"Archaeology is a Weak Weapon for Political Action"? Reflecting on Marxism, Dialectics, and Praxis

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Praxis Makes Perfect: Celebrating the Academic Life and Times of Randy McGuire" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

One of Randy McGuire’s greatest contributions has been his clear articulation of a Marxist dialectical approach to archaeological research. The dialectic integrates theory and method, the parts and the whole, past, present and future, and the discipline of archaeology and larger society into a single totality. Praxis based on the dialectic of knowledge, critique and action aims to forge a space for archaeology to participate in the collective project of creating a different life, one that subverts and transforms capitalist inequalities and oppression, and strives for social justice and dignity for all humans. And while Randy centers his research on this concept of praxis he has repeatedly argued that archeology is a weak weapon to wield in creating a just world. In this paper, I summarize the implications of a Marxist philosophy of internal relations, explore these seemingly contradictory ideas of praxis, and reflect on the potential for archaeologists to use our craft to contribute to the larger Marxist project of creating a world without capitalism and its exploitation.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• Praxis Makes Perfect: Celebrating the Academic Life and Times of Randy McGuire

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 50314