Archaeological Hammers and Theories

Opis

Studies in Archaeology: Archaeological Hammers and Theories provides information pertinent to the archeological method, with emphasis on the interaction of data and technique with theory and problems. This book describes the nature of archeological data, the range of archeological theories, and the scope of archeological problems.

Organized into three parts encompassing 13 chapters, this book begins with an overview of the products of the archeological record. This text then examines survey sampling, site formation studies, and lithic and ceramic analysis. Other chapters consider the behavioral concepts that are implicit in the notions of special behavior, optimization, decision making, and population dynamics. This book discusses as well the analysis of pottery, which plays a leading part in the reconstruction of culture histories in archeology. The final chapter suggests an alternative set of philosophical issues that might serve to focus a philosophy or archeology.

This book is a valuable resource for archeologists.

Spis treści

Front Cover 2
Archaeological Hammers and Theories 5
Copyright Page 6
Dedication 7
Table of Contents 9
Contributors 13
Preface 15
Acknowledgments 19
PART I: Introduction 21
- Chapter 1. Archaeology and the Law of the Hammer 23
  - The Law of the Hammer 24
  - The Tyranny of Methodology 25
  - Prospectus 28
  - Objectives 29
  - Moving beyond Rhetoric 30

Front Cover 2
Archaeological Hammers and Theories 5
Copyright Page 6
Dedication 7
Table of Contents 9
Contributors 13
Preface 15
Acknowledgments 19
PART I: Introduction 21
- Chapter 1. Archaeology and the Law of the Hammer 23
  - The Law of the Hammer 24
  - The Tyranny of Methodology 25
  - Prospectus 28
  - Objectives 29
  - Moving beyond Rhetoric 30
  - Acknowledgments 31
  - References 31
- PART II: The Products of the Archaeological Record 35
  - Chapter 2. The Archaeological Record as Preserved Death Assemblage 39
    - Foundations 42
    - Extensions 47
    - Prognosis 50
    - Acknowledgments 52
    - References 52
  - Chapter 3. We Can't See the Forest for the Trees: Sampling and the Shapes of Archaeological Distributions 57
    - The Scientific Task 58
    - The Evolution of the Methodological State of the Art 60
    - The Finer Points of Archaeological Practice 76
    - The Shape of Archaeological Distributions in Massachusetts 85
    - Concluding Suggestion 96
    - Acknowledgments 97
    - References 98
  - Chapter 4. Twigs, Branches, Trees, and Forests: Problems of Scale in Lithic Analysis 107
    - The Individual in Prehistory 108
    - Alternative Directions for Lithic Studies 117
    - Summary and Conclusions 121
    - Acknowledgments 122
    - References 122
  - Chapter 5. Pots As Tools 127
    - Background 128
    - Applications 134
    - Conclusions 145
    - Acknowledgments 146
    - References 147
  - PART III: The Precedents of the Archaeological Record 155
    - Chapter 6. Biology, Behavior, and Borrowing: A Critical Examination of Optimal Foraging Theory in Archaeology 157
      - Background 157
      - A Brief Introduction to Optimal Foraging Theory 159
      - The Problem of Literal Borrowing 161
      - Optimal Foraging Theory in Perspective 168
      - Acknowledgments 170
      - The Methodology of Mouthtalk 170
      - References 171
    - Chapter 7. Optimization Models in Context 177
      - Optimization Models: Definition and Applications 177
      - Optimization as a Model of Decision Making 178
      - Optimization as a Predictor of Behavior 182
      - Optimization as a Baseline for the Explanation of Behavior 184
      - Future Work 187
      - References 190
    - Chapter 8. The Trouble with Know-It-AIIs: Information as a Social and Ecological Resource 193
      - The Archaeological Challenge 193
      - Decision-Making Models 194
      - The Limits of Individual Decision Makers 195
      - The Acquisition of Information 198
      - Information Fields in Archaeology 200
      - Social Asymmetry and the Exchange of Information 201
      - The Validation of Information 203
      - Conclusions 206
      - References 208
      - Acknowledgments 208
    - Chapter 9. Information Exchange and the Spatial Configurations of Egalitarian Societies 213
      - Introduction 213
      - The Settlement Approach 214
      - Social Relations of Production: An Axis of Variability 219
      - Social Relations of Production in Egalitarian Societies 222
      - Archaeological Implications 228
      - Conclusions 232
      - Acknowledgments 233
      - References 233
    - Chapter 10. The Ecological Perspective in Highland Mesoamerican Archaeology 241
      - Introduction 241
      - Population Determinism 243
      - The Discovery of Anomalies 244
      - New Approaches 245
      - References 248
      - Conclusion 248
    - Chapter 11. Expanding the Scope of Settlement Analysis 253
      - Settlement Systems and the Rank–Size Rule 254
      - Biasing Problems, Boundary Problems, and Stratification 264
      - Conclusions 287
      - Acknowledgments 288
      - References 288
    - Chapter 12. The Social Representation of Space: Dimensioning the Cosmological and the Quotidian 297
      - The Human and the Social Quality of a Concept of Meaning 298
      - The Problem of the Symbolic in Archaeology 301
      - Created Space 305
      - The Urban Center as Representational Field 309
      - Society, Cosmos, and the Problem of Legitimation 310
      - Concluding Remarks 316
      - References 317
    - Chapter 13. The Poverty of Philosophy in Archaeology 319
      - Epistemology, Archaeology, and Society 320
      - Conclusion 323
      - References 324
      - Acknowledgments 324
    - Index 325
    - STUDIES IN ARCHAEOLOGY 330

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