The Great Leveler

The Great Leveler explores how throughout history, mass violence and catastrophic events have been the primary forces reducing economic inequality, often disrupting wealth and social order through warfare, revolutions, plagues, and state collapse. Covering thousands of years from the Stone Age to modern times, the book analyzes the recurring pattern of inequality's decline during periods of chaos and its rise during stability. Scheidel examines these destructive processes and their historical significance, raising questions about the future prospects for equality in a less violent world.