The Meanings of Things

by Ian Hodder (Editor)

This book concentrates on the varying roles and functions that material culture may play in almost all aspects of the social fabric of a given culture. The contributors, from Africa, Australia and Papau New Guinea, India, South America, the USA, and both Eastern and Western Europpe, provide a rich variety of views and experience in a worldwide perspective. Some of the questions examined include: whether all material culture is equivalent to documents which can be read and interpreted by the outside observer; what is the nature of the messages or meanings conveyed in this way?; to what extent does acceptance, and subsequent diffusion, of a religious belief or symbol may be qualified by the status of the individuals concerned in transmitting the innovation.

Genres: Anthropology, Theory, Archaeology

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Ian Hodder is Dunleavie Family Professor of Archaeology at Stanford University. A Fellow of the British Academy, he has received numerous awards for his accomplishments, including the Oscar Montelius Medal from the Swedish Society of Antiquaries, the Huxley Memorial Medal by the Royal Anthropological Institute, the Fyssen International Prize, and the Gold Medal by the Archaeological Institute of America, along with honorary doctorates from the Bristol and Leiden Universities. Hodder is the author of numerous books, including Symbols in Action (Cambridge, 1982), Reading the Past (Cambridge, 1982), and Entangled: An Archaeology of the Relationships between Humans and Things (2012).

Reviews

[Birch · Rating 1 out of 5]

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[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic when it comes to contextual interpretation in archaeology. Many of the contributions in this book have become classics and they deserve to be!