Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record
Children and subadults were obviously part of ancient human communities, and almost certainly, in important ways their activities were distinctive; they did not routinely act like scaled down adults. Yet their presence was quite cryptic, but not entirely hidden. Their lives and acts did leave traces...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Evolutionary Human Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2513843X21000098/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1811156358657998848 |
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| author | Kim Sterelny |
| author_facet | Kim Sterelny |
| author_sort | Kim Sterelny |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Children and subadults were obviously part of ancient human communities, and almost certainly, in important ways their activities were distinctive; they did not routinely act like scaled down adults. Yet their presence was quite cryptic, but not entirely hidden. Their lives and acts did leave traces, although these tend to be be fragile, ambiguous and fast-fading. In addition to pursuing the methodological issues posed by the detection of subadult lives, this special issue raises important questions about the role of children, and their willingness to experiment and play, on innovation. It is true that ethnographically known forager children are almost certainly more autonomous, experimental and adventurous than WEIRD children, and this was probably true of the young foragers of the early Holocene and late Pleistocene too. Their greater willingness to experiment probably fuelled a supply of variation, and perhaps occasionally adaptation as well, especially finding new uses for existing materials. Much more certainly, innovations tend to be noted, taken up and spread by adolescents. They were vectors of change, even if perhaps only rarely initiators of change. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:50:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-27eb7c1fdc8a40abafb678a3b1aca132 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2513-843X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T04:50:12Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Evolutionary Human Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-27eb7c1fdc8a40abafb678a3b1aca1322023-03-09T12:32:19ZengCambridge University PressEvolutionary Human Sciences2513-843X2021-01-01310.1017/ehs.2021.9Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological recordKim Sterelny0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3159-6698School of Philosophy, ANU, AustraliaChildren and subadults were obviously part of ancient human communities, and almost certainly, in important ways their activities were distinctive; they did not routinely act like scaled down adults. Yet their presence was quite cryptic, but not entirely hidden. Their lives and acts did leave traces, although these tend to be be fragile, ambiguous and fast-fading. In addition to pursuing the methodological issues posed by the detection of subadult lives, this special issue raises important questions about the role of children, and their willingness to experiment and play, on innovation. It is true that ethnographically known forager children are almost certainly more autonomous, experimental and adventurous than WEIRD children, and this was probably true of the young foragers of the early Holocene and late Pleistocene too. Their greater willingness to experiment probably fuelled a supply of variation, and perhaps occasionally adaptation as well, especially finding new uses for existing materials. Much more certainly, innovations tend to be noted, taken up and spread by adolescents. They were vectors of change, even if perhaps only rarely initiators of change.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2513843X21000098/type/journal_articleForager childhoodforager social learningforager innovationchildren and innovationarchaeology of children |
| spellingShingle | Kim Sterelny Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record Evolutionary Human Sciences Forager childhood forager social learning forager innovation children and innovation archaeology of children |
| title | Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record |
| title_full | Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record |
| title_fullStr | Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record |
| title_full_unstemmed | Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record |
| title_short | Veiled agency? Children, innovation and the archaeological record |
| title_sort | veiled agency children innovation and the archaeological record |
| topic | Forager childhood forager social learning forager innovation children and innovation archaeology of children |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2513843X21000098/type/journal_article |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kimsterelny veiledagencychildreninnovationandthearchaeologicalrecord |