingness to hand over power to the few? 

In this week's episode of then & now, we sit down with Professor Kara Cooney to explore how and why authoritarian, populist leaders, from ancient Egypt to the present, gain and maintain power, and seek to understand why the many so often choose to give up power to the few. 

Dr. Kara Cooney is a professor of Egyptian Art and Architecture at UCLA. In her recent book, The Good Kings: Absolute Power in Ancient Egypt and the Modern World (National Geographic Press 2021), Kara turns to five ancient Egyptian pharaohs to understand why so many often give up power to the few and what it can mean for our future. Her current research in coffin reuse investigates the socioeconomic and political turmoil that plagued Late Bronze Age Egypt, ultimately affecting their funerary and burial practices. Results from this research will be published in a forthcoming volume, Recycling for Death (American University in Cairo Press).