ABSTRACT
As far as recorded cultural history extends man's thinking, man has been born into existing explanatory systems. A distinguishing aspect of many of these discussions from the point of view of anyone familiar with the history of ideas is the extreme theoretical myopia of the discussions. Anthropologists and archaeologists have typically acted as if the 'problem' concerning explanation and knowing that have been discussed in the history of ideas were of no consequence to their own so-called 'explanations'. Much of the staggering confusion in present debates as to the value of scientific analysis in social science can only be understood in terms of the majority of the discussants thinking that they understand scientific analysis after reading a few discussions of science. Scientific analysis may be conceptualized as an attempt by some men to go beyond the voices of mere 'authority' to explanatory systems that are coordinated with observation and experience as to be open to others for examination.
