Discourses on Modernity

Modernity’s heritage shapes contemporary archaeological and scientific thought, revealing enduring methodological and conceptual questions about humanity.

This collection provides interdisciplinary discussions of the impact of the heritage of modernity in archaeology and related disciplines from a theoretical and philosophical point of view. The ways the philosophical and scientific heritage of modernity shapes current human scientific thought is a much-discussed topic in archaeology, anthropology, and beyond. From central themes of modernity, such as reductionism, materialism, and physicalism, there is a connection to central archaeological and other concerns with the relationship of nature to culture – the biological, cognitive, and physiological, on the one hand, and the social, political, and epistemological on the other.

As a political and economic form, modernity also has fundamentally shaped modern archaeological and related scientific practices of “fast” and “slow” science. Modernity, however, was and is also in part a reflective, humanist project constantly reassessing itself and its own intellectual foundations, commitments, presuppositions, and biases. In this sense, any critiques of modernity arguably draw from this aspect of the heritage of modernity itself. All these issues pertain to fundamental methodological and conceptual questions about our understanding of the human past, present, and future that are discussed in this collection.

The book is a product of an international workshop held at Kiel University, Germany, on the topic of philosophy of archaeology. It will be of interest to theoretically minded readers in archaeology, anthropology, philosophy, social theory, and beyond.

Table of Contents

Foreword of the Series Editors

Preface of the Book Editors

Opening Words
V. P. J. Arponen, Artur Ribeiro, Konrad Ott

Towards Difference
Rachel Crellin

Archaeology and Metamodernity
Caroline Heitz

Analogical Reasoning and the New Materialism: Reactions to Discourses on Modernity
Jerimy J. Cunningham

Escaping Modernity with Modernity: Some Reactions to Reactions
V. P. J. Arponen

Origins of the Anthropocene in the Neolithic: A Contribution to an Understanding of the Deep Roots of the Modern Condition
Konrad Ott

V. P. J. Arponen PhD is a Junior Research Group Leader in the Reflective Turn Forum of the ROOTS Cluster of Excellence at Kiel University, Germany (EXC 2150 ROOTS – 390870439). His academic research focuses on various topics in the philosophy of archaeology and anthropology.

Arthur Ribeiro is a postdoctoral researcher in the Collaborative Research Cluster 1266 “Scales of Transformation – Human-Environmental Interaction in Prehistoric and Archaic Societies” (SFB 1266, Project number 290391021). His academic research focuses on topics in archaeological theory, philosophy, and European archaeology.

Konrad Ott is a full professor for environmental philosophy and ethics at Kiel University. He wrote a PhD thesis on the origins and the discursive logic of scientific history. His current fields of research are environmental ethics, climate ethics, sustainability, nature conservation, discourse theory, and philosophy of history. Konrad Ott is a PI of the Reflective Turn Forum of the ROOTS Cluster of Excellence.