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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010117694 | DS815 .M53 2006 | Open Access Book | Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
This bold and illuminating study examines the role of archaeology in the formation of the modern Japanese nation and explores the processes by which archaeological practice is shaped by national social and intellectual discourse. Leading Japanese archaeologist Koji Mizoguchi argues that an understanding of the past has been a central component in the creation of national identities and modern nation states and that, since its emergence as a distinct academic discipline in the modern era, archaeology has played an important role in shaping that understanding. By examining in parallel the uniquely intense process of modernisation experienced by Japan and the history of Japanese archaeology, Mizoguchi explores the close interrelationship between archaeology, society and modernity, helping to explain why we do archaeology in the way that we do. This book is essential reading for anybody with an interest in the history of archaeology or modern Japan.
Reviews 1
Choice Review
This thin volume ambitiously and simultaneously addresses two important questions. One is how the establishment of archaeology as a modern academic discipline in Japan reflected the social change and intellectual climate, centering on its role in fashioning the Japanese nation/empire from the late 19th century and rebuilding Japan in postwar years. The other is to conduct a theoretical analysis or a "second-order observation" of the recent challenges to archaeology prompted by the postmodern critique that the discipline has faced in order to speculate on a possible alternative for its future development. Inspired by Jurgen Habermas and Niklas Luhmann, Mizoguchi (Kyushu Univ.) considers archaeology a communication system that not only connects the state and the populace, but also enables the latter to make sense of its world and construct its national and cultural identity. The fabled longevity of the Japanese imperial house is a good example, for it constitutes a centerpiece in the historical teleology of the Japanese nation. Under the postmodern gaze, however, the teleology becomes indeterminate and fragmented. This fragmentation, Mizoguchi observes, is not healthy for archaeology or the general society. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students/faculty. Q. E. Wang Rowan University
Table of Contents
| List of figures | p. ix |
| List of tables | p. xi |
| Preface | p. xiii |
| 1 Archaeology in the contemporary world | p. 1 |
| 2 Modernity and archaeology | p. 19 |
| 3 Communication, sociality, and the positionality of archaeology | p. 35 |
| 4 Nation-state, circularity and paradox | p. 55 |
| 5 Fragmentation, multiculturalism, and beyond | p. 121 |
| 6 Conclusion: demands for problematising and explaining one's position all the time | p. 165 |
| References | p. 170 |
| Index | p. 179 |
