This book summarizes archaeological approaches to the contemporary past, and suggests a new agenda for the archaeology of late modern societies. The principal focus is the archaeology of developed, de-industrialized societies during the second half of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first. This period encompasses the end of the Cold War and the beginning of the 'internet age', a period which sits firmly within what we would recognize to be a period of 'lived and living memory'. Rodney Harrison and John Schofield explore how archaeology can inform the study of this time period and the study of our own society through detailed case studies and an in-depth summary of the existing literature. Their book draws together cross-disciplinary perspectives on contemporary material culture studies, and develops a new agenda for the study of the materiality of late modern societies.

Rodney Harrison and John Schofield explore how archaeology can inform the study of our own society and other late-modern societies through detailed case studies and a summary of the existing literature. They draw together cross-disciplinary perspectives, and develop a new agenda for the study of the materiality of contemporary societies.

This is one of those rare books poised from the outset to become a classic. In many ways it is what archaeology is at its best: a creative and scholarly exploration of everyday life. Yet After Modernity also offers fascinating explorations of the possibilities of the past in the present, and the contributions archaeologies can make to a range of contemporary social issues. ... In sum, Harrison and Schofield's book is a provocative contribution to our understanding of the archaeological discipline and the heritage world around us. After Modernity earns its place in any humanities or social science library.