In 1996 CHARLES ORSER published A historical archaeology of the modern world. To say that this book has been influential is an understatement; it has been a touchstone for a generation of historical archaeologists. Over the 20 years since its publication, and inspired by it, the field has changed significantly. Orser's ideas have also evolved and, in A primer on modern-world archaeology, he now offers what he calls "an abbreviated reconsideration [...] and [a] full, updated restatement of modern-world archaeology" (pp. v-vi). Central to Orser's approach is his adage that "all modern-world archaeology is historical archaeology, but not all historical archaeology is modern-world archaeology" (p. 20). The distinction lies partly in scale, theoretical orientation and the role afforded to textual sources. Yet most of all, the difference is in ambition: " [t]o understand our present, we must work back into the past to discover the historical roots of our times in order that we might--in the course of these investigations--discover ways to right the wrongs of the past and create a more just, equal world" (p. 20). Those 'wrongs' are manifest today in forms such as social and racial inequality, which are high on the political agenda.
Touchstone - Cambridge Classware 1-4
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