The Past in Perspective: An Introduction to Human Prehistory

By Kenneth L. Feder

Book Overview

Ideal for introduction to archaeology and world prehistory courses, The Past in Perspective: An Introduction to Human Prehistory, Fifth Edition, is an engaging and up-to-date chronological introduction to human prehistory. Kenneth L. Feder introduces students to "the big picture"--the grand sweep of human evolutionary history--presenting the human past within the context of fundamental themes of cultural evolution. Written in a refreshingly accessible voice, this narrative of human prehistory personalizes the past and makes it relevant to today's students.

Using a consistent chapter format--Prelude, Chronicle, Issues and Debates, and Case Study Close-up--Feder helps students master both what we know and what is still being debated about the complex story of the human past. Each chapter also includes an overview; a timeline of events, maps pinpointing locations of sites discussed, site lists with page references, a chapter summary, key terms (defined in the glossary at the back of the book), and suggested reading lists.

New to This Edition

* Updated information about early hominin finds, including Ardipithecus (Chapter 3), Homo floresiensis (Chapter 4), Sima del Elefante Cave in Spain (Chapter 4), the reconstruction of the Neandertal genome (Chapter 5), and the spectacular array of artifacts recovered at Hohle Fels Cave in Germany (Chapter 6)

* New information on methodology, such as strontium isotype analysis for tracing geographic sources (Chapter 2), molecular archaeology (Chapter 5), and forensics (Chapter 1)

* New information and a summary that updates our understanding of the peopling of the Americas and Australia (Chapter 7)

* New chapter (8) "After the Ice: The Food-Producing Revolution"--a combined and streamlined version of Chapters 8 and 9 of the Fourth Edition--with new information about China and the domestication of the horse, as well as the complex at Gobeckli Tepe in Turkey

* New information on the Olmec and the recent excavation at Stonehenge (Chapter 9)

* A reorganization and updating of Chapters 10 and 11, with significant new material on China

* A greatly expanded discussion of the roots of complexity in Mesoamerica, South America, aboriginal North America, and sub-Saharan Africa (Chapters 12-14)

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195391357
• ISBN13: 9780195391350
• Release Date: November 2010
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, Incorporated
• Length: 576 Pages
• Weight: 2.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.8" x 0.8" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

Great overview of human development

This was the text for an intro to archaeology course I ended up dropping. Since I'll be signing up for the course again next spring, I decided to read it anyway. Most of my archaeology background comes from books like Lekson's The Architecture of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico (Chaco Canyon Series), Cordell's Prehistory of the Southwest (New World Archaeological Record), and Reed's Chaco's Northern Prodigies: Salmon, Aztec, and the Ascendancy of the Middle San Juan Region after AD 1100 on Ancestral Puebloans (AKA Anasazi or Hisatsinom) in the Four Corners area. So it's good to get a more general background from Feder. Feder weaves recent research into his narrative, making his book as current as books get. He also discusses different methods of dating, and many other techniques that reveal prehistoric cultures. His descriptions of field research in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe make me want to do fieldwork even more, especially after exploring Chacoan Great Houses and Anasazi outliers. A faculty member in West Valley College's Park Management program recommended Renfrew's Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice (Fifth Edition) as a more complete text. I haven't read it so I don't know how it compares. Feder's Past in Perspective reads a bit more like a New York Times bestseller than a textbook. His out-of-print Lessons From the Past: An Introductory Reader in Archaeology reprints relatively recent articles about unusual archaeological applications in forensics, and in reconstruction of recent history, like combatant movements during the battle of the Little Bighorn. Both books will give you a general idea of what archaeology is about.

Review for Past in Perspective

Book was shipped almost immediately, and in better condition than described. Would buy from this seller again.

The past in Perspective

This book is a necessity for the student of Anthropology/Archeology, it has a very easy to read format and in depth articles that could only increase a student knowledge in these subjects.

Strong on Fossil Forms, Weak on Latter-Day Cultures

I have used this book for about three years in my archaeology class, discontinuously I must admit. It's good for those who want a strong biological perspective in humankind's cultural evolution, but it comes up short when it comes to regional civilizations. Treatment of the state-level societies in each region (e.g., Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, Mesoamerica, Andean America) could be more detailed, and the book would be easier to follow if it used a sequence of culture model for each region from its Neolithic to florescence to decline. In treating fossil hominids and their material culture, from the earliest human and humanlike forms through the Lower Paleolithic to the Mesolithic traditions and their makers, however, this is a solid presentation.

Putting more than the past into perspective

Kenneth Fader's "The Past In Perspective" is a book designed for those who wish to learn the basics regarding the field of archaelology. Focusing on the cultural evolutions of mankind, Fader never lapses into the jargon so popularly found in some textbooks. This is a book designed to introduce over five million years of human evolution, so naturally it is best for those who are new to the topic. Although I used this book for my archeology class, it contains information that could interest anyone with a flair for history. All in all, it is easy of to follow and does its best to represent all sides of arguments that are presented, although at times it seems to stress a war between religous and evolutionary ideas that may, or may not exist as much as the author would like them to.