A History of Archaeological Thought

by Bruce G. Trigger

The development of archeological thought is analyzed by examining archeological history to determine to what extent its trends reflect archeologists' personal & collective interests.
List of Illustrations
Preface
The relevance of archaeological history
Classical archaeology & antiquarianism
The beginnings of scientific archaeology
The imperial synthesis
Culture-historical archaeology
Soviet archaeology
Functionalism in Western archaeology
Neo-evolutionism & the new archaeology
The explanation of diversity
Archaeology & its social context
Bibliographical Essay
References
Index

Genres: Archaeology, Anthropology, History, Nonfiction, Science, Academic, Reference

516 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Bruce Graham Trigger, OC OQ FRSC was a Canadian archaeologist, anthropologist, and ethnohistorian.

He received a doctorate in archaeology from Yale University in 1964. His research interests at that time included the history of archaeological research and the comparative study of early cultures. He spent the following year teaching at Northwestern University and then took a position with the Department of Anthropology at McGill University in Montreal, and remained there for the rest of his career.

Reviews

[Ginger K · Rating 2 out of 5]

I keep this book to cure insomnia. I have never been able to get through an entire chapter without falling asleep, regardless of where or when I'm reading it. It should be interesting! It's not poorly written! I have NO IDEA what my problem with it is.

[Sohvi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and comprehensive book. For all those who are interested in archaeological methods and theories behind the practice.

[Annie]

Wow, welcome to grad school Annie...

[Riversue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bruce Trigger always comes through with succinct and insightful archaeological information.

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the theory dork in all of us.

[Benedikt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, as its title says, is a history of archaeological thought. The book opens with a short explanation of Triggers own theoretical stance, which serves to explain the underlying dismissive attitude towards certain other theoretical positions. Following that, the beginnings of archaeology in various countries are explored.

For the main part, it offers a very condensed overview over the entirety of archaeological theory. It follows the US/UK discourse on the topic in some detail, focusing on prehistoric archeology. Historic archaeologies are mostly left out. Although Trigger discusses this discrepancy, readers interested in historic archaeologies might feel that a lot of the issues discussed in this book do not apply to them (which is wrong), or apply to them in a very different way. Additionally, while Trigger very valiantly tries to incorporate non-English literature and even non-Western perspectives, they are still severely underrepresented. This can hardly be blamed on the author, as the current book as it is already incorporates a vast amount of literature, and Trigger does offer the starting point for several other perspectives both in the text and the bibliography.

The book ends with a conclusion by Trigger, in which he discusses limitations, problems and methods of contemporary archaeology. This part is among the most complex of the book, and assumes that the reader has understood the last few hundred pages of archaeological thought. It is also the part that will be of interest to readers already familiar with archaeological thought, and want to know Trigger's opinion on the subject.
The commented and exhaustive bibliography is a good starting point for anyone interested in specific problems.

I found the book relatively accessible and easy to read. It is however not the beginner-friendly entry into archaeological theory that some reading lists make it appear to be. Even though most terms are (briefly) explained, without general knowledge about the history of science readers will probably feel overwhelmed by the many -isms that appear and reappear throughout the book. Without some idea about archaeological literature it will also be hard to understand its relevance. A further complication is that the book actually follows a narrative, in the sense that it tries to explain the archaeological thought as a gradual development. The constant cross-referencing within the text means the individual chapters do not stand alone too well, and it is advisable to read them in order.

"A History of Archaeological Thought" is therefore of interest mainly to advanced students of archaeology and scientists from other disciplines, trying to understand where archaeology came from and where it currently stands. Despite any claims to the contrary, it is not an introduction to archaeological theory, and it will probably be terribly boring for anyone not interested in scientific thought.

[Samuel Beer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I ended up reading it in less than a year. Barely. The breaks in reading were many.

I don't feel particularly qualified to write a review about it, as approximately the entirety of everything I know about the history of archaeological thought is what I learned in this book--I don't know how to evaluate its content in a way external to it itself. I would say that it seemed like Trigger tried to strike an interesting balance between summarizing 300ish years of different schools of thought in archaeology, including ongoing controversies, and putting forth his vision for an ideal theory of archaeology. In the last few chapters, in particular, he tries to find a middle way between hyper-relativists and hyper-positivists, and has pretty strong words for both extremes.

The last 20 pages really successfully recapitulate a lot of the rest of the content of the book. They were a nice way to finish reading it, as they left me feeling like I had a better grip of the broader themes that he was dealing with than I had had when lost in the very specific details.

My current interest in archaeology is stimulated by a desire to situate myself to do collaborative research with archaeologists in the future, or to incorporate archaeological methods/findings into my work in historical linguistics. There was no discussion of interdisciplinary work with linguists, which was a little bit disappointing to me, but also is not obviously an issue of theory, but rather of practice, so I can see it not having as much of a place in this book. Additionally, collaboration between linguists and archaeologists may not have been as prominent in 1989, when my edition of this book was published, as it is now.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trigger is the definitive text when it comes to understanding the historical context for archaeological theory.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I probably read about 1/3 of this book.

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

A staple for archaeology programs. Trigger lays everything out in terms of archaeological theory up to its publishing date. Still keep my copy on my bookshelf for reference.

[Hilda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need to get through this book to be aware on the rennaisance period since I am the junior archaeologists without forget geography from University of Dar es saalam Tanzania.

[James]

In its original edition, Bruce Trigger's book was the first ever to examine the history of archaeological thought from medieval times to the present in world-wide perspective. Now, in this new edition, he both updates the original work and introduces new archaeological perspectives and concerns. At once stimulating and even-handed, it places the development of archaeological thought and theory throughout within a broad social and intellectual framework. The successive but interacting trends apparent in archaeological thought are defined and the author seeks to determine the extent to which these trends were a reflection of the personal and collective interests of archaeologists as these relate - in the West at least - to the fluctuating fortunes of the middle classes. While subjective influences have been powerful, Professor Trigger argues that the gradual accumulation of archaeological data has exercised a growing constraint on interpretation. In turn, this has increased the objectivity of archaeological research and enhanced its value for understanding the entire span of human history and the human condition in general.

[Valeria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frankly, it's dreadful to sit through out of context. I was lucky enough to absorb it through a college class, with a professor who was already intimately familiar with it. It's excellent with breaks and precise notes.

Even a few years later, I often think back to this. It opened up an entirely new perspective on the world. It's stuffed to the brim with interesting ideas, historical tidbits, and opens up fantastic discussion. I quoted Trigger in nearly every essay I wrote for an art history course after. If you have the patience, it's fantastic.

[Che · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very informative, but also very dense, it can seem to go on and on, but ultimately you do learn archaeology from a historical point of view in way of a timeline. You also get the unique perspective of Trigger. My advise would be to skim read if you are short on time, you can still get the gist of the chapters in that way. I hate skim reading though, but that was suggested to me while I was reading.

[Fie Lenz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trigger has the incredible talent of saying very little with way too many words. If you have trouble falling asleep, please do pick up this book. I experience a pavlovian response every time I open this book, and I suddenly forget years of sleep troubles.
That being said, this book did (possibly) help me through my latest exam, so I will forever defend the man with my life. Trigger, help me get a good grade on this exam and my life is yours.

[Jagdev · Rating 5 out of 5]

A summary of the iterative process by which we have examined our past, and at the same time expanded the frame of reference with which we view it.

A fascinating book that, in addition to discussing the progress of archaeology as an evolving science, touches upon the mutual influence of archaeology and the many sciences of understanding human behaviour.

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this opportunity to geek out. Understanding how a field has developed makes it so much easier to understand rationales for current practices. Context is so key. My interest did slowly wane in the latter half. It became a bit of a slog, so I was very ready to be done by the end of it, but yay me for finishing!

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Felt like the intellectual historian in me was yawning for something more! This was a good chronology and survey of archaeological theory, certainly. But interesting explanatory stories for these movements? That felt surface level.

[Alyssa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Only read this if you're forced to.

[Riversue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trigger covers complex concepts easily. This book is a great history that clearly and concisely explains the evolution of archaeological thought.

[Jane]

I got this book initially for my History of Archaeology class at uni.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first time I read this book, I read it in a week. I didn't like it. The second time I read it, I was under pressure and I hated it. This is the type of book that deserves some time, like a soup sitting all day in a crock pot. It's understandable that people find that "A History of Archaeological Thought" as an overwhelming and daunting book, but if read slowly over time in digestible chunks, then, it becomes interesting.

Archaeologists are influenced by the world around them, and this becomes reflected in their production of archaeological thought. Readers can see this pattern happening from the birth of archaeology, to culture history and beyond. Is Trigger somewhat biased, yes, but one needs to keep this in mind when reading the book. Undoubtedly, there is more information here than most readers want to know, but it serves as an excellent resource for those who want to know more. Be sure and take notes, or use the kindle version to annotate the book. However, with that said Matthew Johnson's Archaeological Theory: An Introduction, gets down to the point without getting bogged down in the details.

[Catherine Bishop · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only read a few chapters for my studies, but this is really boring. Hard to read. Hard to understand. Hard to stay motivated to carry on.

However, a pretty important book for archaeological theory.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to have on your shelf if only for the bibliography. Trigger includes many non-English sources that I would have otherwise overlooked. Definitely a dry read, but it does give a fairly comprehensive overview of the development of the discipline.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good at describing the various ways of approaching archaeology through the ages using specific sites as examples.

[Lee Broderick · Rating 3 out of 5]

A comprehensive guide to the subject: to the extent that "consulting Trigger" is a phrase known to most archaeologists.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first chapter was very confusing, as was some of the later ones, but maybe that's just because I am not so good with the theoretical stuff...BUt I would recommend reading the first chapter last.

[Jaime · Rating 3 out of 5]

An impressive life's work, but I prefer the updated 2nd edition.

[Caitlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

trying to read whole chapters for Archaeology tutorials was such a hard thing. kept putting me to sleep.

[Nadia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely comprehensive, a bit to its detriment.