金手铲:80年代考古学的寓言(下)

这篇寓言小说叙述了“我”的一次坐飞机旅行的不寻常的经历,以考古学家最常用的发掘工具－一把金色的手铲为线索,以文学性的语言刻画了上世纪80年代三个美国考古学家的生动形象。新生哲学家是一个理论家,自诩为“理论的创造者”,而将他人贬为“理论的消费者”。70年代为骄子以编辑他人的见解为生,擅长将他人的观点变成自己的观点。以上二位从不参加田野发掘,但是却位居要津,声名显赫。老前辈是个传统而又守旧的考古学家,常年奔波在野外考古工地,但由于跟不上形势的发展而被迫提前退了休。他们争论的话题包括：考古学理论、基建考古学、课题考古学、考古学家的道德等等。小说发表后,由于其语言生动风趣,切中了考古学界的种种弊端,立即在学术界引起了轰动,堪考古学史上的一篇旷世奇文。

The Golden Marshalltown:A Parable for the Archaeology of the 1980s

This allegorizing novel narrates an unusual flying experience of mine, employing a golden Marshalltown as the clue, a digging trowel most commonly used by archaeologists, vividly and literally portraying three American archaeologists of the 1980s: the Born-Again Philosopher, the Child of the Seventies and the Old Timer. The Born Again Philosopher is a theoretician, always criticizing other people's opinions. He praises himself as the law producer, while denouncing other archaeologists as the law consumers. The Child of the Seventies makes a living on editing other people's viewpoints, who is good at borrowing other people's viewpoints and changing them into his own. These two guys never go to the field, but they gain high status and good reputation. The Old Timer is a traditional and old-fashioned archaeologist, digging in the field for many years, but he is forced to early retire because he can't catch up with the tide. Topics they argue include archaeological theories, Contract Archaeology, Problem-Oriented Archaeology, archaeology ethics, and so on. Finally the Old Timer wins and the other two are thoroughly refuted. Because the language the author used in this novel is lively and humorous, and its viewpoints reveals a few abuses in the archaeological science, it arose a stir in the academic circle as soon as the novel was published. Therefore, this novel can be called a world-famous masterpiece in the archaeological history.