Thinking from Things

Thinking from Things
Author: Alison Wylie
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 359
Release: 2002-11-13
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0520935403

In this long-awaited compendium of new and newly revised essays, Alison Wylie explores how archaeologists know what they know. Examining the history and methodology of Anglo-American archaeology, Wylie puts the tumultuous debates of the last thirty years in historical and philosophical perspective.

Critical Approaches to Fieldwork

Critical Approaches to Fieldwork
Author: Gavin Lucas
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2002-01-04
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1134564317

This work takes as its starting point the role of fieldwork and how this has changed over the past 150 years. The author argues against progressive accounts of fieldwork and instead places it in its broader intellectual context to critically examine the relationship between theoretical paradigms and everyday archaeological practice. In providing a much-needed historical and critical evaluation of current practice in archaeology, this book opens up a topic of debate which affects all archaeologists, whatever their particular interests.

Critical Public Archaeology

Critical Public Archaeology
Author: Camille Westmont
Publisher: Berghahn Books
Total Pages: 398
Release: 2022-09-13
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1805399160

Critical approaches to public archaeology have been in use since the 1980s, however only recently have archaeologists begun using critical theory in conjunction with public archaeology to challenge dominant narratives of the past. This volume brings together current work on the theory and practice of critical public archaeology from Europe and the United States to illustrate the ways that implementing critical approaches can introduce new understandings of the past and reveal new insights on the present. Contributors to this volume explore public perceptions of museum interpretations as well as public archaeology projects related to changing perceptions of immigration, the working classes, and race.

Conflict in the Archaeology of Living Traditions

Conflict in the Archaeology of Living Traditions
Author: R. Layton
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 278
Release: 2005-08-08
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1134866224

First text to address the contentious issues raised by the pursuit of archaeology and anthropology in the world today. Calls into question the relationship between western scholars and the contemporary cultures they study.

Archaeology for Today and Tomorrow

Archaeology for Today and Tomorrow
Author: Craig N. Cipolla
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2023-12-04
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1003819788

Archaeology for Today and Tomorrow explores how cutting-edge archaeological theories have implications not only for how we study the past but also how we think about and prepare for the future. Ranging from how we understand migration or political leadership to how we think about violence or ecological crisis, the book argues that archaeology should embrace a “future-oriented” attitude. Behind the traditional archaeological gaze on the past is a unique and useful collection of skills, tools, and orientations for rethinking the present and future. Further, it asserts that archaeological theory is not only vital for how we conduct our work as archaeologists and how we create narratives about the past but also for how we think about the broader world in the present and, crucially, how we envision and shape the future. Each of the chapters in the book links theoretical approaches and global archaeological case studies to a specific contemporary issue. It examines such issues as human movement, violence, human and non-human relations, the Anthropocene, and fake news to showcase the critical contributions that archaeology, and archaeological theory, can make to shaping the world of tomorrow. An ideal book for courses on archaeology in the modern world and public archaeology, it will also appeal to archaeology students and researchers in general and all those in related disciplines interested in areas of critical contemporary concern.

Archaeological Theory in the New Millennium

Archaeological Theory in the New Millennium
Author: Oliver J. T. Harris
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 238
Release: 2017-06-26
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1317497449

Archaeological Theory in the New Millennium provides an account of the changing world of archaeological theory and a challenge to more traditional narratives of archaeological thought. It charts the emergence of the new emphasis on relations as well as engaging with other current theoretical trends and the thinkers archaeologists regularly employ. Bringing together different strands of global archaeological theory and placing them in dialogue, the book explores the similarities and differences between different contemporary trends in theory while also highlighting potential strengths and weaknesses of different approaches. Written in a way to maximise its accessibility, in direct contrast to many of the sources on which it draws, Archaeological Theory in the New Millennium is an essential guide to cutting-edge theory for students and for professionals wishing to reacquaint themselves with this field.

Global Archaeological Theory

Global Archaeological Theory
Author: Pedro Paulo Funari
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 379
Release: 2006-04-07
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0306486520

Archaeological theory has gone through a great upheaval in the last 50 years – from the processual theory, which wanted to make archaeology more "scientific" to post-processual theory, which understands that interpreting human behavior (even of past cultures) is a subjective study. This subjective approach incorporates a plurality of readings, thereby implying that different interpretations are always possible, allowing us to modify and change our ideas under the light of new information and/or interpretive frameworks. In this way, interpretations form a continuous flow of transformation and change, and thus archaeologists do not uncover a real past but rather construct a historical past or a narrative of the past. Post-processual theory also incorporates a conscious and explicit political interest on the past of the scholar and the subject. This includes fields and topics such as gender issues, ethnicity, class, landscapes, and consumption. This reflects a conscious attempt to also decentralize the discipline, from an imperialist point of view to an empowering one. Method and theory also means being politically aware and engaged to incorporate diverse critical approaches to improve understanding of the past and the present. This book focuses on the fundamental theoretical issues found in the discipline and thus both engages and represents the very rich plurality of the post-processual approach to archaeology. The book is divided into four sections: Issues in Archaeological Theory, Archaeological Theory and Method in Action, Space and Power in Material Culture, and Images as Material Discourse.

Archaeological Theory in a Nutshell

Archaeological Theory in a Nutshell
Author: Adrian Praetzellis
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 172
Release: 2023-06-21
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1000866890

This book provides a brief, readable introduction to archaeological theory. Adrian Praetzellis demystifies a pile of tricky contemporary concepts for the theory-phobic undergraduate or beginning graduate student. This new edition adds chapters on Indigenous, cognitive, and behavioral archaeologies and now covers 15 contemporary theories from neoevolutionism to queer theory. Each chapter begins with a description of the concept, its origin and significance. Next up is an example of how an archaeologist has used the idea to understand their site, making the connection between the idea and the archaeology plain and unambiguous. Each chapter ends with discussion questions and suggestions for further reading. A glossary of postmodern discourse (including that word) concludes the book. Using plain English to clarify some of the more baffling ideas used in contemporary archaeology, this book is a vital resource for students studying archaeological theory and the discipline as a whole.