455 Archaeological Theory Final Exam Study

Steeve LeBlanc

(guest speaker) studied under binford. Currently leblanc is studying isotopes in teeth anamole and pottery. feels that archaeology began as a scientific field but gradually became "culture history" said binford was rude and insulted culture history work. Leblanc felt that (history+science=new archaeology) Views on science and archaeology-said it was a very science verse history perspective and scientists tried to explain phenomenons by using multiple lines of evidence within the scientific method to see the whole picture. But it still needed to be refuttable/testable.

Indigenous archaeology (a school of thought)

A form of archaeology where indigenous people are involved in the care of (excavation, analysis and the interpertation of remains) directly of their own ancestrial decent.

Robert Dunnell

A modern american archaeologist (Processualist) main concepts ( Selectionism/ Neo-darwinianism/ Optimal foraging theory)

Agency

Agency within archaeological context, is defined as "the way in which societies structure their social *aims, goals, ideals, desires and material conditions of life*"

Mark Leone

American Archaeologist, focused on (Critical Theory) as it applies to historical archaeology. Main areas of interest (historical archaeology and interepertation, critical theory, outdoor history museums, and african-american archaeology.)

Kinteigh

Archaeologist who wrote the (25) grand challenges looking at how humans and enviroment function together.

Praetzellis

Author of (Archaeological Theory in a Nutshell). Short introduction of theory and models, also a U.S.A professor.

Johnson

Author of the book (Archaeology Theory) an introduction. Professor here in America. The book covers "Theories, applications and history" of archaeolgy theory

Middle Range Theory

Binford-Need to recognize the past is important, change occurs over time, development techniques for excavation and analysis.

Colin Renfrew

British archaeologist, developed a methodology of (cognitive archaeology) to "attempt" to understant what ancient people (felt/thought) and how that shaped their actions visible today within the archaeological record

How does legeslation affected modern archaeological theory?

By used of restrictions/policies/NAGPRA/site permissions/university grant submissions/required journal article submission pressures per sites/site amount and size restrictions

How is archaeology used/abused in regards to politics?

Colonialism/slaverly/imposition of religious idealologies/explotation of resources/ and justification of genocide. just to name a few historical examples...

Equifinality

Concept by Ian Hodder (suggesting that their is no way to 100% accurately test anything)

what are the 2 kinds of science methods used in selectionism?

Dunnell- 1.) Historical based-materialist/no universal laws (not used much) 2.) A-historical based-science based/hard science (the widely used model)

Selectionism/ Neo-Darwinanism (a school of thought)

Dunnell- Arm chair archaeology, looking at biology and nature working together to understand what drives society and cultural evolution. It is scientific and processual in nature however it is more theoretically than practical in function. Very little field work is used and it is mainly applied to simple hunter-gather societies only. Not applicable to large complex societies today. Main points (pro-darwinianism evolution theory, science based, mainly school of thought in north america only)

Optimal foraging theory within Selectionism?

Dunnell- based on animal foraging models than applied to human behavior (doesnt account for culture though) Main focus 1. (natural selection+culture+enviroment) 2. Uses cultural ecology models (how humans adapt to their enviroments)

Lewis Binford

Father of new processual archaeology-science is god*, scientific method based. Developed (Middle range theory) in order to understand past dynamics from the present archaeological statics *material past and what it means* looking at economics, status, kindship. Binford studied in (historical archaeology of capitialism and indentity in historical archaeology)

AHE-Archaeology of the Human Experience

Hegmon- to humanitize research (making it public) and understand how archaeological work can better humanity as a whole. It is pro-theory with fuctionalism. Example (historical archaeological examples of climate change effecting the enviroment) then using those past examples to help shape the present. another example is over farming, destroying of land/fertility and seeing the collapse of civilizations due to it.

Marxism Archaeology (a school of thought)

How society functions, changes and revolutionis's the material social realm. Specficially how socitieties are shaped through economics, materialism and class. Doesn't look at pre-history of societies. It is for historical and documentative theories of societies.

Interperative Archaeology

Ian Hodder's focus (post processual archaeology, emphasizes subjectivity of archaeology interpertations) *making meaning and sense of the past*

What are some examples of ethics and theory in archaeology?

Indigenous rights/CRM cultural resource managment/ inclusion of indigenous perspectives in new schools of thought/ activism and public outreach

Gender archaeology (a school of thought)

Is a method of studying past societies through material culture by examining the social construction of gender identities and relationsions to the material artifacts.

Interperative archaeology (a school of thought)

It is a post-processual archaeology, focused on subjectivity within archaeological interperatations. How to view the past, what it means, questioning past views by archaeologists and how it applies today.

Friedridge & Engels

Marxiest theoriest supporters. Made suggestions to archaeological theory systems by looking closer into social change through class struggles.

Cognitive Archaeology (a school of thought)

Methodology that "attempted" to understant what ancient people (felt/thought) and how that shaped their actions visible today within the archaeological record. Highly critized theory for lack of scientific method. Difficult to apply and cannot be tested on living groups.

Post-processual archaeology

Modern archaeologists felt that too much emphasis was being placed on site formation proceses created a black and white view of the past. Post-processualists wanted to reach further than explanitionary facts about the sites they sought to "understand" the cultural context between the past within the sites. (interperative and postmodernist)

How is feminisism and gender included in archaeology today?

Modern perspectives of archaeology that are (by/for/of women) and other groups regarding the historical role of women and *other* gender groups as well as current activism and trends within archaeological interpertations.

Anthropocene

Newly coined term refering to human made modifications and impacts in the enviroment. example climate change again.

Processual archaeology

Originally developed to make archaeology into a "hard science" by example of geology. Using the geographic landscape to understand the relationship between the area's historical geographic past and it's influence on the past culture. (explanation, deduction and modernist)

Queer archaeology (a school of thought)

Originally looking at homosexuality as a challenge to norms within archaeological interpertation of sites. Today it's moving into more of social and behavioral anaylsis within social frameworks in archaeological interperations.

What is the difference between post-processualism and processualist archaeology?

Processual archaeology was prior 1600s and after that is post-processualism which is the new archaeology and its function is to raise questions regarding how to link the past with the present. Because data collection isn't enough alone and archaeologists need to understand the whole picture.

Ian Hodder

Professor to "Tilly & Shanks" a british archaeologist. focused on (interperative archaeology) post processual concepts, but strongly disagreed with Binford's views. Early work focused on statistics and development of spacial models.

Tilly & Shanks

Students of Ian Hodder ( British, anti-positivism) they felt it forced a sense of control within archaeology, controlling the political nature of it. Tilly and shanks Main Concepts (interperative archaeology & subjectivity, strongly influenced by Neo-Marxism, and introduced Phenonomology)

Phenomology ( a school of thought)

Term created by Tilly & Shanks meaning (How people think and feel about their social and material world) Present and past persepectives . Specifically it concentrates on how consciousness and the objects connect in a sense of "experience".

Culture history applied with the scientific method

The goal was to become more scientific and anthropological. But culture history was considered "unscientific" main focuses 1. cultural evolution - band, tribes, cheifdoms 2. system's thinking- cultural adaptations to enviroment (to ask why?) 3. culture is adaptive/cultural materialism 4. scientific approach-hypothesis's are tested 5. culture process-when and why's 6. awareness of biases-clear statement of intentions and goals 7. variability-basic understanding of material in statistical terms

What is the role of "Native: and indigenous people within archaeology and is their room for alternative theories?

Yes their is! Indigenous archaeology is one such example of this. Native role is important for looking at (ethics and theory, CRM, modern policy changes, collection managment in museums, and NAGPRA)