Geography and the Age of Exploration. Geography in the Twentieth Century

Until the Renaissance, geographical concepts developed by Aristotle and other ancient thinkers were accepted uncritically by most Europeans. During and after the Renaissance, however, Europeans became interested in exploring other continents. Their interest was heightened by Marco Polo's account of his journey to China, which was read eagerly throughout Europe. The governments of Europe began to sponsor journeys to distant places, and returning travelers were encouraged to prepare detailed descriptions of the places they had visited. The European Age of Exploration had begun.

An early advocate of exploration was Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal (1394-1460). During Henry's lifetime, a lucrative trade in spices and other Asian commercial products was dominated by Arabs and Italians, making the Italian city-states the richest areas of Europe. Henry sought to establish a profitable sea route from Portugal to India in order to undercut Italian domination of the spice trade. He decided that this goal could best be achieved by establishing a sea route around Africa to India (Figure 1-11).

Figure 1-11. Prince Henry's Voyages to India. In order to undercut Italy's domination of the spice trade, Prince Henry of Portugal proposed the establishment of a sea route around Africa to India. His sailors balked, however, fearing that they would not survive the intense heat of the equator. It was only after Henry's death that Portuguese sailors dared attempt this route

Over several decades, Henry financed and outfitted numerous expeditions, charging them with the goal of circumnavigating Africa. Henry had great difficulty persuading his captains to sail into equatorial waters, however. Aware of Aristotle's theory, the captains believed that the temperature of the earth would continue to rise as they sailed farther and farther south. Sailors refused to approach the equator, and crews mutinied when ships sailed too far south. Only after several decades of effort did Portuguese sailors actually dare to cross the equator. Once this had been done, direct observations of actual temperatures provided the evidence needed to disprove Aristotle's theory.

During the Age of Exploration, explorers kept careful records of the places they visited and the people they encountered. By the late eighteenth century, expeditions were often outfitted for the specific purpose of obtaining scientific information. This information proved vital to the development of geography and many other intellectual disciplines. Charles Darwin's two years of extensive observations of the Galapagos Islands inspired him to develop his theory of evolution in response to natural selection.

Geography in the Twentieth Century. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the formal Age of Exploration came to an end. The journey to the North Pole by Robert Peary in 1909 and the Antarctic expeditions of Roald Amundsen and Sir Robert Scott in 1911 marked the end of the Age of Exploration. The task of large-scale exploration and mapping of the surface of the earth was essentially complete, although exploration and mapping of some remote areas at a smaller scale continues even today.

Once the Age of Exploration ended, the intellectual focus of geography changed. Geographers became less concerned with describing previously unknown places and more concerned with interpreting and explaining observed facts. Geographers turned from obtaining factual evidence to developing theories intended to account for evidence that had been observed. It was at this time that geography became established as a recognized intellectual discipline.

One of the first efforts at developing geographical theory was the theory of environmental determinism, which was prevalent in the early twentieth century. Proponents of environmental determinism believed that levels of "civilization" were influenced by climatic conditions. The most "civilized" and technologically advanced societies inhabited Europe and North America, while those of the tropics were regarded by many Europeans as backward, primitive, and uncivilized. Environmental determinists argued that what they called civilization flourished only in places with variable, stimulating climates, such as those of western Europe and the eastern United States (Figure 1-12). It followed that civilization could not flourish in the tropics, where tropical heat stifled creativity and productivity and encouraged indolence and laziness.

Figure 1-12. Huntington's Environmental Determinism. Ellsworth Huntington believed that civilization, in the Western sense of the term, flourished best in the temperate climates with frequent changes of weather. Thus eastern North America and western Europe were best suited to the development of civilization. Was it coincidental that these were (and still are) the wealthiest parts of the world?

By the 1920s, environmental determinism had begun to be discredited as geographers came to appreciate the ability of human beings to adjust to and modify the environments in which they lived. Subsequently, geographers began to focus more directly on human adjustment to environmental conditions.

The Four Traditions of Geography. As the twentieth century draws to a close, we recognize that systematic geographical thought throughout the past hundred years represents four important intellectual traditions. These are the traditions of earth science, human-environment relationships, areal analysis and spatial analysis. Contemporary human geography incorporates each of these perspectives.

The Earth Science Tradition. The traditional intellectual linkages between geography and the physical sciences are the focus of geographical research within the earth science tradition. This research includes analysis of physical processes such as erosion, climate, and seismicity and analysis of the distribution of rainfall, rivers, plants, animals and other natural phenomena.

The Human—Environment Tradition. In this tradition, relationships between society and the physical environment are emphasized. Although environmental conditions affect human life in countless ways, we are increasingly able to modify the world in which we live. Many caution that increased human capacity to modify the environment has already begun to cause serious environmental damage. Geographers working in this tradition focus on the identification and use of natural resources, adaptation to changing environmental conditions, and response to natural hazards and disasters.

The Areal Studies Tradition. Geographers working in the areal studies tradition describe and analyze specific places and regions, seeking to understand their historical development and the interaction between them. Geographical research within this tradition examines both patterns and processes within regions and processes external to regions that affect developments within them.

The Spatial Analysis Tradition. Distributions and locational relationships among places, people, objects, and events are the primary focus of geographers working in the spatial analysis tradition. Quantitative analysis in geography has been used extensively within this tradition. Statistical and mathematical thinking are critical to the development of principles applicable at different places and in different times.