|
|
|
|
||
|
||
|
|
Landscapes, rock-art, and the dreaming : an archaeology of preunderstanding Bruno David Published by Leicester University Press (2002) |
Book description
The apparent timelessness of the Dreaming
of Aboriginal Australia has long intrigued European observers, conjuring
images of an ancient people, much akin to Europe's own ancestral past,
in harmony with their surroundings. In this book, Bruno David examines
the archaeological evidence for Dreaming-mediated places, rituals and
symbolism. What emerges is not a static culture of long-standing, but a
mode of conceiving the world that emerged in its recognisable form only
about 1000 years ago.
As a world-view, the Dreaming in its various regional manifestations is
an example of what the philosopher Hans-Georg Gadamer has called
preunderstanding, a condition of knowledge that guides interpretation
and that shapes one's experience of the world. By tracing through time
the archaeological visability of one well-known mode of preunderstanding
- the Dreaming of Aboriginal Australia - the author argues that it is
possible to scientifically explore an archaeology of preunderstanding;
of body and mind; alterity, identity and Being-in-the-world. Such an
investigation is ultimately also a self-reflective questioning of
various preconceptions that continue to inform Western notions of the
indigenous Other in a supposedly post-colonial world.
About the Author
Dr. Bruno David is a Logan Research Fellow and archaeologist in the Department of Geography and Environmental Science, Monash University,
Learn more about this book or order it
Other
publications by Monash staff 
|
     |
| Monash University ABN 12 377 614 012 | Australian
Government Requirements for International Students - CRICOS Provider
Number: 00008C | Copyright © 1994-2003 Monash University
Library - Caution - Privacy -
Last updated
25 January, 2006.
- Today is
7 September, 2008. 02:22 AM
|
