Clearly there are significant differences of opinion as far as
archaeological theory is concerned, and I have no great interest in
trotting out lengthy polemic on the wonders of post-p and the horrors
of processualism (or vice versa). Much of that debate, as far as I am
concerned, has been had; I would like to simply avoid those terms,
since they invariably get someone riled and, on a email list, which
is more a series of soliloquies than a discussion, end up truncating
dialogue. Jeff Morris, your concern over the theorization of
historical archaeology is understandable, but I did not mean to
suggest the adoption of interpretive frameworks distanced from
archaeological methods or data. I probably don't need to point out
that a characteristic of much recent social science (including both
archaeological and historical) research has been a concern with
specificity, as well as its relation to broader cultural ideas; out
of an examination, for example, *on the ground* of changes in animal
husbandry practices, changes in arable farming regimes, changes in
rural industrial practices and changes in the structuring of
settlement and the nature of parish identity and everyday life-- from
landscape analysis, standing bldg analysis ('upstanding
archaeology'?), excavation, archival research, etc could come an
intimate, detailed picture of the nature of agrarian capitalism. The
key is to nest such a case-study within a broader context of
contemporary concerns (like the discourse of agricultural
improvement found in innumerable English texts of the 'long' 17th
century, political currents at that time, the more abstract ideas
about and analyses of the spawning of capitalism-- Marx, Weber,
others-- and so on and so on). This contextualization would
necessarily include familiarity with some of the work by
social/cultural historians and historical geographers which Craig
Spence mentioned. It would also include familiarity with theoretical
debates in the US, which Dan Mouer seems to imply those of us not
working in the States right now lack. Many of us don't.
 
In any event, the quality and breadth of that contextualisation (to
avoid some of the difficulties with, often very good, 'local
history') is very relevant to a discussion of international
historical archaeology. To continue with my example, agrarian
capitalism clearly played  (and is playing) itself out in
dramatically different way in different contexts (not least because
of the varying forms of resistance its instigators have met) and is
obviously intimately related to colonialism. Ideas about it held by
colonisers related directly to what was going on in their place of
origin, as ideas about improvement in Europe related directly to
colonised areas (this is often overlooked-- e.g. with regard to the
influx of new arable crops, new access to raw material resources,
new markets for cash crops and finished manufactured products, a
growing awareness that different people held different attitudes to
nature, etc). I don't know that every historical archaeological study
should attempt to relate itself to such broad themes, but the
potential is there and could form an interesting international link
as far as the discussion of research goes (as Iain Stuart suggests).
Capitalism is only one theme-- or metanarrative, if you like-- with
this potential (one which Matthew Johnson, with his recent Blackwell
book especially, is perhaps spearheading in Britain, but there are
others also doing relevant work).  What other work do people feel are
good examples which explicitly address this (or other) issues
internationally?? Jim Symonds has already mentioned his work in the
Outer Hebrides and Novia Scotia as one project which is concerned
with examining details agrarian capitalism and the Highland
Clearances, shifts in identity and the perception of ethnicity,
details of the settlement/colonization of parts of Novia Scotia and
a host of other issues.
 
Hoping this will generate some more discussion,
Bill
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bill Frazer
Research School of Archaeology
Dept of Archaeology
2 Mappin St
Sheffield
S1 4DT
 
tel (0114) 2225109
fax (0114) 2727347
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