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CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY

HOMER- 8th-9th century BC illiads and odyssey,

physical geography,Ionian view historical
descriptive approach,environment

thales and anaximous of melitus 7th century BC

mathematic and cartographic traditions in geog
Hecataeus-4th -5th century BC/GES-PERIDOS /
regional approach in geography
HERODOTUS -5th centuruy BC
CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF GEOGRAPHICAL THOUGHTS
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CRITICAL BACKLASH REVOLUTION(revolt against extreme model based on unrealistic assumption)

BEHAVIOURAL BACKLASH: not agaisnt quantification, model

making and postivism. Against model of man for purpose of
generalisation. Roots can be traced to two person: White
studying people response to floods said they don’t make
rational but decsion based on perception. HERBERT SIMON
studying farming practices , farmer dont act as rational
economic man but act as maximiser. based on White and
Herbert work Julian wolpert developed behavioural school( it
can also be said behaviuoralism is extension of QR)
HUMANISTIC GEOG: backlash against QR,postivism and
generalisation. it was Descriptive and against analyzing cause
effect realtionship. It believed there is no objective world and
hence no objectivie interpreation, geog should be abt
describing the diversity rather than explaining it. rejected
mental map and new method like "Verstehm" "metaphysical
idealsim" were propesed. concpets were vagure and never
become popular
concepts & objective in behavioural geography 1. develop
generalisation 2. objective empirical positivism 3. rejected
spatial science approach of schaefer and said it is another
level of description.4. BG encouraged law making in human
decisions.(psychology) 5. BG bleived that man respond to
perceived envt is subjective.6. BG claims since model based
on perceptions and human behaviour hence better predictive
value.7. BG borrowed many concept from psychology and
cognitive science and focus of study shifted from large pop to
small groups. Kates said MAN is rational but not on the line
defned by QR.characteristics of behavioural man(KATES): 1.
bounded rationality 2 . Habitutal choices based on intial
conscious choices and stereotype response 3. chocies made
on basis of existing knowledge 4. info gets evaluated
according to certain pre determined criteria.G26
Yi Fu tan Guelke(philosphical approach) introduced the
concept of idealism. I.e. "Understand the dev of earth's cultural
landscape by uncovering the thought that lies behind them not
the reason behind thoughts. Relph (phenomenological
approach) there is no objective world independent of man's
existence(describe not explain). Yi-Fu Tuan another
phenomenologist was the first to talk about the concept of
perceived world and how geog knowledge influences human
activity. gave concept (tophila). philosophy of
existentiaism..the process of defining oneself involves
creating and environment. envt cane be read as
biographies.wo main characteristics of humanistic geog is 1) it
is anthropocentric and 2) holism to see phenomena in their
total context(LEY and Samuels) . KIRK founded the school of
phenomenology

concept of mental maps: tool used for analyzing perceied

envt for predicting human behaviour. The idea was given bu
Gold, improvised by DAWNS. method where subjective
perceived world with its distortion is separated objectively on a
peice of paper which is objective and can be interpreted by for
making decisions and understanding how people make
choices.(ROSARCH TST). Humanistic geog disagrees with the
concept of mental map Hazard perception: White work on
human respinse to floods. school was formed under his
leadership at CHICAGO. it was an attempt to give geog a more
socially relevant orientation. it later spread to other centres
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SOCIAL RELEVANCE REVOLUTION(Prince) / RADICAL REVOLUTION(Smith) /
DISSENT PHASE

developments responsible: socio economic & political reality of US, civil rights movement in 1960s
spreading to Europe and intellectuals trying to find soultion for society problems, geographers
wanted to be part of active decision making as planning. hence the drive to make geog a problem
solving discipline.(argued Wilber Zelinsky: AAG,president in 1973). QR focus on non vital social
issues and focus on promotion of indistrial and commercial complexes. hence convention approach
of looking into environment,culture and psychology as reasons for social problems was
discared instead polotical and economic envt was analyzed.(PAHL in 1969 while studying urban
residential pattern in chicago cited the same)(port based model-farmers on margins was delebrate
not natural)

three roles of geog(Wilber) : as a diagnostician,as a prohphet , blueprint for preferred future .

Welfare Geog(neo conservatives) Radical Geog(radicalist)

Welfare geog: popular form D.M. Smith book"
."Richard Peet regarded them as left liberal
HUMAN GEOGRAPHY - a Welfare Approach"
wing of the movement". Beginning can be
and COX "Conflict,/power and politics in city".
traced to WILLIAM BUNGE." Society for
Offered new persepctive to understand pattern of
human exploration in DETROIT".he beleived
urban conflict.3 obejective of welfare
in planning with people rather than planning for
geog(KNOX): addressing physical needs, meeting
people.DAVID HARVEY: (earlier an welfare
cultural needs and meeting the higher level needs.
geographer/futility)eliminating the market
The central theme was " WHO GETS WHAT
mechanism as the primary regulator of land use
WHERE AND HOW". smith says welfare geog as
will solve the problem of ghettos. Falke
contemporary eq of regional geog. critic: Smith
presented a powerful argument for the marxist
said MARX may have been able to disset the
and said liberal capitialism was status quoist
operation of capitalist economy,polity and socirty
and represented the interest of ruling class
that we missed today but it does not hold sol to
alone . Harvey work Social justice and the
every modern model in complex pluralistic
City 1973.
societies

Environmentalism(product of welfare and refer to movement and programmes sought to address

envt problems) of 1970-1980s. AAG intiative to assist government, two types of work 1. traditional
geog approach and 2. pro active environment mangaement approach (O ' Riordan) . O' Riordan -
two approaches of cause of envt problems a public debate. a) neo malthusian(Paul Ehrlich and
his book pouplation bob) b. Commoner who beleived poblems due to consequent depletion of
resources along with disposal of polltants that create problem. important work of Rachael
Carlson-"silent springs"-1962 and Danish meadows -" Limits to growth" highlighted envt
problem. In US Gifford pinshet and George perkin marsh(Man & Nature Book). Accoding to
O'Riordan environrmentalism emcompasses wide range of ideas and practices and not entirely
exclusive of one another: 1) eco centrism(neo-environemntalism) 2.techno centrism(neo-classical)

Eco-centrism aka neo-environmentalism(concept of Gaianism,james havelock) and

other idea is techno-centrism or neo classical approach