From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture

Part of: Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture," at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

In this symposium, we will examine the ways in which preconceptions about history both influences and has been influenced by the discipline of archaeology. It will address the dialogical relationship of cultural heritage between archaeologists, academics, indigenous groups, and non-archaeologists as mediated through the lens of popular culture. Functioning as one way in which history is transformed into heritage, pop culture within our modern era is also the main focal point of interaction that the general public has in perceptions of the past. This symposium will address how pop culture presents both "history" and those who are intimately tied to it, looking to understand how various representations in media—from television shows, film, books, video games, and more—has functioned to either perpetuate stereotypes or how it can be used as a means of regaining narrative control by these groups.

Other Keywords
Indigenous • contact period • Ethnography/Ethnoarchaeology • Media and Social Media • Ethics • Public Archaeology • Colonialism • digital media • Historical Anthropology • Coastal and Island Archaeology 

Geographic Keywords
Multi-regional/comparative • United States of America (Country) • Delaware (State / Territory) • Georgia (State / Territory) • Mississippi (State / Territory) • Tennessee (State / Territory) • North Carolina (State / Territory) • Kentucky (State / Territory) • West Virginia (State / Territory) • Virginia (State / Territory)

Resources Inside This Collection (Viewing 1-8 of 8)

  • Documents (8)
Documents
  • Archaeology and Comics: Cons, Concerns, and Creativity (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Paulina Przystupa.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Popular culture is important for gaging how archaeology is understood by the public. It allows us to evaluate what aspects of our discipline the public finds interesting and what the public misunderstands, despite a wealth of academic and scientific knowledge. This paper will focus on how...

  • Dungeons, Dragons, and Conquest: Using Fantasy to Address Topics of Colonialism, Archaeology, and the Destruction of Indigenous Culture (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Jesse Harvkey.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. In this research experiment, I use the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons to examine topics of colonialism, archaeology, and destruction of indigenous culture. Basing aspects of my fictional fantasy game on these real-world historical and modern-day issues, I plan to place my...

  • Indigeneity, Identity and Survivance through Ongoing Cultural Practices (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Thomas Munro-Harrison.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Through this project I aim to document the ways in which Indigenous artists exercise self-determination in expressing identity through creative means. A complex and significant issue is evident in the depiction of Indigenous Australians within the media which continue to stereotype or ignore...

  • "Life is Better in Flip Flops": Erasure of Coastal Indigenous and Gullah Geechee History and Communities by the Beach Vacation Industry (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Katherine Seeber.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Beaches have long attracted day-trippers and vacation goers who come to soak up the sun, splash in the ocean, and collect shells along their expanse. Nearly all coastal areas have their beach attractions and accompanying tourist industries. But the beaches along the American Southeastern...

  • Public Education about Archaeological Practice with…Spaceships?: An Archaeologist Writing a Science Fiction Novel (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Petra Elfström.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Archaeologists have always found popular culture a bit lacking in terms of realistic and ethical representations of their realm of study, from process to ethics to the actual subjects of the archaeological research. Even as modern archaeology progresses through improved technology and...

  • Representing Historical Culture on the Big and Small Screen: Success and Challenges from the Algonquian Chesapeake (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Buck Woodard.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. In what ways can archaeology and historical anthropology contribute to popular media representations of the past, and what responsibility do consultants have to ensure accurate portrayals of the peoples and cultures they study? For projects that combine dramatic performance, scholars and...

  • Synthetic Spaces and Indigenous Identity: Decolonizing Video Games and Reclaiming Representation (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Ashlee Bird.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. In her essay "Tradition and Performance", Stephanie Nohelani Teves details the importance of living Hawaiian tradition and identity, embodied by Kanaka Maoli performers. These performers preserve, shape, and embody indigenous tradition and knowledge, as well as personify what it means to be...

  • Teaching History with Digital Historical Games (2019)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Juan Hiriart.

    This is an abstract from the "From Tomb Raider to Indiana Jones: Pitfalls and Potential Promise of Archaeology in Pop Culture" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. Digital games and simulations based on historical themes or settings have been used in school classrooms for more than 50 years, however, still key questions concerning their representational appropriateness, educational effectiveness, and practical implementation remain largely unanswered....