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Of Other Scapes: Archaeology, Landscape, and Heterotopia in Fascist Sicily

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Abstract

Foucault’s concept of the “heterotopia” has been applied broadly throughout the humanities and social sciences. Archaeologies of the recent past are well-suited to examine these “other spaces”: blurring the line between past and present while juxtaposing archaeological, archival, and ethnographic data, they can draw attention to the gaps, contradictions, and alternate orderings that make up the world around us. Using the extensive agricultural land reforms and building programs undertaken by Italy’s Fascist government in Sicily in the 1940s as an example, I extend the heterotopia concept to an analysis of archaeological landscapes, critically exploring the benefits and limitations of a heterotopic perspective in archaeological contexts.

Résumé

Le concept d’ « hétérotopie » de Foucault a été largement utilisé dans les sciences humaines et sociales. Les archéologies du passé récent sont bien adaptées pour étudier ces « autres lieux » : en brouillant la frontière entre le passé et le présent tout en juxtaposant des données archéologiques, d’archives et ethnographiques, elles peuvent attirer l’attention sur les écarts, les contradictions et les systèmes alternatifs qui constituent le monde qui nous entoure. En utilisant l’exemple des vastes réformes agraires et des programmes de construction entrepris par l’État fasciste italien en Sicile dans les années 1940, j’étends le concept d’hétérotopie à une analyse des paysages archéologiques, en explorant de façon critique les avantages et les limites de l’approche hétérotopique dans les contextes archéologiques.

Resumen

El concepto de “heterotopia” ideado Foucault se ha aplicado profusamente en todas las ciencias humanas y sociales. Los estudios arqueológicos del pasado reciente son adecuados para analizar estos « otros espacios » : a medio cambio entre el pasado y el presente yuxtaponiendo a la vez datos arqueológicos, archivísticos y etnográficos, son capaces de llamar la atención sobre las lagunas, las contradicciones y los ordenamientos alternos que forman el mundo que nos rodea. Utilizando a modo de ejemplo las exhaustivas reformas de terrenos agrícolas y los programas de construcción emprendidos por el gobierno fascista de Italia en Sicilia en los años 40, amplío el concepto de heterotopia a un análisis de los panoramas arqueológicos, analizando con una mirada crítica las ventajas y los límites de la perspectiva heterotópica en los contextos arqueológicos.

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Samuels, J. Of Other Scapes: Archaeology, Landscape, and Heterotopia in Fascist Sicily. Arch 6, 62–81 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-010-9129-5

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