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Described by Lewis Binford in his new foreword as a "solid foundation on which to build a vital and growing historical archaeology," Stanley South's famous book on historical archaeology includes a new introduction by the author that discusses how the book came to be written and the evolution of the field. Widely regarded as one of the most influential books in historical archaeology, the book was originally published by Academic Press in 1977. ... Read more

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From the prehistoric peoples who inhabited the Americas at the end of the last Ice Age to the American Indian of the 20th century, this book encompasses the whole historical and cultural range of Indian life in Corth, Central, and South America. 32 pages of black-and-whitephotographs. ... Read more

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Pierre Clastres broke up with his mentor Claude Levi-Strauss to collaborate with Gilles Deleuze and Felix Gattari on their Anti-Oedipus. He is the rare breed of political anthropologist--a Nietzschean--and his work presents us with a generalogy of power in a native state. For him, tribal societies are not Rousseauist in essence; to the contrary, they practice systematic violence in order to prevent the rise in their midst of this "cold monster," the state. Only by waging war with other tribes can they maintain the dispersion and autonomy of each group. In the same way, tribal chiefs are not all-powerful; to the contrary, they are rendered weak in order to remain dependent on the community. In a series of groundbreaking essays, Clastres turns around the analysis of power among South American Indians and rehabilitates violence as an affirmative act meant to protect the integrity of their societies. These "savages" are shrewd political minds who resist in advance any attempt at "globalization." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Deleuze + Guattari + Strauss + Nietzsche + Marx + Schmidt+ Zizek= ???
You guessed it: Pierre Clastres.Obscure on google searches (save Franko-anarchist webblogs), Clastres is buzzing with ideas.Here's a primer:

Interested in combating neoconservative, fascist politics?

Interested in combating neoliberal, internationalist ideologies?

How do tribal societies combat power a priori?

What's wrong with Marxist anthropology?

How does war in primitive society negate both Hobbes and Levi-Strauss?

Why is primitive society the first affluent society?

How does a Chief function in society without power?

What exploitative methods are employed to reverse power flows?

Read the book, get a clue.

"What is the function of Primitive war?"
The answer, to create dispersal, the prevention of power accumulation and the unified hierachical state.This is one of the central thesis' in Clastre's "Archaeology of Violence".In it he argues that alongwith the defining of territorial limits( which provide incentives for astabilized population ), the primitive war behaves in the opposite mannerof the classical war, seeking dispersal and reductions of power, ratherthan the accumulations of it.By preventing tribes from becoming unified,the emerence of the state is avoided.Also examined is concept of chiefswith no power.Chiefs may be elected as a temporary spokesperson for thetribe but posess no governing power over their people, rather they areelected just to represent the collective will of the people.Any Chief orwar lord who abuses their position would be mocked, disdained and notfollowed.This is an excellent study by the french anthropologist wholived among and studied the lives of the Yanomami people of the Amazon, indepth analyzing their state and power(or lack of) ... Read more

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Absolutely awesome photographs in bright colors. Tourist Map, with history and Archeology finds. ... Read more

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Stapled wraps. ... Read more