The role of reflexivity and objectivity are both important concepts within archaeology. Beginning with reflexivity, according to Johnson, “Reflexivity refers to the back-and-forth, double-edged nature of academic enquiry, in which what we learn about the past is always and immediately bound up with practices in the present,” (Johnson 2011: 141). Archaeologists and other researchers who adapt a reflexive approach to the field, acknowledges personal or professional biases that could potentially cloud the results of the findings. Reflexivity simply allows the researcher to recognize how their own culture or political climate could alter their findings. It not only allows the researcher to better understand their findings, but also helps others …show more content…
This theory is not set in stone, nor did every processual archaeologist conform to rigid concepts. Instead, processual archaeology can be viewed as a movement from dissatisfaction in archaeology and laid the foundation to several theoretical approaches. One trait of processual archaeology is the embracement of a positivist perspective. Johnson provides a definition of positivism as, “…the belief that social sciences, including archaeology, should try to follow the historical path of development of the natural sciences,” (Johnson 2010: 40). Part of the processual movement moving archaeology toward a more scientific approach, while also shifting to be more anthropological. Through a positivist perspective, processual archaeologists were to view their work as a hard science and remain objective, like other good …show more content…
Marxism has changed over the years, but in its original form, “…it proposes that material things are more important than ideas,” (Johnson 2010: 95). At face value, this theoretical approach would seem attractive to archaeologists since archaeology is the study of humans through analyzing material remains. One positive aspect to arise from Marxism is the acknowledgment of the role of individuals. Marxism stresses that, “…active, knowing subjects have considerable impact on social processes,” (McGuire 1993: 132). Compared to processual archaeology, Marxism succeeded in combining critical thought with human agency, where processualism failed to successfully incorporate both. Specifically in the United States, Latin American, and Great Britain, “…Marxist theory challenges middle-class ideology and privilege, and it is espoused by individuals who are alienated from their class position,” (McGuire 1993: 103). Marxism is a theory that tends to focus specifically around class and status. McGuire illustrates a struggle within Marxists between, “…Marxism as a totalizing theory for social action and Marxism as a theory of critique,” (McGuire 1993: 129). Even though there were internal struggles within the school of thought, Marxism did display the importance of the individual, and revealed past class struggles in this
Marx sees history as a struggle between classes: “Oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an uninterrupted, now hidden, now open fight, a fight that each time ended, either in a revolutionary re-constitution of society at large, or in the common ruin of the contending classes” (Marx and Engles 14).
In order to understand Hay’s article, it is important to have a basic understanding of the fundamentals of Marxism – this will provide the necessary context to identify and understand the Marxist perspective in the article. Marxism is a political philosophy which focuses on social class and conflict as one of its main ideas. This is where one political class (the
One of the most important ideologies in Marxism is stated early in The Communist Manifesto, and that is “the history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles” (Marx and Engels 6). This is an important idea in Marxism and modern class structure is formed by the development of all opposing classes before it. Therefore, modern identity is intrinsically tied up in the class identity throughout history. This is shown the text when Marx writes that “the modern bourgeoisie is itself the product of a long course of development, of a series of revolutions in the modes of production and of exchange” (Marx and Engels 8-9). Furthermore, over the course of history, class warfare and revolutions in production have allowed the oppressive class to gain more power over the working class through the state, as “the modern state is but a committee for managing the common affairs of the whole bourgeoisie” (Marx and Engels 9). Class identity’s relationship to history serves two purposes for the working class. Firstly, it binds the oppressed class together through a shared history. This is important because the working class, or the proletariat, is bigger than the bourgeoisie, which is where most of the power lies (i.e. forming unions and striking). Consequently, much of the bourgeoisie’s purpose throughout history lied in keeping the proletariat separate and weak, primarily through competition for jobs. However, a shared history allows the working class to unite under common interests. The second purpose served by class identity’s relationship to history is that the proletariat are aware of the power structures, as well as that their own power lies in the unity. Therefore, over time the proletariat “ever rises up again, stronger, firmer, mightier” (Marx and Engels 22) as gains the advantage over the bourgeoisie’s own divisions, as well as its organization into
Marx had rather extreme views on the extent to which nature in his time had become humanized as a result of human labor. He commented, “Even the objects of the simplest, “sensuous certainty” are only given to him through social development, industry and commercial intercourse. ”[2] "Throughout their labor, humans shape their own material environment, thereby transforming the very nature of human existence in the process. ”[3] One always seemed to know their role in society.
On the 1st of November 2013, I performed my first simulation on the module, Foundation Skills for Nursing. This simulation was on checking for vital signs in patients particularly, measuring the blood pressure (BP) which is the force of blood vessels against the walls of the vessels (Marieb and Hoehn, 2010). We also measured the temperature, pulse and respiratory (TPR) rates of a patient. This simulation’s objective was to engage us in practising some basic observation techniques taken on patients in and out of hospitals and to familiarise us on some of the tasks we will be performing when in practise. I will be applying the “What”, “So what”, and “Now what” model of reflection in nursing by Driscoll (2000).
Archeology: in my own words, it is the study of the past through the “things” that were left behind by those who came before us. I imagine everyone can agree there’s something fascinating about picking up an old knife or a pot of clay and wondering what life was like when that object was created. It seems as though it should be no surprise that countless people could easily believe legends of a lost city or of great giants ruling the earth long ago. Personally, I feel the true value comes from the knowledge gained when one sets out to learn the truth behind the myths. And over the course of the semester, I’ve learned a number of concepts I plan to apply to my future (as part of a professional community).
Marxism is a theory of revolution and a rudimentary account of how societies deal with and go through change that is inevitable. Its roots can be traced back
Initial Reflective Essay When I first thought of what I wanted to do with my life after college, the first thing I thought of was helping people. The next step in deciding what I wanted to do with my life was to examine how I could accomplish this goal. I started pondering and I was thinking about how much I love to take care of my body. Health care and personal hygiene has always been an important factor in my life. So I decided to major in Health Sciences.
In his Manifesto of the Communist Party Karl Marx created a radical theory revolving not around the man made institution of government itself, but around the ever present guiding vice of man that is materialism and the economic classes that stemmed from it. By unfolding the relat...
The development of archaeology has created two types of archaeology, which are post-processual and processual. Both distinct schools goal is to develop an explanation and explain the past. Despite their similarities, both types of archaeology gather information and explain the evidence differently. Processual and post-processual both have their own historical development, expressed goals, theoretical orientations, and the types of cultural reconstruction made.
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’ The Communist Manifesto explores class struggles and their resulting revolutions. They first present their theory of class struggle by explaining that “The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles” (Marx 14), meaning that history is a repeated class struggle that only ends with a revolution. Marx and Engels’ message in The Communist Manifesto is that it is inevitable for class struggles to result in revolutions, ultimately these revolutions will result in society’s transition to communism.
Marxism tends to focus more on the rights of the working class as opposed to all of society in the way that pluralism does. After all, the ideas and theories of Karl Marx are most commonly interpreted as a critique of capitalism where the mi...
Karl Marx noted that society was highly stratified in that most of the individuals in society, those who worked the hardest, were also the ones who received the least from the benefits of their labor. In reaction to this observation, Karl Marx wrote The Communist Manifesto where he described a new society, a more perfect society, a communist society. Marx envisioned a society, in which all property is held in common, that is a society in which one individual did not receive more than another, but in which all individuals shared in the benefits of collective labor (Marx #11, p. 262). In order to accomplish such a task Marx needed to find a relationship between the individual and society that accounted for social change. For Marx such relationship was from the historical mode of production, through the exploits of wage labor, and thus the individual’s relationship to the mode of production (Marx #11, p. 256).
Any story can hold many clues and insights on information of the period to which it 's written. To find the information you must look beyond the text and the words we read closely. There are those in a society that investigate every piece of literature this way. Those select few named Marxists’ search for why our lower classes are so oppressed as compared to upper and middle class, why lower classes are being pulled to these non-fundamental developing jobs and many similar questions. Daniel Orozco’s “Orientation” compiles symbolic value to the meaning of Marxism and the information that can derive from within the story.
One of the subcategories of anthropology is archaeology. Archaeology is a field where archaeologists work to excavate different sites for artifacts.