John Chirinos 4/30/14

TA Ramon Pineda ARKEO 1200

Assignment 3
James Deetz, an American anthropologist, often known as one of the fathers
of historical archaeology, uses the studies from regions and residents around the world to
demonstrate his approach to historical archeology. In his work, demonstrates the little
things in history such as building styles and even trash can illustrate grand deal of detail
in history. James Deetz uses the approach of material culture to establish changes in the
visible historical timeline and influential populations around the world. H then explains
the material culture to the people that are influenced by it and the ultimate meaning
behind it to the people that used it.
James Deetz demonstration of how even something simple like shards of pottery
and household wares recovered from a trash pit can tell us if a household was prosperous,
or how long a house site was occupied. Deetz brings forth the discussion of material
culture with the emphasis on evidence relating to architectural styles, ceramics, and
gravestone imagery in New England as well as the southern plantation states of Virginia
and the Carolinas. Furthermore, Deetz also brings up the influence of West African house
styles and cooking practices of African-American material culture and architecture. This
was in response to a European central point of view where he argues that there has been
material culture influence not originating from Europe. Deetz work has become a great
introduction to historical archeology with its emphasis on the evidence of material culture
being influential even though it has been published so long ago.
In the very beginning of Deetz work, he describes the methodology and work of
historical archeologists as the study of everyday material objects of the past. He then
defines historical archaeology as the archaeology of the spread of European cultures
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TA Ramon Pineda ARKEO 1200
throughout the world since the fifteenth century, and their impact on and interaction with
the cultures of indigenous peoples. He describes this as the popular definition of the
term historical archeology and that this term is personally ascribed to him. He later
discusses that this popular definition isnt well define and shouldnt only include
European culture but should have an emphasis on a global perspective when it comes to
interpreting historical artifacts. He believes that the European core of the term historical
archeology in its popular definition are simply characterized as groups either impacted
by European contact rather than being engaged in their own process of change, or along
the lines as having extensive impacts by European colonist. In the examination of the
African-American house, with the emphasis its architecture and cooking practices, Deetz
doubtfully suggests that the inhabitants were of high status, and suggests that the outdated
ceramics were likely given as a charity case to the African-American family. Deetz
believes that this is the not the case as in the role of the ceramics in the Anglo American
contexts, where dishes were purchased by members of the family in order to play a socio-
technic role.
A major emphasis in Deetz work are placed on technological advances, like
mass-produced cream ware, or shifts in fashion such as the colonial shift from using
trenchers to ceramic vessels. While these do emphasize a need to keep up with the times
in it bringing socio-economic value, it fails to describe why a shift in this direction would
occur with the directions being a case to a more practical than stylistic, or the case where
there is a purpose of rejecting the dominant fashion. Theses cases would definitely cause
a change in material culture. In the discussion of ceramics, Deetz does touch upon the
ideological causes of ceramic style change yet he explains the material culture of these
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TA Ramon Pineda ARKEO 1200
ceramics in its ideological implications and also discusses the shifts in gravestone styles
in. In that discussion, Deetz argues that these styles were in somehow heavily related to
the strength of Puritan ideology in the community where these shifts from deaths head
gravestones to cherubs or willow and urn designs revealed a decline and maintenance of
Puritan values and beliefs. However, Deetz fails to realize that some families economic
situation might have prevented them from purchasing a stone marker and even that other
groups may have rejected the trend and displayed their beliefs in a different manner.
However, there are many other aspects to Deetz focus on material culture, one
being that he places analysis of artifacts back into their context of use one being
describing foods when he discusses ceramics and integrating folk culture studies with
archaeological data regarding excavations of lower class sites. Deetz examples and
actions described in his work are still being used today in its emphasis on historical
archeology and the framework laid by him are still considered to be absolute and true in
its analysis.
Deetz work, In Small Things Forgotten, brings forth a detailed introduction toe
the ideas of historical archeology. His focus on the common man of history ensures that
the theories of material culture serve as a part of social history, illustrating basic trends
that would have had many impacts on the lives of working and middle class groups in
colonial America. Even though he has underemphasized the influence of certain
European and African migrant communities and Native Americans, he has also
demonstrated the impact of regional differences in the development of material culture in
early America. Deetz describes scenes from the past in an odd but understanding in that it
then is deeply grounded in historic and archaeological data. Such a meaningful view of
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past people is one at which historical archaeology excels and which is very effective to
make archaeological information relevant to almost anyone. The books emphasis on
small things truly shows its significance in the world of archeology not just to bring
about information, but also to bring about analysis of people so that we as individuals can
learn from.