There is no past, and it is always with us. The conceptualized past as a fantasy product and...
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2023-02-07

Lars Morten Fuglevik (Museum of Cultural History Oslo)

When Arena was released back in 1994, it was a cutting-edge gaming experience. It felt quite 
real and life-like (not so much now). When one plays a videogame, though, it is obvious that it 
is an illusion (or digital model) and not real life – or is it? One still identifies with the generated 
character on a certain level throughout the gaming session. The character development is 
contingent on a schematic accumulation of experience gained through certain exercises, 
emulating the processes of organic life. The question is if it is possible to set a final demarcation 
line between real life, and illusory (or digital) experiences as perceived through our 
multisensory human apparatus.

I arguably gained two insights from my time in Tamriel: 1) any contemporaneous 
conceptualization of the world and the past is a model, and 2) no past or present society or 
individual may be explained properly through such models. Developments in quantum physics 
have challenged our understanding of consciousness, time and space. Resonating more with 
the message of ancient non-dualistic philosophies than modern common sense, phenomena and 
agency are now to be understood as entangled, co-dependent and fleeting – almost illusory. 
This implies a dissolution of the dualistic, mechanical notions of Descartes and Newton. 
Similar fresh perspectives on existence also have also been explored in archaeology through 
assemblage theory and new materialism. In my paper, I discuss how the archaeological past 
might be also considered an illusion best suited for entertainment purposes only.