Fantastic Archaeology (3334)

“The sleep of reason brings forth monsters.”
~ Francisco Goya

Description

This course will introduce you to a number of claims about human history, introduce to you the tools needed to evaluate fact from fiction, and encourage you to think critically about your own beliefs.

What this course is

We will investigate topics relating to science and pseudoscience in archaeology. These topics include notable frauds, hoaxes, persistent myths, and the use of archaeology (and anthropology in general) to support national, religious, and ethnic ideologies. Each week we will discuss a specific theme and goal, but we will continually draw upon the knowledge introduced during the first three weeks.

First, we read and discuss the practice and goals of science, as well as how to distinguish good science from junk science. From there, we move towards discussing notable fakes and hoaxes in archaeology over the last 100 years or so. Though fakes and hoaxes are not necessarily pseudoscience, they are often a significant part of pseudoscientific claims. We then discuss ideas about the discovery of America and where Native American cultures came from. After this, we will discuss topics considered fringe or alternative archaeology. These include speculation about ancient aliens, Atlantis, psychics, monumental architecture, and the use of archaeology to bolster racism and nationalism. The final week, we will discuss some true archaeological mysteries.

I encourage you to ask questions and to challenge both me and the readings, so long as you keep an open mind (but not so open that your brain falls out).  In return, I promise to acknowledge when my knowledge is deficient and to use those opportunities to help all of us learn something. Acknowledging our ignorance of something is the first step towards learning more about it.

What this course is not

This course is not an opportunity for you to sit passively and listen to me lecture you on why Ancient Aliens is bogus.  I will not give you a laundry list of facts and figures about the past.  I expect you to come to class each week having read and thought about the readings.  Be prepared to both answer questions and ask questions.

To succeed in this course, you will need to learn how to to evaluate evidence and arguments, how to construct a logical argument, and how to be comfortable with ambiguity in knowledge. This course requires critical thinking and active participation.

The course content might cause you to think critically about some of your own dearly held beliefs. You don’t have to accept everything we’ll talk about in class, but you do have to understand it.

Required Text

Feder, Kenneth. 2017. Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Science and Pseudoscience in Archaeology. 9th ed. Oxford University Press, New York. ISBN: 0190629657

Additional Readings

All other readings will be posted in PDF form on Canvas.

Additional Information