query

Mary Hillis Freeman (X75660@CCVAX.FULLERTON.EDU)
Sat, 15 Oct 1994 10:36:58 -0800

I am currently gathering information for a paper meant to discuss the major
and minor players of one of the subfields of Anthropology. I have chosen my
subfield, Archaeolgy, and I have some good ideas for my major player/contrib-
utor, but a minor player has not arose from the depths of dusty old texts as of
yet. Here is my problem: a 'minor player' must be a contemporary to the major
player, someone who is not well-known but did many of the same things; and I
must explain through comparison, why the minor player's work remains unsung.
My question is, how do you find information on a person who isn't spoken of
in the literature? A person might've been famous, but may not have published
much at all, then again, the same could be true for an infamous person. Sev-
eral factors could have played into why they were not well-known: gender,
paradigm, geographical orientation, religious affiliation,etc. Heck, I
suppose decisions like the Tedlocks' could even be considered as a factor!
*impish grin*
If there are any of you who might have some suggestions regarding a minor
player or additional literature that would lead me to one, it'd be much appre-
ciated.
Ah yes, for those of you who might think that this kind of assignment is a
good idea, think again. It is my own opinion that decisions regarding student
assignments should not be made at 4:00a.m. after a gallon of coffee has been
consumed. But hey, what do I know, I'm just a student.

Sincerely,
M.H. Freeman