Download or read book Archaeology and Ideology in Nineteenth Century Ireland written by Janis M. McEwan and published by British Archaeological Reports Oxford Limited. This book was released on 2003 with total page 150 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As McEwan argues, the past is well suited to manipulation and can be used to uphold particular ideologies, for example those dictated by the state. This discussion of the development of archaeology in Ireland in the 19th century places it within an intellectual and historical context to determine the inherent and external factors at work in directing and influencing its progress. With Foucault as the starting point, McEwan assesses a range of important ideological concepts, including romanticism, nationalism, imperialism and individualism, and asks whetehr archaeology and those individuals within it chose to embrace or resist them. Concluding that Ireland's past is both complex and contradictory, she reaffirms that Irish archaeology of the 19th century `was essentially contrived to serve the people rather than always upholding the power structure'.