The author finally claims that “Theory in this work shall be oriented towards creating questions and observations by using a variety of theoretical frameworks and many different kinds of data”. The introduction ends with a brief summary of each chapter and a “Note on Abbreviations” 1.ĢThe first chapter (p. 8-37) intends to place the Network-based model within the context of the formalist-substantivist debate, paying special attention to the work of authors such as M. Weber, Th. Veblen, K. Polanyi or M. Liverani amongst others. Pages 34-37 explore more deeply the concept of “Network-Based Model”. The process to be used shall be as follows: “Each economic situation and type of evidence shall be viewed separately and analyzed with the conceptual tool appropriate for the form of the evidence” (p. 4), also taking into account the archaeological context where the analyzed documents were found. This perspective should allow economic life to be explored, at the same time avoiding monolithic conclusions or static structuralist or functionalist characterizations” (p. 3).
Through a Network-based model, the Ugaritic economy shall be viewed as an adaptative nonlinear system, with numerous and ever-changing possibilities. The author next underlines what he considers to be the main differences between this work and previous research by other scholars also regarding economy in Ugarit: “What makes this project distinct from other attempts is that it embraces the variability of data. are understood here as the emergent structures of the social economy at Ugarit” (p. 1-2). More generally, this study seeks to examine economic modalities at Ugarit. The introductory chapter presents the main objectives of the project: “this examination shall focus on. 1 In this “Note on Abbreviations” (as well as in the general bibliography, p. 405) D. Pardee is consi (.)ġThis book is the product of the revision of the Doctoral Dissertation defended by the author in 2005 at the University of Pennsylvania.