Rural settlement in the age of reason : an archaeology of the southern Scottish Highlands from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries A.D
From the eighteenth century, the material environment of the southern Scottish Highlands underwent radical change. This material change formed part of a wider process of social change known as Improvement. In this, a re-ordering of space within the house and throughout the wider landscape was intimately linked to change in the daily routines of the farming population and, thus, to change in the ways in which people related to each other. Prior to Improvement, people routinely experienced their world as part of the community of the farming township or as part of the family. Houses, settlements, and fields were organised in such a way as to maintain these forms of experience. Against this background, an ideology of clanship, that is of a wider community, and concepts of hereditary tenure appeared as common sense. Improvement sought to re-order routine in such a way as to privilege experience of the world as an individual, apart from the community and the family. With this achieved, an ideology of the individual and concepts of private property would in turn be privileged. Improvement sought, in this way, to introduce capitalism to the countryside of the southern Highlands. This thesis is in part an exploration
Dalglish, Chris
CC Archaeology
Rural settlement in the age of reason : an archaeology of the southern Scottish Highlands from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries A.D. From the eighteenth century, the material environment of the southern Scottish Highlands underwent radical change. This material change formed part of a wider process of social change known as Improvement. In this, a re-ordering of space within the house and throughout the wider landscape was intimately linked to change in the daily routines of the farming population and, thus, to change in the ways in which people related to each other. Prior to Improvement, people routinely experienced their world as part of the community of the farming township or as part of the family. Houses, settlements, and fields were organised in such a way as to maintain these forms of experience. Against this background, an ideology of clanship, that is of a wider community, and concepts of hereditary tenure appeared as common sense. Improvement sought to re-order routine in such a way as to privilege experience of the world as an individual, apart from the community and the family. With this achieved, an ideology of the individual and concepts of private property would in turn be privileged. Improvement sought, in this way, to introduce capitalism to the countryside of the southern Highlands. This thesis is in part an exploration
rural_settlement age reason archaeology southern scottish_highlands sixteenth nineteenth_century material environment southern scottish_highlands underwent_radical change material change form part_wider process social_change know improvement ordering space within house throughout wide_landscape intimately_link change daily routine farm population thus change way_people related other prior improvement people routinely experienced world part community farm township part family houses settlement field organise way maintain form experience background ideology wide community concept hereditary tenure appear common_sense improvement seek order routine way privilege experience world individual apart community family achieve ideology individual concept private property would turn privilege improvement seek way introduce capitalism countryside southern highlands part exploration