Scholar/educator on indigenous and traditional ways of knowing, and their importance to addressing contemporary issues. Address: Mountain View, Hawai'i
Iconographic study involves the classic archaeological bridging trajectory that moves from observ... more Iconographic study involves the classic archaeological bridging trajectory that moves from observations on ancient objects (in this case, imagery) to conclusions concerning ancient social life (in this case, the intended subject matter or ‘meaningful referents’ of the images). The analytical vocabulary is intended to aid in that bridging effort, and Knight is particularly concerned with clear and precise definitions of concepts. The task is a challenging one, and the results appear to be somewhat unevenly successful. For instance, Knight rejects use of the term ‘iconography’ to refer to images themselves, seeing it instead as a field of study that traces the relation between image and referent. But he does apply the term to the world of the ancient makers of images, who had their own ‘iconographic models’ for recognizing subject matter. Thus, Knight chooses to emphasize a particular structural similarity between makers’ and analysts’ models: the fact that the models establish a relation between image and referent. That choice, however, distracts attention from the very different situation of the analyst compared to that of the maker and to the constitution of ‘iconography’ as a contemporary field of study. Another example, which illustrates both the challenges of developing the requisite analytical vocabulary and the promising aspects of Knight’s bridging efforts, is treatment of ‘theme’ as distinct from ‘motif’. For Panofsky, motifs were aspects of images, whereas themes were among the referents — they were what images referred to. Knight brings ‘theme’ to the side of imagery in order to develop a richer hierarchy of analytical units at different levels of synthesis. However, he finds that he still needs the term ‘theme’ over on the side of the referent, so he introduces qualifiers: ‘visual theme’ versus ‘theme of reference’. At first, this seems a bit awkward, but the overall structure here — in which visual themes are the outcome of several stages in the analysis of the imagery moving gradually towards an understanding of original themes of reference — seems to provide a rich and promising bridging scheme, just as Knight intends. A second goal of the work is to establish a set of core principles for the study of prehistoric imagery. At first glance, the most obvious candidates for these are the 18 ‘principles’, numbered and placed ostentatiously in boxes, scattered throughout the text. However, these constitute a heterogeneous set. One is definitional; others are general qualities of good arguments or specific methodological tips from an old pro; still others are basically theoretical claims about the structure of systems of imagery and the way such systems change. The boxed principles, though they provide pertinent advice, do not add up to the ‘core’ of an iconographic method; it would, for instance, be easy to expand the set further or to winnow it down. Still, this book does, it seems to me, provide a promising working understanding of how one should go about iconographic analysis of prehistoric materials. I would locate the ‘core’ of its analytical framework in that considerable expansion of principle number 17 that is the book itself. Principle number 17 somewhat vaguely envisions a ‘staged progression of analysis and model building’ (p. 161). The actual stages are outlined in the last chapter, but they are also replicated in the progression of chapters themselves. Iconographic work needs to be founded on a preliminary stylistic analysis. The configurational analysis of motifs and visual themes needs to be conducted independently from and prior to work on ethnographic analogies (or historical homologies), though ultimately it will be the bringing of the two together that will yield models of original themes of reference. Knight provides a detailed discussion of all the stages of analysis, with appropriate, well-illustrated examples. In my opinion, his dismissal of the direct historical approach is based on something of a caricature and leads to insufficient attention to the importance of series in arguments for historical homologies (e.g. Nicholson 1976). However, overall, this book provides students and scholars with a well-rounded analytical program for efforts to reconstruct subject matter, a crucial but of course not the only mode of analysis in the study of ancient imagery (Lesure 2011, fig. 17). Given that the intended audience is primarily students, it is a shame that the price of this book is ludicrously high ($99 in the USA); hopefully, it will be issued in paperback at a more reasonable cost.
Geografiska Annaler, Series B: Human Geography, 2006
In an era of postcolonialism and postcolonization, Indigenous struggles continue. Within ‘settler... more In an era of postcolonialism and postcolonization, Indigenous struggles continue. Within ‘settler societies’ issues of dispossession – particularly of lands – remain largely unresolved. As part of the discipline of geography’s active movement away from its colonizing project, this introduction to this special edition of Geografiska Annaler B seeks to (re)focus a disciplinary lens, and (re)open a dialogue – and potential research trajectory – about ‘indigenous geographies’. As the papers in this special issue demonstrate, new cultural geographies have begun a process of re-engagement with issues of indigeniety through careful, sensitive, inclusive, representative and emancipatory research projects.
National parks form an archipelago of government-run, on-site ‘‘museums,’’ geographic sites of te... more National parks form an archipelago of government-run, on-site ‘‘museums,’’ geographic sites of territorial and rhetorical nation-building. The War in the Pacific National Historical Park, which occupies seven parcels of land on the small island of Guam, celebrates the ‘‘freedom’’ that the U.S. brought to the region in World War II. But in fact, this landscape sits at the nexus of several contested territories. Guam was seized in the 1898 SpanisheAmerican Wardthe final wave of American territorial expansiondand experienced 50 years of dictatorship under the U.S. Navy, despite vigorous efforts by islanders to gain citizenship and basic rights. The post-war transformation of the island by the military came at the further expense of local land rights, and the park itself later got caught up in the struggle over federal land ownership. Disagreements within the park service and between the park service and the local people added to the contests. Finally and most importantly, the park-as-text presents a discourse of American military heroism against the Japanese, at the expense of recognition of Chamorro suffering, or of any historical marker tying the indigenous history of Guam into U.S. historical memory. The contradiction between U.S. expansionism and U.S. ideals is apparent in the way the park serves as a colonial tool in this remnant of the American empire. This paper examines the park as a narrative landscape within the fields of contestation that characterize U.S. rule on Guam.
Place names in the Hawaiian Islands reveal a transformation, from place names as reflecting Hawai... more Place names in the Hawaiian Islands reveal a transformation, from place names as reflecting Hawaiian geographic discourse, to place names as encoded within Western approaches to knowledge, commodification of the environment, and control of territory. In the course of this transformation, the language/order of the native peoples was displaced and subordinated to that of Western powers, ultimately the United States. This process was part of the greater economic, political, cultural, and discursive transformation of the Islands since Western contact. This essay explores the transformation from Hawaiian political and cultural economy into Western-capitalist forms, and uses place names to elucidate the change in geographic meaning that accompanied this change. In particular, the role of place names within colonial discourse is analysed in terms of the imposition of logos—order, knowledge, language—onto a space rendered passive, unknowing, and feminized. That Hawaiian names themselves remain relatively intact while their use, meaning, and context has changed is understood through Pratt’s notion of “anti-conquest” as expressed in the promotion of things Hawaiian once Hawaiians themselves were removed from power.
Iconographic study involves the classic archaeological bridging trajectory that moves from observ... more Iconographic study involves the classic archaeological bridging trajectory that moves from observations on ancient objects (in this case, imagery) to conclusions concerning ancient social life (in this case, the intended subject matter or ‘meaningful referents’ of the images). The analytical vocabulary is intended to aid in that bridging effort, and Knight is particularly concerned with clear and precise definitions of concepts. The task is a challenging one, and the results appear to be somewhat unevenly successful. For instance, Knight rejects use of the term ‘iconography’ to refer to images themselves, seeing it instead as a field of study that traces the relation between image and referent. But he does apply the term to the world of the ancient makers of images, who had their own ‘iconographic models’ for recognizing subject matter. Thus, Knight chooses to emphasize a particular structural similarity between makers’ and analysts’ models: the fact that the models establish a relation between image and referent. That choice, however, distracts attention from the very different situation of the analyst compared to that of the maker and to the constitution of ‘iconography’ as a contemporary field of study. Another example, which illustrates both the challenges of developing the requisite analytical vocabulary and the promising aspects of Knight’s bridging efforts, is treatment of ‘theme’ as distinct from ‘motif’. For Panofsky, motifs were aspects of images, whereas themes were among the referents — they were what images referred to. Knight brings ‘theme’ to the side of imagery in order to develop a richer hierarchy of analytical units at different levels of synthesis. However, he finds that he still needs the term ‘theme’ over on the side of the referent, so he introduces qualifiers: ‘visual theme’ versus ‘theme of reference’. At first, this seems a bit awkward, but the overall structure here — in which visual themes are the outcome of several stages in the analysis of the imagery moving gradually towards an understanding of original themes of reference — seems to provide a rich and promising bridging scheme, just as Knight intends. A second goal of the work is to establish a set of core principles for the study of prehistoric imagery. At first glance, the most obvious candidates for these are the 18 ‘principles’, numbered and placed ostentatiously in boxes, scattered throughout the text. However, these constitute a heterogeneous set. One is definitional; others are general qualities of good arguments or specific methodological tips from an old pro; still others are basically theoretical claims about the structure of systems of imagery and the way such systems change. The boxed principles, though they provide pertinent advice, do not add up to the ‘core’ of an iconographic method; it would, for instance, be easy to expand the set further or to winnow it down. Still, this book does, it seems to me, provide a promising working understanding of how one should go about iconographic analysis of prehistoric materials. I would locate the ‘core’ of its analytical framework in that considerable expansion of principle number 17 that is the book itself. Principle number 17 somewhat vaguely envisions a ‘staged progression of analysis and model building’ (p. 161). The actual stages are outlined in the last chapter, but they are also replicated in the progression of chapters themselves. Iconographic work needs to be founded on a preliminary stylistic analysis. The configurational analysis of motifs and visual themes needs to be conducted independently from and prior to work on ethnographic analogies (or historical homologies), though ultimately it will be the bringing of the two together that will yield models of original themes of reference. Knight provides a detailed discussion of all the stages of analysis, with appropriate, well-illustrated examples. In my opinion, his dismissal of the direct historical approach is based on something of a caricature and leads to insufficient attention to the importance of series in arguments for historical homologies (e.g. Nicholson 1976). However, overall, this book provides students and scholars with a well-rounded analytical program for efforts to reconstruct subject matter, a crucial but of course not the only mode of analysis in the study of ancient imagery (Lesure 2011, fig. 17). Given that the intended audience is primarily students, it is a shame that the price of this book is ludicrously high ($99 in the USA); hopefully, it will be issued in paperback at a more reasonable cost.
Geografiska Annaler, Series B: Human Geography, 2006
In an era of postcolonialism and postcolonization, Indigenous struggles continue. Within ‘settler... more In an era of postcolonialism and postcolonization, Indigenous struggles continue. Within ‘settler societies’ issues of dispossession – particularly of lands – remain largely unresolved. As part of the discipline of geography’s active movement away from its colonizing project, this introduction to this special edition of Geografiska Annaler B seeks to (re)focus a disciplinary lens, and (re)open a dialogue – and potential research trajectory – about ‘indigenous geographies’. As the papers in this special issue demonstrate, new cultural geographies have begun a process of re-engagement with issues of indigeniety through careful, sensitive, inclusive, representative and emancipatory research projects.
National parks form an archipelago of government-run, on-site ‘‘museums,’’ geographic sites of te... more National parks form an archipelago of government-run, on-site ‘‘museums,’’ geographic sites of territorial and rhetorical nation-building. The War in the Pacific National Historical Park, which occupies seven parcels of land on the small island of Guam, celebrates the ‘‘freedom’’ that the U.S. brought to the region in World War II. But in fact, this landscape sits at the nexus of several contested territories. Guam was seized in the 1898 SpanisheAmerican Wardthe final wave of American territorial expansiondand experienced 50 years of dictatorship under the U.S. Navy, despite vigorous efforts by islanders to gain citizenship and basic rights. The post-war transformation of the island by the military came at the further expense of local land rights, and the park itself later got caught up in the struggle over federal land ownership. Disagreements within the park service and between the park service and the local people added to the contests. Finally and most importantly, the park-as-text presents a discourse of American military heroism against the Japanese, at the expense of recognition of Chamorro suffering, or of any historical marker tying the indigenous history of Guam into U.S. historical memory. The contradiction between U.S. expansionism and U.S. ideals is apparent in the way the park serves as a colonial tool in this remnant of the American empire. This paper examines the park as a narrative landscape within the fields of contestation that characterize U.S. rule on Guam.
Place names in the Hawaiian Islands reveal a transformation, from place names as reflecting Hawai... more Place names in the Hawaiian Islands reveal a transformation, from place names as reflecting Hawaiian geographic discourse, to place names as encoded within Western approaches to knowledge, commodification of the environment, and control of territory. In the course of this transformation, the language/order of the native peoples was displaced and subordinated to that of Western powers, ultimately the United States. This process was part of the greater economic, political, cultural, and discursive transformation of the Islands since Western contact. This essay explores the transformation from Hawaiian political and cultural economy into Western-capitalist forms, and uses place names to elucidate the change in geographic meaning that accompanied this change. In particular, the role of place names within colonial discourse is analysed in terms of the imposition of logos—order, knowledge, language—onto a space rendered passive, unknowing, and feminized. That Hawaiian names themselves remain relatively intact while their use, meaning, and context has changed is understood through Pratt’s notion of “anti-conquest” as expressed in the promotion of things Hawaiian once Hawaiians themselves were removed from power.
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