Curriculum Proposal System
Course Details

Prerequisites (list each individually, one course per line, with course number and title)
Introduction to Archaeology (3240:250) prerequisites to be checked at time of registration? yes
Corequisites (list each individually, one course per line, with course number and title)
corequisites to be checked at time of registration? no
Bulletin description
Prerequisite: 250. Advanced seminar covering history of scientific archaeological exploration, major theoretical paradigms and current trends in archaeology. Required for Certificate in Field Archaeology.
Web Components
None
Textbook selection
R. Preucel and I. Hodder 1996 Contemporary Archaeology in Theory: A Reader Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.
Rationale
This course adds advanced instruction in basic theory to the archaeology curriculum. The program, as it is currently structured, has no specific course addressing this essential topic. The course is currently being taught as a Special Topics with good enrollment. This course will complement existing practical courses in archaeology, including the field school and laboratory methods, to provide well-rounded undergraduate training in the Certificate program.
Syllabus
Archaeological Theory University of Akron Department of Classical Studies, Anthropology & Archaeology Spring 2003 Instructor: Dr. Timothy Matney Office: Olin 241 Contact Info: 972-6892, matney@uakron.edu Office Hours: Tuesday 2:00-3:30pm, or by appointment Meetings: MW 12:15-1:30 Classroom: Ayers 113 Course No.: 3240:400/500-001 Prerequisite Introduction to Archaeology (3240:250). Required for Certificate in Field Archaeology. Course Description Advanced undergraduate seminar covering history of scientific archaeological exploration, major theoretical paradigms and current trends in archaeology. This course will cover the major movements within archaeological theory: descriptive-classificatory, processual and post-processual archaeology, as well as important intellectual developments from other disciplines which influenced archaeological thought (e.g., Marxism, feminism, structuralism, etc.). The purpose of this historically-oriented approach to data analysis and interpretation is to provide the students with an understanding of the context in which archaeological theory has developed and the value of the insights that each of these approaches gives to modern researchers working in the field. Such an understanding is basic to any critique of contemporary archaeology and to the training of competent field archaeologists. Teaching Objectives This course has three fundamental objectives (in decreasing order of importance): 1. Help students learn to analyze and critically evaluate ideas, arguments and points of view. 2. Teach students fundamental principles, generalizations and theories. 3. Teach students factual knowledge. Required Textbook R. Preucel and I Hodder, eds. (1996) Contemporary Archaeology in Theory: A Reader. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. Additional readings will be provided throughout the semester. Notes on Registration, Enrollment & Dropping Classes Students who do not appear on the University’s official class list by January 28, 2003 will not be permitted to participate (attend class, take exams or receive credit). This is official University policy. Disabilities Accommodation If you require accommodation you should contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities at 972-7928, as well as make arrangements with me during the first week of the semester. Requirements & Grading Your grade in this course is determined by a series of three written exams (each worth 50 points for a total of 150 points) and two in-class presentations (each worth 25 points for a total of 50 points). Your course grade is based on a 200 point scale. The following point scale is used to determine your grade. A 185-200 points C 145-154 points A- 180-184 points C- 140-144 points B+ 175-179 points D+ 135-139 points B 165-174 points D 120-134 points B- 160-164 points F 119 & fewer points C+ 155-159 points Attendance policy Attendance in class is fundamental to good performance. I do not take a formal attendance in class, but as you will be expected to know the material covered in class meetings and discussions, not just what is in the textbooks, it make sense to come to class regularly. If you miss class, you are responsible for tracking changes in the course syllabus. Late work policy Late work is not accepted. An excused absence is given only if you can present me with an appropriate written excuse from your doctor for emergency purposes. In other words, please do not schedule to have your teeth cleaned during my class hours, but if you or your children are sick enough to require emergency medical treatment, you will not be penalized for missed assignments. Please talk to me at least two weeks in advance to arrange for any other type of excused absence. There are no exceptions to this rule, so please do not ask. Plagiarism Plagiarism is the unacknowledged borrowing of information, wording, organization, or ideas from another person. Whether the original source is public (e.g., a newspaper, book, or journal article the internet) or private (e.g., a classmate's paper), you need to indicate your indebtedness to it. Where you repeat the exact language of your source, you must treat the borrowed material as a quotation and place it within quotation marks with an appropriate citation at the end. However, by merely changing a few words or the word order or by paraphrasing, you do not avoid plagiarism. In all cases, you should cite yoursource. There is nothing wrong in acknowledging an intellectual debt to someone. (This statement is adapted from a handout by Department of English, Trenton State College). In this course, the penalty for plagiarism on an exam is an automatic grade of zero for that assignment. Extensive plagiarism will result in a course grade of "F" and the filing of charges of Academic Misconduct. For further information on the University’s policies, see the “Academic Dishonesty” section in the Undergraduate Bulletin. Graduate Credit Students who have enrolled for graduate credit (i.e., as a 500-level course) from another department will be given additional work during the semester. Each graduate student will be scheduled to present a 40-50 minute discussion/lecture to the class describing some aspect of the intellectual intersection between archaeological theory and their own field of study. The details and timing of this lecture will be worked out at the beginning of the semester in consultation with the instructor. This project will be worth a total of 50 points, so your final grade will come from a 250 point scale, as noted below: A 235-250 points C 185-189 points A- 225-234 points C- 175-184 points B+ 215-224 points D+ 165-174 points B 211-214 points D 150-164 points B- 200-210 points F 149 & fewer points C+ 190-199 points Changes to the Syllabus I reserve the right to make changes, as necessary, to this syllabus at any time. Students are responsible for any changes in the syllabus that are announced in class. Week 1 (Jan 13/15) Topics: Course introduction: what is archaeological theory? Archaeology as anthropology, history, geography, ecology… Scope and goals of archaeological research Scientific methods Reading: Hodder/Preucel, prologue Week 2 (Jan 20/22) *** No class on Jan 20 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day *** Topics: Archaeological data and explanation Nature of archaeological evidence, context Archaeological reasoning, culture change “Low-level” theory; “Middle Range” theory; “high-level” theory Processualism, post-processualism Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 1 Week 3 (Jan 27/29) Topics: Early history of archaeology & cultural-historical archaeology Antiquarianism, science and humanism Racism; Early field techniques Diffusion, migration and invention Time-space models The problem with “culture” as an archaeological concept Reading: TBA Week 4 (Feb 3/5) Topics: Processual archaeology Binford’s critique of archaeological practice Adoption of the scientific methodology Is archaeology science? Reading: TBA Week 5 (Feb 10/12) Topics: Post-processual (interpretive) archaeology Critiques of processual approaches Material symbols Hodder’s “Reading the Past” Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 9, 14, “Material Symbols” Week 6 (Feb17/19) Exam 1 – Feb 17 Topics: Social archaeology Social organization, ranking Burials, belief systems, religion, family structure Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 6, 15 Week 7 (Feb 24/26) Topics: Modeling political systems in archaeology Evolutionary schemes Centralization and the emergence of states Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 4, 10, “The Production of Value” Week 8 (Mar 3/5) Topics: Economic and ecological archaeology Trade and redistribution Energy flow, core-periphery models, world systems theory Modes of production Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 2, 7, “Nature and Culture” Week 9 (Mar 10/12) Topics: Evolutionary theory in archaeology Darwinian and Neo-Darwinian perspectives Biological evolution as model for social evolution Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 8, 11, “Process, Structure and History” Week 10 (Mar 17/19) Topics: Feminist and gendered archaeologies Sex, gender and material correlates Sexual division of labor Critiques of androcentric science Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 12, 17, 18, “Understanding Sex and Gender” Week 11 (Mar 24/26) *** SPRING BREAK *** Week 12 (Mar 31/Apr 2) Topics: Marxism, functionalism neo-Marxist archaeology Soviet archaeology Functionalism Environmental and settlement archaeology Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 5, 23 Exam 2 – Apr 2 Week 13 (Apr 7/9) Topics: Cognitive archaeology Rethinking ancient belief systems Renfrew’s “Archaeology of the Mind” Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 3, 13 Week 14 (Apr 14/16) Topics: Archaeology and presentations of power Nazi archaeology Mother-goddesses again Constructing identity’s for (dead) “others” Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 20, 21, 22, “Representations and Antirepresentations” Week 15 (Apr 21/23) Topics: Contextual archaeology Relativist critiques of archaeology Archaeology as social practice Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 24, 25, 26, “Constructing Identities” Week 16 (Apr 28/30) Topics: Final discussion Ethics in Archaeology Future of Archaeology? Reading: Hodder/Preucel, ch. 16, 19, “Theoretical Archaeological Discourse” Exam 3- as scheduled for final exam week
Bibliography
B. Trigger (1989) A History of Archaeological Thought. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. K.R. Dark (1995) Theoretical Archaeology. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.