Geography: History and Concepts

By Arild Holt-Jensen

Book Overview

This now standard student reference has been totally revised and updated. It remains the definitive introduction to the history, philosophy, and methodology of human geography.

The book is organized into five sections:

An historical overview of the discipline and an explanation of its organization; with more on the growth of spatial sciences, Geographical Information Systems, and ways of representing the world An examination of geography from Antiquity to the early modern periodAn analysis of paradigm shifts in geography, the philosophy of science, and the quantitative revolution;A critical discussion of positivism, empiricism, structuration theory, realism; as well as an introduction to core themes and concepts in current geographical thought including space, place, and post-modernism A review of global processes and local responses, from economic globalization to global environmental change

Extensively revised to take account of new developments in geographical thought and methods, the text explores complex ideas in an intelligible and accessible style. Illustrated throughout with summaries, notes for further reading and a concept glossary, this is the essential student companion to the discipline: it will be an invaluable resource for undergraduate students.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1412946492
• ISBN13: 9781412946490
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd
• Length: 280 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 0.5" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

A thoughtful and thorough look at Ge

This book starts each chapter with a nearly intangible discussion of the philosophical aspects of geography for the respective period, then gets into very good summaries of the period, its key players and concepts. Its also sprinkled with great examples of work that illustrates research at the various periods which help cement the concepts. I expect this will be a useful reference for those time when I forget the difference between structuration theory and realism.

A model text

This book is now out in a third edition (SAGE Publications, 1999). It is a book about geography, but I review it as a model on how an author in one of the (social) sciences can analyze his discipline in a philosophical way. ------ The book presents different philosophical positions such as positivism, marxism, structuralism, realism and poststructuralism in a clear way and describes how such positions have influenced the development of geography. In my opinion such philosophical analysis of (social) sciences are rare, but extremely important. I whish I knew of similar qualified books in all other domains. Such books shows that sciences are built on assumptions, that can be questioned and they help developing critical thinking.