History and Archaelogy

Ajatuksia päätöksenteosta arkeologian ja historian tutkimuskohteena

by Juha Saunavaara

co-author: Jari-Matti Kuusela

with English summary: Thoughts on decision making as a subject of study in history and archaeology

This paper focuses on building a theoretical framework for the study of decision making in the disciplines concerned... more This paper focuses on building a theoretical framework for the study of decision making in the disciplines concerned with the study of the human past. The authors suggest that this subject, despite its clear importance, has been somewhat under-theorised in the authors' respective disciplines. Rather than empirical case-studies, this paper focuses on an abstract framework concerned with the nature of decision making as a social action within the social context of the respective society and how and why this social framework must be taken into account before starting to analyse the decision-making process itself. Pierre Bourdieu's theory of fields is utilised to show that traditional models of decision making, often used in history and archaeology, are over-simplifying a complex matter. Instead, it is suggested that in order to understand any decision-making process, one has to take into account not only the habitus of the agents involved in the decision-making process but also the social networks, i.e. fields, that they are connected with.

Zero Degree Culture, the Golden Chicken, Impact at the Mouth of the Well and Other Scandals.

by Quetzil Castañeda

Published in 1995.  In Carmen Varela, Juan L. Bonor, and Yolanda Fernández, editors. RELIGIÓN Y SOCIEDAD EN EL ÁREA MAYA. Madrid: S.E.E.M., pp. 295-310.

This title references three concepts. The golden egg is a phrase used by a prominent archaeologist to describe Chichen... more This title references three concepts. The golden egg is a phrase used by a prominent archaeologist to describe Chichen Itza, the archaeological heritage site, in terms of its role for tourism.  Impact is an concept-idea that is standard in tourism studies; it is what this article seeks to critique. The Zero-Degree Culture borrows its poiesis from Roland Barthes, zero-degree writing, and also aims at Robert Redfield's concept of "folk culture" and his notion of "culture" generally, which was developed by explicit exclusion of the sociocultural processes at play in a community (Piste, Yucatan, Mexico) near the location of his research where he developed said notions (Chan Kom). 

Vida de un arqueólogo, petroglifos y santuarios de alta montaña: Entrevista con el Dr. Juan S. Schobinger

by Ramiro Barberena

R. BARBERENA
(Relaciones de la SAA 2008)