Mississippian Political Economy / Edition 1

by Jon Muller

Overview

An empirical discussion on the period. Muller brings the debate back to material evidence, preferring to avoid current tensions between the various interpretations of these societies. Much emphasis is placed on modes of production, distribution and consumption. This is a meaty study, which strives to broaden the horizons of Mississippian study.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780306455292
Publisher:	Springer US
Publication date:	06/30/1997
Series:	Interdisciplinary Contributions to Archaeology
Edition description:	1997
Pages:	458
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.04(d)

Table of Contents

An Introduction to Political Economy and Mississippian Political Economy. Historic Southeastern Chiefs. Natural and Cultural Basis of Mississippian. Material Conditions of Everyday Life: Biology. Culture and Reproduction. Production I: Base. Missippian Production II: Differentiation. Distribution, Exchange, and Consumption. Contradictions of Mississippian Political Economy. Index.

Editorial Reviews

Nine chapters present an area-wide synthetic approach to the various late prehistoric peoples, loosely called Mississippian, who lived in what is now the Southeastern US. Taking an explicitly materialist stance, the author places modes of production at the center of his study to consider the political economy, including direct production technology; the means of production, including social organization of production; the development of elite groups; and the characteristics of social reproduction. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

Booknews

‘The clarity with which Muller develops his interpretation is a model of responsible argument...;every researcher working on Mississippian will need to take Mullers book into account...The book is an exemplar of materialistic reasoning in archaeology.'
Choice (January 1998)
‘A masterful synthesis concerning the rise of Mississippian politics in Southeastern United States.'
Society for American Archaeology
‘Mississippian Political Economy is a must read if you are interested in the Mississippian societies and their historic descendants. No matter what your theoretical orientation, there is much of value in this book for you. Read it, and think about what Muller has to say. Your own work will be the better for it.'
Illinois Archaeology, 11:1-2 (1999)
‘For anyone interested in Mississippian archaeology, there is a great deal of value in the data presented and analytical methods used... crucially important to archaeologists interested in the millennium before European contact.'
The Review of Archaeology, 23:2

From the Publisher