Home > Courses > ARCHAEOLOGICAL METHODS, THEORY, AND PRACTICE | Hayashida

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Archaeological Methods, Theory, and Practice

Anthropology 428
Department of Anthropology
Pennsylvania State University
Spring 2003
T TH 2:30-3:45 p.m.
333 Beam BA

 

Frances Hayashida           Office Hours: Tues and Thur 4:00-5:00 and by appointment
Office: 321 Carpenter       E-mail: fmh5@psu.edu
Lab: 303 Carpenter          Phone: 865-2937

 

COURSE GOALS
If you have ever considered a career in archaeology, you might find yourself pondering the following questions:

- What is the value of archaeology? How is it relevant to modern life?

- Who benefits from archaeology, and how are those benefits achieved?

- How do archaeologists know what they're talking about? Are they just making up stories?

- Why are there conflicts over archaeological remains? What lies behind stories in the news (e.g., Kennewick Man) about repatriation?

This course will prepare you to answer these questions and to act on your ideas as informed citizens and as future professional archaeologists. More specifically, by the end of this course you will be able to:

• Persuasively argue the relevance of archaeological research to key topics concerning human welfare (environmental degradation and sustainability, food production, social and economic inequality, gender relations, warfare).
• Evaluate an archaeological study in terms of its research design, theoretical approach, and logic.
• Propose a project for future research at a site or region based on an archaeological report of your choosing.
• Evaluate the ethical (and to some extent legal) issues surrounding the documentation, preservation, interpretation, and "ownership" of archaeological remains.
• Communicate all of the above to public and professional audiences in oral and written form.
• Identify different career paths in archaeology and the preparation they require.

PREREQUISITES
Anthropology 2 and at least two additional archaeology courses and junior or senior standing. Previous fieldwork experience would be very helpful, but is not required.

READINGS
There is one required text for the course:

Johnson, Matthew
1999     Archaeological Theory: An Introduction. Blackwell Publishers, Oxford (CC72.J65 1999).

Supplementary Readings are on reserve in Pattee Library. Suggested archaeological reports for the paper and proposal assignments will also be put on reserve.

GRADING AND ASSIGNMENTS
The emphasis of this course is on critical thinking and analysis and on the ability to clearly communicate your knowledge and ideas in oral and written form. You are expected to complete all readings before class and to actively engage in discussions. To get you started, discussion topics and questions are presented in the syllabus at the beginning of each section. You should also generate your own questions and observations related to the readings. These should demonstrate that you can think beyond each article by linking the readings to other things you have learned in this class or others, personal observations, or news stories.

For readings that include the presentation, analysis, and interpretation of archaeological evidence you should also be prepared to answer key questions on significance, research design, and interpretation:

• What are the research questions, and why are they interesting?
• What methods were used to address the questions, and what are the links between the methods and the research questions?
• What were the results, how were they interpreted, and are the interpretations convincing? What further research could be carried out?
• What is the broader significance of this work?

Before each class meeting, you should enter your thoughts on the discussion topics (i.e., not just summaries of content) and your additional questions and observations in a reading journal. Journals will be collected at random throughout the term. You do not need to include your answers to the key questions in your journal, but you should be prepared to discuss them in class. The key question exercise will familiarize you with the design and logic of archaeological research and will prepare you for writing your research proposal.

In addition to class participation and your reading journal, you will have five assignments related to an archaeological report of your choosing: (1) a summary and critique of the research design; (2) a summary written in a style suitable for Archaeology magazine; (3) a summary prepared as a lecture for the public; (4) a proposal for future archaeological research based on your selected report; and (5) a presentation of your proposed research geared to a professional audience. Details on the presentation and paper assignments will be handed out separately.

%Grade	Due Date	Assignment
15	-	Participation in class discussions
15	varies	Reading journal
10	2/4	Paper 1
0	2/18	Paper 2 (Archaeology article), optional rough draft (provisional grade assigned)
15	2/27 or 3/4	Oral presentation on your selected report
15	3/6	Paper 2, final draft
0	3/20	Outline and bibliography, Paper 3
0	4/8	Paper 3 (research proposal), optional rough draft (provisional grade assigned)
15	4/24, 4/29	Oral presentation of proposal
15	5/6	Paper 3 (research proposal), final draft due by 5 p.m. at my office, 321 Carpenter
Note that paper drafts are optional (count for 0% of the grade) but highly recommended. Due dates are FIRM even for optional assignments.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Penn State defines academic integrity as the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible manner. All students should act with personal integrity; respect other students' dignity, rights, and property; and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed through the fruits of their efforts (Faculty Senate Policy 49-20).

Dishonesty of any kind will not be tolerated in this course. Dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarizing, fabricating information or citations, facilitating acts of academic dishonesty by others, having unauthorized possession of examinations, submitting work of another person or work previously used without informing the instructor, or tampering with the academic work of other students. Students who are found to be dishonest will receive academic sanctions and will be reported to the university's Judicial Affairs Office for possible further disciplinary sanction.

DISABILITY ACCESS
Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the university's educational programs. If you have a disability-related need for modifications or reasonable accommodations in this course, contact the Office for Disability Services (ODS), located at 116 Boucke Building, at 1-814-863-1807(V/TTY). For further information regarding ODS please visit their website. Please let me know as early in the semester as possible regarding the need for modification or reasonable accommodations.

TO SUCCEED IN THIS CLASS

• Attend class regularly, keep up with the readings and your journal, follow assignment guidelines carefully, and turn in all materials on time.
• Engage with the material. Think critically about what you are reading and pay attention to the questions posed at the beginning of each section. What are the underlying assumptions and logic of the arguments presented? What else would you like to know?
• Actively participate in discussions and pay attention to the opinions and questions of other students. If you are having difficulty with the course material, please do not hesitate to come in and talk to me.

COURSE SCHEDULE

Note: Readings with a URL should be accessed online. All other references are on regular or electronic reserve at Pattee. From LIAS, go to "The Cat," click on "Course Reserves," and enter "Anth 428" for the course number. Individual listings (and an indication of whether they are on regular or electronic reserves) will appear.

INTRODUCTION

14 Jan
What is the value of archaeology? What do archaeologists do, and where do they work? How is archaeological knowledge created, used, and disseminated? What are the benefits of archaeology, and who benefits?

 

CAREERS IN ARCHAEOLOGY

Objectives
- Identify the kinds of jobs available to archaeologists and the preparation they require.

16 Jan

Readings and Assignments
Neumann, Thomas W., and Robert M. Sanford
2001 Cultural Resources Archaeology: An Introduction. AltaMira Press, Walnut Creek, California.
Read Chapter 1.

Assignment (see handout): Careers in Archaeology: Options and Opportunities

 

THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT AND
COMMUNICATING ARCHAEOLOGY I: WRITING FOR THE PUBLIC

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Identify the similarities and differences between a research report and a compliance report.
-Compare writing styles in archaeology for professional versus public audiences.

21 Jan

Readings
Browse research and compliance reports on reserve at Pattee. Select the research report that will form the basis of your paper and presentation assignments. List your first, second, and third choices (in case some of you choose the same title).

Browse current issues of Archaeology and American Antiquity and compare content (the kinds of articles that are published) and writing styles. Both can be found (shelved alphabetically) in the Social Sciences Current Periodicals collection on the third floor of Paterno.

Neumann, Thomas W., and Robert M. Sanford
2001 Cultural Resources Archaeology: An Introduction. AltaMira Press, Walnut Creek, California.
Read Chapter 7.

Allen, Mitch
2002 Reaching the Hidden Audience: Ten Rules for the Archaeological Writer. In Public Benefits of Archaeology, edited by Barbara J. Little, pp. 244-251. University Press of Florida, Gainesville (CC77.H5 P83 2002).

 

AN OVERVIEW OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL THEORY

23 Jan

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Describe and critique the processual approach in archaeology and identify the kinds of research questions that have been addressed.
- Explain what linking arguments are and how they are used. Provide examples.

Readings
Johnson Chapters 1-4

 

28 Jan

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Describe a systems approach and its strengths and weaknesses.
- Explain how archaeologists study thoughts.
- Compare and contrast processual to post-processual archaeology.

Readings
Johnson Chapters 5-7

 

NATURE AND CULTURE

30 Jan

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Using concrete examples, identify three ways that archaeology can contribute to current debates about environmental degradation, conservation, and sustainability.
- Define the "pristine myth" and explain (1) how it has been challenged in Amazonia, and (2) its implications for conservation and development in Amazonia today.

Readings
van der Leeuw, Sander, and Charles L. Redman
2002 Placing Archaeology at the Center of Socio-Natural Studies. American Antiquity 67(4):597-605.

Mann, Charles C.
2002 1491. The Atlantic Monthly 289(3):41-53.

Mann, Charles C.
2002 The Real Dirt on Rainforest Fertility. Science 297:920-923.

Heckenberger, Michael J., James B. Peterson, and Eduardo Goés Neves
1999 Village Size and Permanence in Amazonia: Two Archaeological Examples from Brazil. Latin American Antiquity 10(4):353-376.

 

4 Feb
PAPER 1 DUE
Video: Ancient Futures: Learning from Ladakh

 

6 Feb *** BRING THE LIPE, SITTLER, AND WANG ET AL. TO CLASS***

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Describe the links between cultural and natural resource management.
- Identify the "stakeholders" in the management of cultural and natural resources on public lands in the U.S., the kinds of conflicts that can arise, and how conflicts are resolved.

Readings
Lipe, Bill
1995 The Archaeology of Ecology. Common Ground 8(1).

Sittler, Meghan
2002 The Role of Cultural Resources in the Green Debate—Fit for Man and Beast. SAA Archaeological Record 2(5):24-25. (Complete issue available at http://www.saa.org/publications/thesaaarchrec/nov02.pdf.)
(Note: You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader [free, downloadable software] to read pdf files. If you do not already have the software, it can be downloaded from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html)

Wang, Grace A., Dorothy H. Anderson, and Pamela J. Jakes
2002 Heritage Management in the U.S. Forest Service: A Mount Hood National Forest Case Study. Society and Natural Resources 15:359-369. (Link must be accessed through a computer on the PSU network.)

Communicating Archaeology II: The Public Presentation
Kwas, Mary L.
2001 Communicating with the Public Part I: Slide Lecture Tips. SAA Archaeological Record 1(4):23-24. (Complete issue available at http://www.saa.org/Publications/thesaaarchrec/sep01.pdf.)

 

FOOD PRODUCTION

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Identify the ways that food production technologies and organization are reconstructed from the archaeological record.
- Compare and contrast the environment, technologies, and organization of agricultural production in the cases presented by Christensen and Erickson. Identify the factors in both cases that contribute to sustainable or non-sustainable food production. What lessons can be learned from the archaeological record about sustainable food production?
- Discuss the possible steps involved in moving from archaeological observations to modern policies and practices. What are the relationships between environment, technology, culture, and history, and how are "lessons from the past" applied to the present?

11 Feb

Readings
Christensen, Peter
1998 Middle Eastern Irrigation: Legacies and Lessons. Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies Bulletin 103:15-30.

 

13 Feb

 

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL INEQUALITY

18 Feb
DRAFT OF PAPER 2 DUE (OPTIONAL)
Video: The Kawelka: Ongka's Big Moka

 

20 Feb

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Explain how political power was created and maintained with the Kwakiutl.

Readings
Wolf, Eric
1999 Envisioning Power: Ideologies of Domination and Crisis. University of California Press, Berkeley (JC330.W65 1999).
Read the chapter on the Kwakiutl.

 

25 Feb

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Compare and contrast political power of the Kwakiutl to Formative Chiapas society. What are the similarities and differences?

Readings
Clark, John E., and Michael Blake
1996 [1993] The Power of Prestige: Competitive Generosity and the Emergence of Rank Societies in Lowland Mesoamerica. In Contemporary Archaeology in Theory, edited by Robert W. Preucel and Ian Hodder, pp. 258-281. Blackwell, Oxford (CC173.C66 1996).

Communicating Archaeology Part III: The Research Proposal
Przeworski, Adam, and Frank Salomon
1995 The Art of Writing Proposals: Some Candid Suggestions for Applicants to Social Science Research Council Competitions. Social Science Research Council, New York, New York.

Hayashida, Frances M.
1999 Proyecto Ynalche: Long-term Agricultural Dynamics on the North Coast of Peru. Research proposal submitted to the National Geographic Committee for Research and Exploration. (Will be handed out in class.)

 

27 Feb and 4 Mar REPORT PRESENTATIONS

 

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF GENDER

6 Mar
PAPER 2 DUE

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Identify the ways that archaeological studies explicitly or implicitly incorporate gender in their research designs and interpretations.
- Describe the relationship between political changes and gender relations in the Hohokam Pre-Classic to Classic transition and how this relationship was studied archaeologically.

Readings
Johnson Chapter 8

Crown, Patricia L., and Suzanne K. Fish
1996 Gender and Status in the Hohokam Pre-Classic to Classic Transition. American Anthropologist 98(4):803-817.

 

11 Mar and 13 Mar SPRING BREAK

 

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF GENDER, CONTINUED

18 Mar

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Discuss the problems with categorizing sex and gender in terms of binary oppositions and how these categories have affected archaeological interpretations. How can archaeology contribute to a broader conceptualization of gender identities?

Readings
Arnold, Bettina
2002 "Sein und Werden": Gender as Process in Mortuary Ritual. In In Pursuit of Gender, edited by Sarah M. Nelson and Myriam Rosen-Ayalon, pp. 239-256. AltaMira Press, Walnut Creek, California (CC72.4.I5 2002).

Weglian, Emily
2001 Grave Goods Do Not a Gender Make. In Gender and the Archaeology of Death, edited by Bettina Arnold and Nancy L. Wicker, pp. 137-155. AltaMira Press, Walnut Creek, California (CC72.4.G44 2001).

 

EQUITY IN AMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY

20 Mar
PAPER 3 OUTLINE AND PRELIMINARY BIBLIOGRAPHY DUE (OPTIONAL)

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Define and explain gender and ethnic inequities in American archaeology. Identify concrete actions that can be taken to achieve equity.

Readings
Hutson, Scott
1998 Institutional and Gender Effects on Academic Hiring Practices. SAA Bulletin 16(4).

Franklin, Maria
1997 Why Are There So Few Black American Archaeologists? Antiquity 71(274):799-801.

Warburton, Miranda
2002 Ethnic Equity in Archaeology: A View from the Navajo Nation Archaeology Department. SAA Archaeological Record 2(4):20-23. (Complete issue available at (http://www.saa.org/Publications/thesaaarchrec/sep02.pdf.)

Watkins, Joe
2002 Marginal Native, Marginal Archaeologist: Ethnic Disparity in American Archaeology. SAA Archaeological Record 2(4):36-37. (Complete issue available at http://www.saa.org/Publications/thesaaarchrec/sep02.pdf.)

 

WARFARE

25 Mar

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Identify the possible causes and effects of warfare in prehistoric and early historic Eastern North America.
- Explain how warfare is studied archaeologically. What kinds of evidence are examined, and what are the sources of ambiguity?
- In terms of the public and descendant groups, describe what an archaeologist studying violence and warfare needs to consider.

Readings
Haas, Jonathan
1996 War. In Encyclopedia of Cultural Anthropology, edited by David Levinson and Melvin Ember, pp. 1357-1361. Henry Holt and Co., New York.

Milner, George R.
1999 Warfare in Prehistoric and Early Historic Eastern North America. Journal of Archaeological Research 7(2):105-151.

Zimmerman, Larry J.
1997 The Crow Creek Massacre: Archaeology and Prehistoric Plains Warfare in Contemporary Perspective. In Material Harm: Archaeological Studies of War and Violence, edited by John Carman, pp. 75-94. Cruithne Press, Glasgow (CC175.M38 1997).

 

27 Mar

Option 1: Video/Discussion
Video: Dead Birds
- View the video and discuss the causes and consequences of war among the Dani (West Irian) as depicted in this 1961 ethnographic film.
- Discuss how the type of warfare depicted in the film might be visible in the archaeological record.

Option 2: Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Identify the possible causes and effects of warfare among the ancient Maya.
- Discuss how archaeological studies of warfare do/do not contribute to an understanding of modern conflicts.

Readings
Webster, David
2000 The Not So Peaceful Civilization: A Review of Maya War. Journal of World Prehistory 14(1):65-119.
(The link http://ipsapp009.lwwonline.com/content/getfile/4953/1/2/fulltext.pdf will get you to the home page of the journal. Enter "Webster, David" in the search box and click on "pdf" for the article. Must be accessed from a computer linked to the PSU network.)

Communicating Archaeology Part IV: The Professional Presentation
Davis, Martha
1997 Scientific Papers and Presentations. Harcourt Brace & Company, San Diego (T11.D324 1997).
Read Chapter 16, The Slide Presentation.

 

HUMAN REMAINS: VALUES, CONFLICTS, AND SOLUTIONS

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Describe the kinds of information that can be gained from studying human remains and identify those who benefit from the studies.
- (If reading the Gould article) Explain how archaeology can be applied to mass disaster sites. Identify other applications of forensic archaeology.
- Describe the kinds of conflicts that can arise between those who study human remains and those who have a connection with the remains (e.g., as relatives or descendants).
- Define NAGPRA and discuss how it has changed the practice of archaeology in North America.

1 Apr

 

3 Apr
Video: Bones of Contention

 

8 Apr
DRAFT OF PAPER 3 DUE (OPTIONAL)

10 Apr NO CLASS

 

HISTORY, HERITAGE, AND COMMEMORATION

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Explain the difference between heritage and history. Discuss the benefits of heritage preservation.
- Describe the Section 106 process in terms of the parties involved, the steps followed, and its contribution to heritage preservation.

15 Apr

Readings
McManamon, Francis P.
2002 Heritage, History, and Archaeological Educators. In Public Benefits of Archaeology, edited by Barbara J. Little, pp. 31-45. University Press of Florida, Gainesville (CC77.H5 P83 2002).

Neumann, Thomas W., and Robert M. Sanford
2001 Cultural Resources Archaeology: An Introduction. AltaMira Press, Walnut Creek, California.
Read Chapter 2.

 

17 Apr

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Define public memory and discuss how is it created and maintained. Discuss the role of archaeologists in creating public memory.
- Using concrete examples from the readings or other sources (newspaper, personal experience), identify three cases of contested public memory and their outcomes.

Readings
Shackel, Paul A.
2003 Remembering the American Industrial Landscape. Paper presented in the Plenary Session of the Society for Historical Archaeology Annual Meetings, Providence, Rhode Island.

Anyon, Roger
1991 Protecting the Past, Protecting the Present: Cultural Resources and American Indians. In Protecting the Past, edited by George S. Smith and John E. Ehrenhard.

 

GETTING THE MESSAGE OUT: PUBLIC ARCHAEOLOGY

22 Apr

Objectives/Reading Journal Assignment
- Discuss the responsibilities archaeologists have to the public and the consequences of neglect of those responsibilities.
- Based on the studies below, describe the benefits of integrating public education into archaeological research.

Readings
Fagan, Brian
1998 Perhaps We May Hear Voices. Common Ground 3(1).

AND READ ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
Marquadt, William H.
1994 The Role of Archaeology in Raising Environmental Consciousness: An Example from Southwest Florida. In Historical Ecology, edited by Carole L. Crumley, pp. 203-221. SAR Press, Santa Fe (GF90.H57 1994).

Nicholas, George P.
1997 Education and Empowerment: Archaeology with, for, and by the Shuswap Nation. In At the Crossroads: Archaeology and First Peoples in Canada, edited by George P. Nicholas and Thomas D. Andrews, pp. 85-104. Publication No. 24. Archaeology Press, Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C. (E78.C2A86 1997).

Smardz, Karolyn E.
1997 The Past Through Tomorrow: Interpreting Toronto's Heritage to a Multicultural Public. In Presenting Archaeology to the Public: Digging for Truths, edited by John H. Jameson, pp. 101-113. AltaMira Press, Walnut Creek, California (E159.5.P74 1997).

 

24 Apr and 29 Apr
PRESENTATIONS OF PROPOSALS

1 May
WRAP UP last day of class

6 May
FINAL DRAFT OF PAPER 3 DUE AT MY OFFICE (321 CARPENTER) BY 5 PM

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© 2003 MATRIX
Project Director: Anne Pyburn
Indiana University Bloomington