Researching the Archaeological Past through Imagined Narratives: A Necessary Fiction

Description

Archaeological interpretation is an imaginative act. Stratigraphy and artefacts do not tell us what the past was like; that is the task of the archaeologist. The diverse group of contributors to this volume address the relationship between archaeology and imagination through the medium of historical fiction and fictive techniques, both as consumers and as producers. The fictionalisation of archaeological research is often used to disseminate the results of scholarly or commercial archaeology projects for wider public outreach. Here, instead, the authors focus on the question of what benefits fiction and fictive techniques, as inspiration and method, can bring to the practice of archaeology itself. The contributors, a mix of archaeologists, novelists and other artists, advance a variety of theoretical arguments and examples to advance the case for the value of a reflexive engagement between archaeology and fiction. Themes include the similarities and differences in the motives and methods of archaeologists and novelists, translation, empathy, and the need to humanise the past and diversify archaeological narratives. The authors are sensitive to the epistemological and ethical issues surrounding the influence of fiction on researchers and the incorporation of fictive techniques in their work. Sometimes dismissed as distracting just-so stories, or even as dangerously relativistic narratives, the use of fictive techniques has a long history in archaeological research and examples from the scholarly literature on many varied periods and regions are considered. The volume sets out to bring together examples of these disparate applications and to focus attention on the need for explicit recognition of the problems and possibilities of such approaches, and on the value of further research about them.   Cover Endorsement Half Title Series Information Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of contents Figures Tables Contributors Preface 1 Historical fiction and archaeological interpretation: Introduction Archaeological stories The borderline between archaeological fact and fiction Historical novels and archaeology Salammbô The Source The long history of fictive techniques in archaeology Fictive techniques in archaeological writing Vignettes Travel through time Travel through space Biographies Plays and diaries Fictional motivations Objections and challenges This volume References 2 The cornflakes of prehistory: Fact, fiction and imagination in archaeology Introduction Faction: the role of accuracy in novel writing Do facts exist in archaeology? Understanding the facts Speculation or inference? Does lack of proof matter? Good stories and the importance of critique The limitations of the imagination The peopling of the past New sources of information Constructing narrative: communication and content Constructing narrative: values Conclusions References 3 Voices from the silence Introduction The medium The material Conclusions References 4 Beyond archaeological narrative: Imagined worlds of Neolithic Europe Introduction Historical or archaeological fiction? Food and daily life Exchange and navigation Ritual and religious change The structure of Neolithic societies The nature of oral traditions Conclusions References 5 Imagined realities in academic and fictional accounts of the British Mesolithic Introduction Analysis of academic narratives of the Mesolithic The necessity of fiction Analysis of fictional narratives Conclusions References 6 Walking in someone else’s shoes: Archaeology, empathy and fiction Introduction Archaeology and empathy: examples Definitions Ethical and epistemological debates Archaeology and empathy: research Collingwood and Gadamer Conclusions Acknowledgement References 7 The multiverse of fiction: Exploring interpretation through community archaeology Introduction A theoretical approach to making the multiverse Case studies Vignale: narrating excavation through docudrama Pilastri: creative writing about ceramics Discussion: the interpretation within Towards the creation of social value Conclusions References 8 Entering undocumented pasts through playwriting Introduction Ethical challenges Practical challenges The problem Parting Time: a vignette Setting Characters Scene Analysis Discussion References 9 Encountering the past through slag and storytelling Introduction Slag: the story The facts? Storytelling and archaeology But what about the facts? You can’t just make things up! But even if the oil lamp is based on an artefact, it’s still just a story! Towards a theory and methodology of archaeological storytelling Conclusions Acknowledgements References 10 Writing wonders: Poetry as archaeological method? Introduction Definitions and delineations Poetry as method: context Poetry as method: practice (1)(iii) Expressing a narrative voice that is not the opinion of the writer/participant-voiced, from scripts (2)(ii) Inviting free-form thematic interpretation/researcher-voiced, overtly self-reflexive (3)(i) Engaging the reader in a manner that transcends standard representation/literature-voiced, responsive Conclusions Appendix References 11 Ambiguity and omission: Creative mediation of the unknowable past Introduction (GS) Theoretical frame (GS) Writing the past (VT) Visualising the past (GS) Imagining the past (GS) Conclusions (GS & VT) Appendix: The Master Mason Plates 12 Spartacus: Blood and Sand (STARZ, 2010): A necessary fiction? Introduction Visualising Rome: from material- to story-world Dramatising Rome: close encounters with humankind Spartacus’s historical fictions and the practical past References 13 Archaeology, historical fiction and Classical Reception Studies References 14 Imagining the past through Film and Cultural Studies Introduction Why care about accuracy? Are there different kinds of historical accuracy? Do historical media teach history? A necessary fiction References 15 Archaeological narrative and humour in a post-truth world: The obligatory sum-up article Narrative as method Developing empathy while preserving science Artistic expression Risks and advantages References Index