Feminist Archaeology Paper

Gender has a strong impact on our society, just as it did centuries ago to many other societies. Because of this having a gender perspective in archaeology better helps archaeologists to understand different groups of people. As feminist archaeology has risen, there are those who argue against it, insisting that it is essential to maintain a neutral, non gender biased perspective when dealing with artifacts of the past. Willey insists that it is important to systematically explore the relevance of feminist insights as well as approaches in archaeology. Willey argues that in fact “a feminist perspective, among other critical, explicitly political perspectives, may well enhance the conceptual integrity and empirical adequacy of archaeological
Discussing the findings of St. Augustine, Voss shows that those investigations have inspired new research on gender and domestic life during that specific time periods adopted a very critical gender perspective on the body of research, showing that women in fact did have a role in imperialism. The remnants of the households comprised of Spanish men and indigenous women, as well as “Indian pottery” have come to prove this. In those households it has been determined that the (indigenous) woman’s place was in the kitchen, proved by the remains left behind, a clear tell sign that there were indigenous influences. This coexistence of colonizers an indigenous people have left behind a context that can be studied in order to determine the role of indigenous women in colonial dynamics. . Because of the Spanish inquisition, diverse political entities were brought under a single rule, and through these projects institutions and polices were consolidated. These policies included the relocation of indigenous individuals into European towns. Those involved in colonial encounters did not all share a normative gender model, while the Spanish mostly relied
“Feasts played an immensely important role in the social economic, and political areas of ancient cultures” (p.241). Women traditionally brewed the chichi beer and men tended to hold political power, which was benefited by these feasts, because of this it could be considered that “male elite power was… built …on… female work.” (242). The production of chichi was central to the woman’s identity, social power and autonomy, which they aggressively defended. Women remained firmly in control of the entire process, even today in the Andes, women brew and own, or at least control the use of the equipment used for brewing. They then “constitute the ‘productive base’ upon which sponsors rest their aspirations” (p.252). Without women these feasts would not doubt be impossible to host. To understand this society, one must first understand the gender roles that it is built