What does it mean to say that a people is “civilised”? It is rude today to consider any nation or ethnic group anything other than civilised, and yet for the term to have any real meaning it must be possible to be uncivilised. In common usage it is taken to mean mannerly, non-violent, and of an advanced level (or, not to be rude, any level) of technology; and it is indeed true that all cultures define the acceptable in manners and personal violence, and employ technologies. …
