Conceptual Issues in Evolutionary Archaeology Research Paper

Conceptual Issues in Evolutionary Archaeology - Research Paper Example Jones is mainly recognized because of the many films he has acted, some of which include: Last crusade, Lost Ark Raiders and Temple of Doom among others (Winterhalder & Eric, 2000). In understanding the character of Indiana Jones, these films depict some of the traits that make him have a great influence over the people. Most of these films have similar plots, presenting the ways which Indy employs to prevent Hitler’s hands from holding the biblical artifacts. For instance, the movie that explains how the covenant ark was lost is a controversial story, by first trying to understand if the ark existed in the first place. Scholars have ever since tried to explain the whereabouts of the ark, but they have not yet come up with valuable conclusions to the issue (Bentley & Herbert, 2001). Some say it was carried to Canaan while others say that it was destroyed in Babylon.Another movie that approaches archeology in a better way is Last Crusade. It similarly explores another treasure in the bible- Holy Grail (Arnold & Nancy, 2001). This treasure like the ark has numerous stories surrounding its history. People have no clear idea of its existence, and where it finally went to. Some people claim that Arimathea Joseph carried the Grail to France with him, and this claims triggered Nazi to start his Grail search. In the movie, Jones acts brilliantly during their travel, by making marks on the way which in turn give him clues that guide him to the final resting place of the Grail.... His theoretical diversity in many of the movies he has acted, portray him as a real archeologist from the way he dresses to the way he presents himself. Processual archaeology presents three perspectives that we can employ in studying Indiana Jones: evolutionary ecology which predicts human behaviors in their ecological contexts, and evaluates their behaviors using ethnographic and archaeological data. Secondly, there is behavioral archaeology which focuses on when, where and how human behavior relates to material cultures. Arnold & Nancy (2001) explain that there is the Darwinian archaeology perspective that tries to reconcile Darwinian Theory and other scientific explanations of evolution. On the other hand, the postprocessual perspective comes up with criticisms of the early studies. Literature Review Postprocessual Archeology Postprocessualists are opposed to the ideas of science as the only source of knowledge. They generally classify scientific studies into non-positivist perce ptions with no basis (Johnson, 2010). For instance, these people claim that the empirical studies done by science are not satisfactory enough, since they do not have sufficient fundamental facts. According to the postprocessualists, we have active individuals hence, they do not agree with the views of archeologists who make individuals to be lost in their theories. They thus advocate for individuals to be active instead of following blindly the social norms and values that are presented to them. They then emphasize on agency as a tool of active individuals (Hegmon, 2003 & Hurt & Rakita, 2001). Focusing on their understanding, one can conclude that they urge archaeologists to consider rules that can be changed creatively by social