Synopses & Reviews
Ian Hodder's controversial new book focuses on meaning in archaeology, arguing that the interpretation of meaning needs to be closely integrated with adaptive, economic and social factors when we are seeking to explain the behaviour of past societies. Symbolism and ideology are discussed in relation to history and social practice and general accounts are provided of systems theory in archaeology, of structuratist and Marxist archaeology, and of the relationships between archaeology and history. The author then defines what he has termed contextual and post-processual archaeology and examines their implications for the practice of the discipline. In particular, he argues that while material culture is not a literary text, an analogy with texts offers powerful insights into the nature of archaeological data and into the procedures involved in 'reading the past'.
Synopsis
This is a completely revised edition of Ian Hodder's controversial textbook first published in 1986. The mainstream archaeology of the seventies, 'processual archaeology', modelled itself on the natural sciences. It has been challenged in recent years by a 'post-processual' archaeology which draws upon the wider perspectives of history and social anthropology, insisting that account must be taken of the context and meaning of behaviour, and that the ideological uses of archaeology be recognised by practitioners. Ian Hodder, a leading figure in the new movement, argues that in explaining the behaviour of past societies a concern with meaning must be joined to the study of ecological constraints and economic and social processes. This leads him to discuss systems theory and structuralist and Marxist approaches in archaeology.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 194-211) and index.