Final answer:
Early state societies developed writing as a permanent recording system to manage taxes, law, communications, and to document rulers' achievements, which was a key component in the exercise of state power and the maintenance of complex societies.
Step-by-step explanation:
The organizational requirements of early state societies led several of them to independently develop permanent recording systems in the form of writing. These earliest forms of writing arose as a means to keep track of tax revenue, communicate with officials, lay down the law, and record the achievements of rulers. This development was essential for states to exercise power, facilitate economic growth, and ensure the formation and maintenance of states. Oral traditions and myths often served non-agricultural and stateless societies effectively, but the emergence of writing marked a pivotal shift in how complex societies managed information and governance.
In various regions, including Mesopotamia, China, Egypt, India, Mesoamerica, and South America, governments developed bureaucracies to enforce laws and control resources, necessitating written records for efficiency and accountability. This trend was observed in locations where state-based, agriculturally-driven societies flourished, as seen in early African civilizations like Egypt and Ethiopia.