In Defense of Things: Archaeology and the Ontology of Objects

by Bjørnar Olsen

Overview

In much recent thinking, social and cultural realms are thought of as existing prior to—or detached from—things, materiality, and landscape. It is often assumed, for example, that things are entirely 'constructed' by social or cultural perceptions and have no existence in and of themselves. Bjornar Olsen takes a different position. Drawing on a range of theories, especially phenomenology and actor-network-theory, Olsen claims that human life is fully mixed up with things and that humanity and human history emerge from such relationships. Things, moreover, possess unique qualities that are inherent in our cohabitation with them—qualities that help to facilitate existential security and memory of the past. This important work of archaeological theory challenges us to reconsider our ideas about the nature of things, past and present, demonstrating that objects themselves possess a dynamic presence that we must take into account if we are to understand the world we and they inhabit.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780759119307
Publisher:	AltaMira Press
Publication date:	07/16/2010
Series:	Archaeology in Society
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Bjornar Olsen is professor of archaeology at the University of Tromsø, Norway.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations vii

1 Introduction 1

2 Brothers in Arms? Archaeology and Material Culture Studies 21

3 Material Culture as Text: Scenes from a Troubled Engagement 39

4 The Phenomenology of Things 63

5 Tacit Matter: The Silencing of Things 89

6 Temporality and Memory: How Things Remember 107

7 Living with Things: Matter in Place 129

8 In Defense of Things 151

Notes 175

References 179

Index 197

About the Author 203

Editorial Reviews

This excellent book by Bjornar Olsen provides us with the best critical survey of material culture studies currently available. He also shows how writing about 'things' from an archaeological perspective makes new theoretical contributions.

Michael Rowlands

It is delightful to read an archaeological work that is so fluent with the history and uses of philosophical traditions and their effects on archaeological debates. Equally refreshing is Olsen’s decision to abstain from creating a cavalcade of case studies, although the number of examples and
their analyses increase towards the end of the book. The conventional way of writing archaeological theory as a series of case studies is often tedious for readers as well as restrictive for theoretical discussion. In fact, the absence of case studies could be seen as an implication of Olsen’s position:
at its best, writing about things makes the neat distinction between an ‘abstract’, theoretical introduction and the subsequent, ‘concrete’ case study questionable. Olsen’s book is an imperative call for new ways of making archaeological theory relevant for other disciplines and is a reminder of the importance of ontological difference in thinking about things.

European Journal of Archaeology

Since the emergence of 'material culture studies' in the 1980s, there has been a growing need for a more fundamental rethinking of the nature of material things. This excellent book is one of the most sustained and sophisticated attempts that has been made to grapple with the problems of the tangible world, and it is to be unreservedly recommended.

Julian Thomas

Much recent theoretical discourse in archaeology is focused on active, relational objects conceived as entanglements,assemblages, and bundles of things. In Defense of Things is a timely, highly readable explication of the ideas and philosophy behind this turn towards object ontologies. Social scientists and particularly archaeologists interested in materiality studies could not ask for a more lucid introduction to the issues in play. Olsen’s central thesis is echoed in recent works by Nicole Boivin, Ian Hodder, Chris Webmoor and Tim Witmore, and Carl Knappett and Lambros Malafouris, among others. Inspired by Merleau-Ponty as well as by Latour, Olsen argues that it is time for social scientists to transcend the material/ideal split that is the heritage of Cartesian philosophy, and to give things their proper due as central to human existence. His self-avowed ‘bricolage’ approach to the topic contains very clear, concise discussions of key literature and ideas, thankfully without the hubristic language that distracts from the writings of some of his colleagues.. . I highly recommend this book as an elegant, well-written, well-reasoned introduction to the recent turn toward object ontologies in archaeology.

Journal of Design History

In Defense of Things is both an unequivocal sign of paradigm change and of the maturity achieved by archaeological thinking. As one of the three most important books in archaeology over the last decade, it deserves to become the reference book of archaeological theory for the next two, at least. Moreover, it places archaeology on an equal footing with other social sciences: this, in itself, is a profound contribution.

Archaeolog

This excellent book by Bjornar Olsen provides us with the best critical survey of material culture studies currently available. He also shows how writing about 'things' from an archaeological perspective makes new theoretical contributions.--Michael Rowlands, University College London

Since the emergence of 'material culture studies' in the 1980s, there has been a growing need for a more fundamental rethinking of the nature of material things. This excellent book is one of the most sustained and sophisticated attempts that has been made to grapple with the problems of the tangible world, and it is to be unreservedly recommended.--Julian Thomas, University of Manchester

It is delightful to read an archaeological work that is so fluent with the history and uses of philosophical traditions and their effects on archaeological debates. Equally refreshing is Olsen's decision to abstain from creating a cavalcade of case studies, although the number of examples and their analyses increase towards the end of the book. The conventional way of writing archaeological theory as a series of case studies is often tedious for readers as well as restrictive for theoretical discussion. In fact, the absence of case studies could be seen as an implication of Olsen's position: at its best, writing about things makes the neat distinction between an 'abstract', theoretical introduction and the subsequent, 'concrete' case study questionable. Olsen's book is an imperative call for new ways of making archaeological theory relevant for other disciplines and is a reminder of the importance of ontological difference in thinking about things.--European Journal of Archaeology

From the Publisher

It is delightful to read an archaeological work that is so fluent with the history and uses of philosophical traditions and their effects on archaeological debates. Equally refreshing is Olsen’s decision to abstain from creating a cavalcade of case studies, although the number of examples and their analyses increase towards the end of the book. The conventional way of writing archaeological theory as a series of case studies is often tedious for readers as well as restrictive for theoretical discussion. In fact, the absence of case studies could be seen as an implication of Olsen’s position:
at its best, writing about things makes the neat distinction between an ‘abstract’, theoretical introduction and the subsequent, ‘concrete’ case study questionable. Olsen’s book is an imperative call for new ways of making archaeological theory relevant for other disciplines and is a reminder of the importance of ontological difference in thinking about things.

European Journal Of Archaeology

In Defense of Things is both an unequivocal sign of paradigm change and of the maturity achieved by archaeological thinking. As one of the three most important books in archaeology over the last decade, it deserves to become the reference book of archaeological theory for the next two, at least. Moreover, it places archaeology on an equal footing with other social sciences: this, in itself, is a profound contribution.

Archaeology