History 231 Reading Guide
Discussion: The Evolution of Colonial America: Evidence from everyday life
- James Deetz, In Small Things Forgotten: The Archaeology of Early American Life (1977; revised and expanded 1996).
Questions:
- What methodological and theoretical issues does Deetz's study address?
- What evidence does he examine? Why is the detail important?
- What chronology of cultural change does he offer? In what ways is this a political chronology? How does his model incorporate evolution and break points? How does he incorporate regional diversity? Which cultural traditions do not fit?
- What causal model does he propose?