New%20Archaeology%20(1962%20

1
New Archaeology (1962

• Lewis R. Binford
• change the way archaeologists think and do
  archaeology.
• Strong critiques of the culture history paradigm

2
GOALS OF THE NEW ARCHAEOLOGY

• Archaeology must address Anthropological
  questions--- past life ways, subsistence, causes
  of culture change
• New definition of culture The human Adaptive
  System
• A. emphasizes cultural ecology. Similarities
  in cultural expressions due to similar
  adjustments
• SYSTEMS THEORY THE CLEAREST
• EXAMPLE OF CULTURE AS A SYSTEM
• (ANALOGOUS SIMILARITIES--- Dunnells
  description of similarities due to common
  adjustments)
• B. culture as a system in which parts work
  together to keep people alive .
• IS THIS A FUNCTIONAL DEFINITION OF CULTURE?

3
NEW ARCHAEOLOGY GOALS (CONT)

• 3. Make archaeology a science.
• Definition of science
• A. The goal of science is to explain ( answer
  why questions).
• B. Accomplish this through through a deductive
  structure in which the conclusion is subsumed
  within the premise.
• C. Most powerful explanations when the premise
  is THEORY OR LAW.
• BUT HYPOTHESES WILL WORK.

4
FORM OF HYPOTHESIS TESTING IN THE NA

• If A, then B where A is the premise and b is the
  outcome.
• Derived from a brand of philosophy known as
• LOGICAL POSITIVISM
• One form of LP is
• The covering law model
• QUESTION ARE THERE LAWS IN ARCHAEOLOGY

• Ex
• Law Water boils at 212 C.
• If this this water is at 212C. It will boil.

5
GOALS OF NA (CONT)

• Focus on spatial variation rather than temporal
  variation.
• Resulted in methodological discussion of spatial
  sampling and how that should be accomplished
• Emphasis on Statistics

6
Dunnells Distinction of Materialism and
Essentialism

• Materialism
• There is no inherent organization to the world.
• Rather the world is infinitely variable.
• We impose order on the world for answering
  scientific questions

• Essentialism
• The world is ordered. There are natural units or
  kinds
• We discover that order in scientific research

7
Materialism and Essentialism as Concepts for the
Differences between Culture History and New
Archaeology

• New Archaeology
• Materialist in the exploration and analysis of
  spatial variation. Big Question always Whats
  the nature of the variability?
• Essentialist in their treatment of time.

• Culture History
• Materialist in the construction of artifact
  types
• Essentialist in the their construction of TS
  charts and spatial variability

8
Kinds of Explanations New Archaeology

• Ethnographic Analogy
• Artifacts as Use

9
Structure of Ethnographic Analogy

• Ethnographic Analogy is based on analogical
• Reasoning. Analogy is an inferential argument
  that is based on similarity of traits between a
  known (an analogue) and an unknown.
• The goal is to assign additional traits to an
  unknown based on the similarity of traits with a
  known
• The more traits that are shared between a known
  and unknown, the more that are likely to be
  shared

10
Example of Analogical Reasoning

• Analogue
• No legs
• Slithers
• Slimy
• And
• Painful if attacked

Unknown No Legs Slithers Slimy And
therefore Painful
11
Structure of Ethnographic AnalogyEthnographic
Descriptions are the analogueWant to explain

• Pueblo Dweller
• Kinship is Matrilineal
• Residence is Matrilocal
• Women make pottery

• Archaeology
• Settlement appears to be Pueblo
• Spatial Clustering of Ceramic design styles
• Why do Ceramic design styles cluster?
• Because

12
Structure of Ethnographic AnalogyEthnographic
Descriptions are the analogueWant to explain

• Pueblo Dweller
• Kinship is Matrilineal
• Residence is Matrilocal
• Women make pottery

• Archaeology
• Settlement appears to be Pueblo
• Spatial Clustering of Ceramic design styles
• Why do Ceramic design styles cluster?
• Because

13
Any problems with this kind of Explanation?
14
Artifacts as Use/ Function of Artifacts
15

• How Create Explanations of Artifact Use?

• Spatial variation in the kind of Artifacts
• Linking artifact Differences to different
  landscape features
• 2. Use Wear Analysis of Artifacts