Agency Uncovered: Archaeological Perspectives on Social Agency, Power, and Being Human

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Andrew Gardner

Agency Uncovered

Archaeological Perspectives on Social Agency, Power, and Being Human

Andrew Gardner

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Hardback

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English

Routledge
27 July 2017

Archaeological theory; Physical anthropology & ethnography

Series: UCL Institute of Archaeology Publications

This book questions the value of the concept of 'agency', a term used in sociological and philosophical literature to refer to individual free will in archaeology. On the one hand it has been argued that previous generations of archaeologists, in explaining social change in terms of structural or environmental conditions, have lost sight of the 'real people' and reduced them to passive cultural pawns, on the other, introducing the concept of agency to counteract this can be said to perpetuate a modern, Western view of the autonomous individual who is free from social constraints. This book discusses the balance between these two opposites, using a range of archaeological and historical case studies, including European and Asian prehistory, classical Greece and Rome, the Inka and other Andean cultures. While focusing on the relevance of 'agency' theory to archaeological interpretation and using it to create more diverse and open-ended accounts of ancient cultures, the authors also address the contemporary political and ethical implications of what is essentially a debate about the definition of human nature.

Edited by: Andrew Gardner
Imprint: Routledge
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm,
Weight: 453g
ISBN: 9781138404335
ISBN 10: 1138404330
Series: UCL Institute of Archaeology Publications
Pages: 268
Publication Date: 27 July 2017
Audience: College/higher education , General/trade , Primary , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Gardner, Andrew