Richard Rudgley
Encyclopedia
Richard Rudgley is a British author
and television
presenter. He specializes on the topics of the usage of hallucinogens and intoxicants in society. He has also written about the Stone Age
and about Paganism
.
Rudgley completed a BA
in Social Anthropology
and Religious Studies
and went on to do a M. St. and M. Phil. in Ethnology
and Museum Ethnography at Oxford University. He is married and lives in London
.
His 1998 Lost Civilisations of the Stone Age addresses a popular audience. John Robb, reviewing it in Nature
summarised it thus:
In a review of the same work in Isis
, however, archaeologist Denise Schmandt-Besserat
is harshly critical, stating that Rudgley first fabricated a non-existent controversy about pre-historic cultures, then created heroes and villains by characterizing archaeologists as "wicked morons who conspire to keep prehistory in obscurity". She suggests that Rudgley "uses data like a magician" picking data from all over the world and stretching back a million years to make his case and that "like the fancy gesturing of the magician that distracts the audience from the trick, the avalanche of erudition hides Rudgley's weak argumentation". She also criticizes his use of the key terms 'prehistory' and 'civilization', which he fails to define, arguing that he misuses them, and points out that he uses the term 'tribalism' to describe prehistoric cultures although we do not know if there were tribes in prehistory. She concludes that "One must grant that the alleged controversy and conspiracy, the simplistic plot and biased discussion, all help to make the book entertaining. The entertainment, however, comes at considerable cost", the cost being at the expense of the work of the prehistorians whose research made his book possible."
Rudgley's 2006 Pagan Resurrection, subtitled A Force for Evil or the Future of Western Spirituality? posits the idea that western civilisation, belief systems and attitudes have been formed by the "Odin
ic archetype". The influence of Christianity
, he says, has been relatively recent and shallow.
Rudgley spends much of the book emphasizing the dark and violent side of Odin, according to Independent reviewer David V. Barrett, "committing the ultimate sin of any anthropologist or historian, back-projecting from highly selective examples of unpleasantness today and photo-fitting them to a distorted image from the mythological past". Barrett concludes that Rudgely's book is "a catalogue of racist individuals and organisations whose only connection with Odin, through very dubious links, is by assertion rather than argument."
entitled Secrets of the Stone Age.
He also presented Pagans in 2004.
The Financial Times
review of the 2004 Pagans series commented how Rudgley "is keen to 'sex up' history ... You can see the glee of the programme makers when Richard revealed the ingredients for his new four-part series - pagan rituals (naked maidens a speciality), bestiality, free love, violence, nudity."
The Times
reviewer Joe Joseph remarked that Rudgley's "revelations" of how Stone Age people and "barbarians" were clever, and how "we were all pagans once" were statements of the obvious, and how "Richard Rudgley's defence of the ancient pagans was based on the flimsiest of evidence", comparing the presenter to "the bar-room cleverdick who has a trick question ... just for the sake of being right on a technicality."
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
presenter. He specializes on the topics of the usage of hallucinogens and intoxicants in society. He has also written about the Stone Age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
and about Paganism
Paganism
Paganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....
.
Rudgley completed a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Social Anthropology
Social anthropology
Social Anthropology is one of the four or five branches of anthropology that studies how contemporary human beings behave in social groups. Practitioners of social anthropology investigate, often through long-term, intensive field studies , the social organization of a particular person: customs,...
and Religious Studies
Religious studies
Religious studies is the academic field of multi-disciplinary, secular study of religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing systematic, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives.While theology attempts to...
and went on to do a M. St. and M. Phil. in Ethnology
Ethnology
Ethnology is the branch of anthropology that compares and analyzes the origins, distribution, technology, religion, language, and social structure of the ethnic, racial, and/or national divisions of humanity.-Scientific discipline:Compared to ethnography, the study of single groups through direct...
and Museum Ethnography at Oxford University. He is married and lives in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Books
Rudgley's first book, The Alchemy of Culture: Intoxicants in Society (published in America under the title Essential Substances: A Cultural History of Intoxicants in Society) was the first winner of the Prometheus Award, launched by the British Museum Press in 1991.His 1998 Lost Civilisations of the Stone Age addresses a popular audience. John Robb, reviewing it in Nature
Nature (journal)
Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
summarised it thus:
Writing, surgery, drug use, monument building, detailed environmental knowledge, sophisticated artworks, technologies such as mining and smelting, language, musical instruments, tools fashioned with aesthetic sense as well as utilitarian function – all arose far earlier than either archaeologists have generally acknowledged or the public has imagined. The result is that we cannot consider our history as a simple story of the ‘rise’ from savage roots to a sophisticated present. Our ancestors, even tens of thousands of years ago, commanded surprising knowledge and expert skills.He goes on to indicate both the strengths and weakness of the book:
As Rudgley points out, with examples of ancient ingenuity abounding, there is no need to turn to ancient astronauts to explain civilization.
He takes Rudgley to task over his excessive extension of the meanings of the word "civilization" and his tendency to sweeping statements, treating all early societies alike and representing the exceptional as typical. He concludes:
Rudgley almost always finds himself taking the minority view over controversies, and his conclusions are occasionally facile or follow discredited authorities. But throughout the book we find clear exposition, a refreshing straightforwardness about the complexity of the archaeological record, a willingness to explore many sides of an issue, and a zest for discovery that makes it a page-turner.
The alternative (which Rudgley pursues within many chapters) would be to take societies on their own terms and look for the meaning of each invention within a society rather than checking it off on a list of traits of ‘civilization’. Prehistoric people did many weird and wonderful things; the way to read this book is as an entertaining and enlightening account of prehistory’s greatest hits.
In a review of the same work in Isis
Isis (journal)
Isis is an academic journal published by University of Chicago Press. It focuses on the history of science, history of medicine, and the history of technology, as well as their cultural influences, featuring both original research articles as well as extensive book reviews and review essays.It was...
, however, archaeologist Denise Schmandt-Besserat
Denise Schmandt-Besserat
Denise Schmandt-Besserat is a French-American archaeologist and retired professor of art and archaeology of the ancient Near East.-Career:...
is harshly critical, stating that Rudgley first fabricated a non-existent controversy about pre-historic cultures, then created heroes and villains by characterizing archaeologists as "wicked morons who conspire to keep prehistory in obscurity". She suggests that Rudgley "uses data like a magician" picking data from all over the world and stretching back a million years to make his case and that "like the fancy gesturing of the magician that distracts the audience from the trick, the avalanche of erudition hides Rudgley's weak argumentation". She also criticizes his use of the key terms 'prehistory' and 'civilization', which he fails to define, arguing that he misuses them, and points out that he uses the term 'tribalism' to describe prehistoric cultures although we do not know if there were tribes in prehistory. She concludes that "One must grant that the alleged controversy and conspiracy, the simplistic plot and biased discussion, all help to make the book entertaining. The entertainment, however, comes at considerable cost", the cost being at the expense of the work of the prehistorians whose research made his book possible."
Rudgley's 2006 Pagan Resurrection, subtitled A Force for Evil or the Future of Western Spirituality? posits the idea that western civilisation, belief systems and attitudes have been formed by the "Odin
Odin
Odin is a major god in Norse mythology and the ruler of Asgard. Homologous with the Anglo-Saxon "Wōden" and the Old High German "Wotan", the name is descended from Proto-Germanic "*Wodanaz" or "*Wōđanaz"....
ic archetype". The influence of Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, he says, has been relatively recent and shallow.
Rudgley spends much of the book emphasizing the dark and violent side of Odin, according to Independent reviewer David V. Barrett, "committing the ultimate sin of any anthropologist or historian, back-projecting from highly selective examples of unpleasantness today and photo-fitting them to a distorted image from the mythological past". Barrett concludes that Rudgely's book is "a catalogue of racist individuals and organisations whose only connection with Odin, through very dubious links, is by assertion rather than argument."
Television
Lost Civilisations of the Stone Age was turned into a television series for Channel 4Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
entitled Secrets of the Stone Age.
He also presented Pagans in 2004.
The Financial Times
Financial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
review of the 2004 Pagans series commented how Rudgley "is keen to 'sex up' history ... You can see the glee of the programme makers when Richard revealed the ingredients for his new four-part series - pagan rituals (naked maidens a speciality), bestiality, free love, violence, nudity."
The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
reviewer Joe Joseph remarked that Rudgley's "revelations" of how Stone Age people and "barbarians" were clever, and how "we were all pagans once" were statements of the obvious, and how "Richard Rudgley's defence of the ancient pagans was based on the flimsiest of evidence", comparing the presenter to "the bar-room cleverdick who has a trick question ... just for the sake of being right on a technicality."