Department of Geography, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh

B.A. (Hons.) 2nd Semester

Human & Economic Geography: Session 2022-23

Course Code: GGBMN2003 (Minor)

Introduction
Over the period, the shifts in paradigms resulted into different perspectives and definitions of
geography discipline. The literal meaning of geography is to describe earth, especially the
character of earth surface. According to American geographer Richard Hartshorne (1959),
geography is concerned to provide accurate, orderly, and rational description and interpretation of
the variable character of the earth surface. Likewise, Holt-Jensen (1980) defined geography as the
study of variations in phenomena from place to place. Geographer Broek (1965) stated that
geography is to understand the earth as the world of man. Likewise, Yi-Fu Tuan defined
geography as the study of earth as home of people. Geography at macro level has been divided
into two major branches - physical geography and human geography. The uniting factor in this
diversity of content from landforms to population, climate to settlements and biotic to economic
aspects is the spatial perspective. Whether they are human geographers or physical geographers,
virtually all geographers are interested in the way places and things are laid out, organized, and
arranged on the surface of the Earth. We can say that, geography is the science that deals with the
study of the earth and its lands, features, inhabitants and phenomena. Eratosthenes of Cyrene was
the first person to use the word “Geography” in 276 - 194 BC.

Geography can broadly be divided in two branches, which are physical geography and human
geography.

Physical geography is the study of the physical environment, which includes the landforms, soils,
climate, water and diverse flora and fauna. Human geography on the other hand, study the
relationship between the natural and the human world, and the spatial distributions of the human
phenomena (agriculture, manufacturing, mining, trade, transport and other economies, houses,
fields, roads etc.), created by the human beings through mutual interactions. In other words,
human geography is concerned with the study of inter-relationships between man and
environment and their resultant features as human responses on the surface of the earth.

The roots of human geography can be traced back in the writings of Eratosthenes and Strabo and
it is new because its disciplinary moorings were anchored in Anthropogeography of Freidrich
Ratzel.

Meaning & Definition of Human Geography

Human geography is a science in which spatial distribution of human facts on the earth’s surface
and the study of functional relationships between human groups and their environment is done on
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a regional basis. It deals with the study of people, communities, economics, cultures, and their
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interactions with the environment by studying their relations.

Human Geography is the science, which studies spatial distribution of human beings and cultural
facts on the surface of the earth. Finch and Trewartha have given a simple yet cogent definition
of human geography as follows: “this human imprint, those features of material culture,
associated with agriculture, manufacturing, trade, mining and the other economies – houses,
fields, roads, factories, domesticated animals etc. become the immediate interest and object of
study of human or cultural geography”. It is general observation that people living in different
parts of the world vary greatly in several ways - their dietary habit (eating different kinds of food),
clothes (types of dresses they wear), their occupational structure, types of houses they live in,
customs, traditions, their belief, race, ethnicity etc. These multitudes of cultural differences
justifiably comprise the subject matter of human geography. The task of a human geographer is
always to provide a scientific description and interpretation of the variable character of the earth
as the home of humankind. Some important definitions of human geography given by scholars are
given below:

“Human geography is the synthetic study of relationships between human societies and earth’s
surf ace.” - F. Ratzel (1882)

“Human geography is the study of changing relationship between the unresting man and the
unstable earth.” - E.C. Semple (1911)

“Human geography may be defined as the science which deals with the adaptation, in the widest
sense of human groups to their natural environment”. - (Camille Vallaux 1925)

“Human geography offers a new conception of the inter-relationships between earth and man …. a
more synthetic knowledge of physical laws governing our earth and of the relations between the
living beings which inhabit it.” - Vidal de la Blache (1926)

“Human geography may be defined as the study of the nature and distribution of the relationships
between geographical environment and human activities and qualities.” - Ellsworth Huntington
(1959)

“Human geography is looked upon as the study of man and his work.” - Dickens, S.N. and Pitts,
F.R. (1963)

“Human geography is primarily concerned with the relations between man, ways of life and the
places in which they live.” - George F. Carter (1974)

“Study of how people make places, how we organize space and society, how we interact with
each other in places and across space, and how we can make sense of others and ourselves in our
locality, region and world.” - H. de Blij

“human geography is the study of human groups and societies in their relationship to the
physical environment” - Albert Demangeon

There are various approaches to study the human geography, which have been evolved over the
period with changing philosophy of geography. For example, the definition of human geography
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has been modified from deterministic to possibilistic approach. The first approach adopted by the
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geographers was Deterministic or environmental determinism. Environmental Determinism

stresses on the dominance of environment over man. Environmental determinism is also known as
climatic determinism or geographical determinism. Possibilism in geography developed as a
reaction to extreme generalisations of environmental determinism. Possibilism is based on the fact
that man can modify the environment. Griffith Taylor developed the theory of neo-determinism,
which is a mid way between the two theories of determinism and possibilism. It means that human
beings can conquer nature by obeying it. Human geography encompasses human, political,
cultural, social and economic aspects of social sciences. It is diverse and uses both, qualitative
methods and quantitative methods, which includes case studies, survey research, statistical
analysis and model building.

Nature of Human Geography

Human geography studies the inter-relationship between the physical environment and socio-
cultural environment created by human beings through mutual interaction with each other.
‘Geography is the study of the earth as home of humans’.

Its nature is interdisciplinary and integrative. Geography looks at the earth’s surface from two
different but interrelated perspectives, known as systematic and regional.

Accordingly, it has two broad branches: systematic geography and regional geography. Human
geography is a branch of systematic geography.

It studies the locational and distributional aspects of cultural phenomena, resulting from ever
changing human-nature interaction.

These are the nature of human geography, as given below:

The people begin to understand their environment and the forces of nature with the passage of
time. With social and cultural development, humans develop better and more efficient technology.
They move from a state of necessity to a state of freedom

They create possibilities with the resources obtained from the environment. Human activities
create a cultural landscape. The imprints of human activities are created everywhere; health
resorts on highlands, huge urban sprawls, fields, orchards, and pastures in plains and rolling hills,
ports on the coasts, oceanic routes on the oceanic surface, and satellites in the space.

The earlier scholars termed this as Possiblism. Nature provides opportunities and human beings
make use of these and slowly, nature gets humanized and starts bearing the imprints of human
endeavor.

There are also some important points about the nature of human geography, which are given
below:

1. Human geography studies the inter relationship between the physical environment and
socio-cultural environment created by man.
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2. Elements of physical environment are land, water, soil, climate, vegetation and fauna.
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 3. Elements of cultural environment are transport and communication, settlements, crops

The focus of human Geography is human world in terms of man-environment interactions and its
nature can be viewed through;

Human geography is human ecology: Barrows in 1923 in Association of American Geographers

declared that ‘geography is the science of human ecology’ and the focus was the study of human
ecology of specific areas. Ratzel’s organic conception of state, the environmental determinism of
Semple and Huntington; Stop and Go determinism of Taylor; the regionalization of Herbertson
and many other works to prove that human geography is human ecology but this concept was
criticized on the basis that principles of ecology do not apply on human societies with same
magnitude as they apply on plants and animals.

Human geography is man-centred geography: Freidrich Ratzel in his book Anthropogeographie

pointed that geography of man and his work could be put to systematic analysis as the elements of
the non-human world. In his first volume he focused on in what manner man’s life upon the earth
is shaped by the physical environment and in the same time Ratzel’s contemporaries started
studying human geography by analyzing human activities and human cultures in relation to the
physical environment, thus, focusing man-centered geography. Proceeding this trend Ratzel’s
second volume was written from reverse perspective.

Human Geography is a social science: human geography includes all those interests and topics of
geography that are anyhow related with the cultural environments like economic, social, cultural,
political and historical environment. Human geography adopts principles, concepts, rules and laws
of different social sciences for spatial analysis of various social matters of its branches (economic,
population, settlement, urban, political, social, cultural etc.). Thus, proving that human geography
belongs to family of social sciences.

Human Geography is a spatial science: human geography studies spatial distribution of human
population, cultural facts and landscape on earth. It studies environmental adjustments and spatial
organization made by human societies of different regions. Human geography presumes an
awareness of humanized space or cultural landscape created by man. It is the prime focus of
human geography to analyse spatial distribution and process of localization of human facts.

Facts of human geography are related to terrestrial unity: eminent human geographers including
Ratzel, Blache, Brunhes, Demangeon, Huntington, considered principle of terrestrial unity (all
terrestrial phenomena, physical or cultural are interrelated and form the unique associations of
land and man on the surface of the earth) as fundamental unifying concept of human geography.

Agriculture is influenced by natural factors (climate, soil, economic, social, technological);

location of industries (raw material, power resources, labour, market, transport, capital,
technology etc.). So, finally cultural landscape is concrete expression of the interaction of man
and environment, proving human geography is related to terrestrial unity.

Scope of Human Geography

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Human geography is a wide subject for studying different aspect of human phenomena. The
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majority of great thinkers from Hippocrates to the present day have defined the subject as the
study of relationship of man with his environment.

Finch and Trewartha as divided the subject matter of human geography into two sections:

• Physical environment

• Cultural environment

Ellsworth Huntington divided the subject matter into:

• Physical conditions

• Human Conditions

Paul Vidal De La Blache’s work on Human geography deals with the worldwide distribution of
population and settlements, types and distribution of elements of civilizations and various forms
of transportation.

Jean Brunhes studies the subject matter incorporating:

• Connected with unproductive occupation of soil

• Conquest of plants and animals

• Pertaining to the destruction occupation of soil

Thus, it can be said that the human geography varies from region to region but concerns the same
principle, i.e., studying the relationship between man’s action and his physical environment
and also effect of natural environment on man’s functions and forces in different parts of the
world.

Each of the physical, biological and social sciences has its own philosophy, methodology, and
scope.

For example, economics deals primarily with the production, movement, and consumption of
goods and services; geology is concerned with the composition and interior of the earth’s crust;
demography pertains to the characteristics of the human population, and zoology and botany
examine the animals and plants kingdoms respectively.

Similarly, geography examines numerous tangible and intangible natural and man-made
phenomena

In human geography, the major thrust is on the study of human societies in their relation to the
habitat or environment. Dealing with the spatial distribution of societies, human geography covers
a very wide field or its scope is enormous

It embraces the study of human races; the growth, distribution, and density of populations of the
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various parts of the world, their demographic attributes and migration patterns; and physical and
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cultural differences between human groups and economic activities.

It also covers the relationship between man and his natural environment, and the way in which his
activities are distributed.

Human geography also takes into account the mosaic of culture, language, religion, customs, and
traditions; types and patterns of rural settlements, the site, size, growth, and functions of urban
settlements, and the functional classification of towns.

The study of the spatial distribution of economic activities, industries, trade, and modes of
transportations and communications as influenced by the physical environment are also important
topics of human geography.

In brief, in human geography, we study the influence of the physical environment on the
economic activity, society, culture, and religion of the people of a region.

The impact of man on the environment is also a topic of growing importance in human geography.

The adjustment of man to his physical environment in typical geographical regions like equatorial,
hot deserts and tundra is of great relevance to human geography as it helps in understanding the
symbiotic relationship between social groups and their natural environment.

Human geography deals with the world as it is, and with the world as it might be. Its emphasis is
on people: where they are, what they are like, how they interact over space and time, and what
kinds of landscapes of human use they erect upon the natural landscapes they occupy.

It encompasses all those interests and topics of geography that are not directly concerned with the
physical environment like cartography.

Human geography’s content provides integration for all the social sciences, for it given to those
sciences the necessary spatial, temporal, and systems viewpoint that they otherwise lack.

At the same time, human geography draws on other social sciences in the analyses identified with
its sub-fields, such as behavioral, political, economic, or social geography.

Human geography admirably serves the objectives of a liberal education. It helps us to understand
the world we occupy and to appreciate the circumstances affecting peoples and nations other than
our own.

It clarifies the contrasts in societies and cultures and in the human landscapes; they have created
in different regions of the earth.

Its models and explanations of spatial interaction allow us to better comprehend the economic,
social, and political systems within which we all, singly and collectively, live and operate.

Its analyses of spatial systems make us more aware of the realities and the prospects of our own
society in an increasingly troubled and competitive world.

Our study of human geography, therefore, can help make us better-informed citizens, more able to
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understand the important issues facing our communities and our countries, and better prepared to
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contribute to their solution

Branches of Human Geography
Branches of established academic disciplines are defined more by the course content (subject
matter) than by their methodologies. The various branches of Human Geography include the
following; Economic Geography, Socio- cultural Geography, Historical Geography, Political
Geography, Population Geography, Tourism Geography and Urban Geography. Let us now
explain the various branches listed above:

Economic Geography is the study of the location, distribution and spatial organization of
economic activities across the earth. It studies economic activities including agriculture, industry,
trade, transport, tourism among others. Economic Geography is a subfield of the discipline of
Geography. Given the variety of approaches, Economic Geography has taken to many different
subject matters including i) the location of industries, ii) economies of scale also known as
"linkages", iii) transportation, iv) international trade and development, v) real estate, vi) ethnic
economies, vii) gendered economies, viii) core periphery theory, ix) the economics of urban form,
x) the relationship between the environment and the economy (tying into a long history of
geographers studying culture-environment interaction) and globalisation.

Thematically, Economic Geography can be divided into a) Geography of agriculture, b)

Geography of industry, c) Geography of international trade, d) Geography of resources and c)
Geography of transport and communication.

Economic Geographer will take a more holistic approach in the analysis of economic phenomena,
which is to conceptualize a problem in terms of space, place and scale as well as the overt
economic problem that is being examined.

Socio-cultural Geography is a sub-field within Human Geography that studies cultural products
and norms and their variations across and relations to spaces and places. It focuses on describing
and analyzing the ways language, religion, economy, government and other cultural phenomena
vary or remain constant, from one place to another and on explaining how humans function
spatially.

Historical Geography is the study of the human, physical, fictional, theoretical, and "real"
geographies of the past. Every region has undergone historical experiences before attaining the
present day status; even geographical features undergo changes that need to be understood
through time. Historical geographers study geographical patterns through time, including how
people have interacted with their environment, and created the cultural landscape.

Political Geography is concerned with the study of both the spatially uneven outcomes of
political processes and the ways in which political processes are themselves affected by spatial
structures. Political Geography looks at space from the angle of political events and studies
boundaries, space relations between neighbouring political units, delimitation of constituencies,
election process and develops theoretical framework to understand the political behaviour of
populations. Sub branches of Political Geography include; Electoral Geography, Geopolitics,
Strategic Geography and Military Geography.
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Population and settlement Geography is the study of the ways in which spatial variations in the
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distribution, composition, migration, and growth of populations are related to the nature of places.
Such issues as population growth, distribution density, sex ratio, migration, occupational structure
are core in the study of population dynamics. Settlement Geography studies the characteristics of
rural and urban settlements.

Tourism Geography is the study of travel and tourism as an industry, as a human activity, and
especially as a place -based experience.

Urban Geography is the study of urban areas with specific regards to spatial and relational aspects
and theories. That is the study of areas, which have a high concentration of buildings and
infrastructure. These are areas where the majority of economic activities are in the secondary and
tertiary sector e.g. manufacturing, retailing and commerce.

Stages and thrust of Human Geography

Early Colonial Period (approach was explorations and descriptions): imperial and trade interest
prompted the discovery and exploration of new areas. Thus, the description of the area formed an
important aspect of the geographers account.

Colonial period (approach was regional analysis): Elaborate descriptions of all aspect of a region
were undertaken. The idea was that all the regions were part of a whole Earth; understanding the parts
in totality would to an understanding of the whole.

1930’s through the inter war period (approach was areal-differentiation): The focus was on
identifying the uniqueness of any region and understanding how and why it was different from others.

Later 1950s to the later 1960s (approach was spatial organisation): Marked by the use of
computers and sophisticated Statistical tools. Laws of physics were often applied to Map and analyze
human phenomena. This phase was called the quantitative revolution. The main objective was to
identify map-able patterns for different human Activities.

1970’s (Emergence of humanistic, radical and behavioral schools): Discontentment with the
quantitative revolution and its dehumanized manner of doing geography led to the emergence of three
new schools of thought of human Geography in the 1970s. Human geography was made more
relevant to the socio-political reality by the emergence of these schools of thought.

1990s (Post-modernism in geography): The grand generalizations and the applicability of universal
Theories to explain the human conditions were questioned. The importance of understanding each
local context in its own right was emphasized.

Approaches to study human geography

Human geography has passed through various stages of conceptual development in geographical
thought and approaches as follows:

I. Traditional Approach

1. Systematic approach: this approach selects a particular aspect of physical or human phenomena
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in a defined geographical space. Studies presents it in an orderly manner according to a system or

plan. Oscar Peschel (German) initiated the movement and carried by Ferdinand Richthofen favouring
the application of genetic approach to deal with man nature relation. Similarly Ratzel viewed the
earth as an integral whole and interacting unity and treated human geography systematically and from
a Darwinian point of view.

2. Regional Approach: it is based on the fact that ‘the earth surface is divided into a mosaic of
different regions’ each of which has a particular character as a consequence of the symbiosis between
the physical environment and the society occupying it. In the early 20th century Vidal de La Blache
developed a regional school in France and focused on the relationship between man and immediate
surroundings by studying small homogeneous areas popularly known as ‘pays’. Supporting this
concept A.J Herbertson proposed scheme of natural regions of the world (1905). Thuis Vdal in
France, A.J.Herbertson, C.B.Fawcett and J.F.Unstead in Britain, D.Whittlesey in U.S presented
regional schemes for economic, social and political purposes with environmental settings. In Britain
Patrich Geddes put forward the idea of regionalism where as H.J.Fleur presented the concept of
human regions.

3. Historical Aprroach: historical approach denotes the temporal trend or the direction of stages of
growth. In this analysis process is interpreted as a set of rules which transforms map forms through
time. This concept involves the study of cultural geography, innovation diffusion, time geography,
process-form approach.

4. Environmental approach: this approach studies geography since very beginning and changed
substantially. It views are very much similar to determinism i.e. environment controlling all human
activities- psychological, economic, social, political etc. determinist generally consider man as a
passive agent on which the environmental factors are actively acting and determining his attitude,
decision- making process and even lifestyle. The rise of determinism provided new dimension by
some scientific validation of the concept of determinism. Freidrich Ratzel (Anthropogeographie and
political geography); E.C. Semple (Influence of geographic environment); Ellsworth Huntington,
Halford J. Mackinder were the most influential determinist of early 20th century. After World War II
this approach was criticized and gives way towards the possibilism.

5. Possibilistic approach: this focuses on the role of man as a geographic agent and modifier of
natural environment and developed in early 20th century by Vidal de La Blache but French scholar
Lucien Febvre first used the term Possiblism. Isaiah Bowman, Carl O Sauer of U.S. and Jean Brunhes
of France were devoted to possibilism. Possibilists think that nature is never more than adviser. Man
by his skill and technology is able to alter the obstacles of nature which come in progress and
believed that there are no limits to human choice in the use of land.

II. Contemporary Approach

1. Ecological approach: concerned with the vast man-environment interacting system. Barrows
was a pioneer who declared geography is the science of human ecology and expressed that
geographers should concentrate on human ecology, which is a sub-field of ecology (a science that
studies relationship between the organism and their physical environment and among organisms).
Stoddart has stated with the formal development of new science of ecology, there were several
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attempts to restate fundamentals of human activity in biotic terms and from about 1910 ‘human
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ecology’ was used for the study of man and environment for man’s place in the ‘web of life’ or
‘economy of nature’.

2. Spatial/locational approach: this approach startyed in U.S.around mid 1950’s. the notable
contribution are made by Harald Mc Carty, John Weaver, W.L.Garrison, Edward Ullman,J.Q. Stewart
etc. spatial approach is treated as quantitative approach because of application of quantitative
techniques in analysis. It started with quantitave revolution in 1950’s. the use explanatory models and
regression, correlation varance etc. increased in this field. Spatial analysis with application of
quantitative methodologies and with concept of ‘space’ as fundamental variable influencing both
society’s organization, operation and behavior of its individual got popul;arity in 1950’s.

3. Behavioural Approach: this concept was based on the “realization that decisions may be based
on subjective or perceived reality rather than an objective reality. The geographers adopted this
approach in late 1960’s. This concept was originated in 1920’s and 1930’s but William Kirk
introduced the term behavioural environment in 1951 by presenting difference between behavioural
environment and the phenomenal environment. According to him, behavioural environment and
emerging patterns have different meaning to different people of different cultures at different stages
in the history of particular culture. Julian Wolpert, Peter Gould (1966); Gould and White (1974);
Downs (1970), Downs and Stea (1973) contributed to this field.

4. Humanistic approach: this approach gives geography human awareness, human agency, human
consciousness and human creativity. It attempts to understand human significance of life events. It
views ‘what the human person is and can do’. The recent humanistic approach is found in the seminal
works of Anne Buttimer and Yi-Fu Tuan in 1970s and 1980’s. This approach is mainly based on the
philosophies of

- Idealism: reality residing in or constructed by mind

- Phenomenology: world of experience (Relph, 1970)

- Existentialism: human geography becomes history of man’s encounter with himself

5. Welfare approach: it emphasizes questions of inequality. It deals with poverty, hunger,

crime, discrimination and access to social service (health care and education). D.S.Smith
progressed this approach and focused on ‘who gets what, where and how’ (who-population,
what-goods, and where-area). Most of the welfare studies are descriptive.

Determinism
Determinism refers to the idea that everything in human life is caused inevitably by natural
environments. It is also known as environmentalism. It is philosophical concepts that stresses the
influence of environment on man and his activities and treat man subordinate to environment.
Philosophy of Determinism is based upon the interaction between primitive human society and
strong forces of nature. This is an older philosophy, which persisted until World War II.
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It says that the strong forces of environment control the course of human action. This implies
that the physical environment exclusively or largely controls the history, culture, mode of life,
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and the level of development of the societal groups and countries.

According to Determinism, man is a passive agent, and nature is active agent, which controls and
determines the action and decision-making processes of man.

As per determinism, the human actions can be explained as a response to the natural
environment.

The tradition of environmentalism can be traced back to ancient classical period when the Greek
and Roman geographers like Hippocrates, Aristotle and Strabo.

Hippocrates contrasted the easy going Asiatics endowed by nature with favourable
environmental conditions from the Europeans living under poor and Harsh environmental
conditions.

Aristotle believed that people inhabiting the warm climates of Asian countries were intelligent
but lack in spirit, courage and therefore subject to slavery. According to him, the inhabitants of
colder countries of Europe are brave, but deficient in thought and technical skill and as
consequence of this, they remain free longer than others but lack in political organizations. So,
they are unable to rule their neighbours. He conceptualized the varying habitability with
differences of latitude and climate.

Strabo the Roman geographer focused the influence of physical factors like relief, slope, shape,
climate etc on the rise and growth of Roman Empire.

Middle-ages was dark period for the development of scientific views in Europe. Most of the
Arab geographers of medieval period were supporters of environmentalism /determinism like
Ibn-Hawqual, Al- Masudi. Al Biruni, Ibn Batuta and Ibn Khaldun.

Renaissance period gained momentum in Europe: Explorations discoveries, voyages and

expeditions to various part of the world supported the ideas of determinism with new
information.

Eighteenth century, Montesquie (French philosopher) was influential in his work ‘spirit of
laws’ he stressed that economy and society of islands was the product of their insular location
and climate. According to him, monarchies are more frequently found in fruitful and republic in
sterile ones.

Nineteenth century, Humboldt and Ritter (founders of modern geography): Humboldt viewed
determinism in clean scientific way. Humboldt was determinist but he believed in the real
associations of natural and organic phenomena and on other side Carl Ritter viewed Geography
as anthropocentric but regionalized the environmental influence on human character.

Friedrich LE Play the renowned French Sociologist of nineteenth century postulated “Place-
Work-Folk” which stated that place (environment) determined work (economy) which in term
determined folk (society).
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Freidrich Ratzel known as founder of human Geography pointed influence of physical

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environment on man and published ‘Anthropogeographie’. His first volume pioneered

systematic human geography on basis of Darwinian philosophy. Ratzel modified his
deterministic thought in his second volume and discussed distribution of population, settlements,
migrations and diffusion of cultural traits in terms of physical conditions, historical and cultural
setting but in work ‘Political Geography’ Ratzel used Darwinian concept of ‘selection and
struggle’ in his own concept ‘labensraum’ (living space).

Nineteenth century witnessed maximum development of environmentalism. Darwin’s book ‘The

Origin of Species’ (1859) provided new dimension to it.

American geographer Miss Ellen Churchill Semple (disciple of Ratzel) was most influential
determinist of early twentieth century. Her famous book ‘influenced of geographic environment’
(1911) starts with, “Man is a product of earth surface. This means not merely that he is child of
the Earth, dust of her dust, but the earth has mothered him, fed him, set him tasks, directed his
thoughts, confronted with difficulties that has strengthened his body and sharpened his wits.,
given him his problems of irrigation and navigation and at the same time whispered hints for
their solutions. She has entered into his bone and tissue, into his mind and soul. On the
mountains she has given him leg muscles of iron to climb the slope, along the coast she has left
them weak and flabby, but given him instead vigourous development of chest and arm to handle
his paddle or oar”.

Ellsworth Huntington (American geographer) in his book ‘civilization and climate’ pointed
that human civilization could only develop in regions of Stimulating climate

Halford J. Mackinder in his book ’the geographical pivot history’ carried forward the
Darwinian idea.

Thus, the above discussion concludes that determinism proceeded with much scientific precision,
explanation and validation through time.

Possibilism
Possibilism is reaction to determinism and environmental determinism. It is based upon the
assumption that environment sets certain constraints or limitations, but culture is otherwise
determined by social conditions. This theory says that the true and only geographical problem is
that to utilisation of possibilities.

Essence of Possibilism is that: Nature provides possibilities and man utilises them according to
his culture, traditions, and levels of socioeconomic development. People are not just the products
of their environment or just pawn of natural environment. Nature is never more than an adviser.
There are not necessities but everywhere possibilities. The range of possibilities in every region
is limited more by the price man is willing to pay of what he wants than by the dictates of
environment.

For instance, man through his technical skill can grow banana, rice and rubber plants in tundra,
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Greenland, and Antarctica, but he has to take into consideration the input cost. The prohibitive
cost of production of these crops in the extremely cold conditions of these areas will compel man
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not to grow them in the tundra climate.

This approach has been criticized on several accounts. For example, despite numerous
possibilities, man, has not been able to get rid of the obstacles set by the physical
forces. The possibilities may be many in the temperate regions but they are very limited in the
deserts, equatorial, tundra, and high mountainous regions.

Possibilism is a concept that views physical environment provides opportunity for a range of
possible human responses and that people have a considerable discretion to choose between
them. Possibilism was a reaction of german determinism in 2oth century in France. Here Vidal
De La Blache, Lucian Febvre, Jean Brunhes in France, Isaiah Bowmann and Carl O Sauer
in U.S. championed cause of possibilism. Vidal De La Blache in his article ‘Annales’ (1913)
wrote, “Geography seeks to measure and localize the great part and man plays in modifying the
face of earth”. To Blache ‘man is both active and passive’ but he is more concerned with man as
a geographic agent who modifies the physical environment to suit his needs. Blache tried to
explain differences between groups in the same or similar environment, which are not due to
physical environment but are outcome of variations in attitudes, values and habitats.

Blache developed the ‘School of Possibilism’. In his book ‘The Principle of Geography’, he
strongly stated that ‘Nature is never more than an advisor’. Possibilism was termed by Lucien
Febvre in his book ‘Geographical Introduction to History’. He strongly pointed “there is no
necessities but everywhere possibilities and man as a master of these possibilities is the judge of
their use”.

Jean Brunhes transmitted concept of possibilism to countries of Europe and North America and
elaborated his study with the visible and tangible facts of human activity on the earth surface.
According to him, nature is not mandatory but permissive.

Isaiah Bowman, supporter of possibilism observed that there has never been civilization that
declined because it exhausted possibilities of land.

Carl O Sauer main activist of possibilist movement of U.S. stated that man behaves in
accordance with the norms of his culture and does works on the physical and biotic features of
his surroundings and transforms then into cultural landscapes. To him man is the latest agent in
the transformation of landscapes.

H.G. Fleure a regionalist and human Geographer in Britain carried forward the idea of
possibilism. He classified the whole world into 7 human regions and stated that all human
activities are directed towards the accomplishment of three functions- nutrition, reproduction and
increase of well-being.

Various Russian (particularly Marxist) geographers focused on ‘indeterminism’ contrary to

environmental determinism. According to them man can master the nature and nature is the only
material of his activity.

Neo-Determinism
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Neo-determinism is nearer to the real world situations than environmental determinism and
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possibilism and also known as scientific determinism. It is an outcome of the reaction to

possibilism.

Ellsworth Huntington known as the champion of scientific determinism who attempted

scientific deterministic concepts in his writings ‘the pulse of Asia’; ‘climate and civilization’;
‘main springs of civilization’. He stressed upon the importance of climate determination and
considered climate as the sovereign factor of environment and has developed the ‘climate
optimum theory’ for development of human civilization.

As a reaction to Possibilism Griffith Taylor (Australian American geographer) formulated his

‘stop and go determinism’ (1951). He said that the best economic programme for a country to
follow, has in large part been determined by nature, and it is the geographer’s duty to interpret
this programme. Taylor in his book

‘Australia’ writes, “man is able to accelerate slow or stop the progress of country’s development.
But he should not, if he is wise, depart from the direction as indicated by the natural
environment. He is like the traffic controller in large city who alter the rate and not the direction
of progress”. He was of the view that Man plays a very important part but man is not a free
agent. He argued that the limit of agricultural settlements in Australia has been set by factors of
the physical environment such a distribution of rainfall.

It says that man follows nature’s plan only if he is wise, presuming he can act foolishly ,which
admits the possible contention that within broad limits set by environment, man can choose at the
very least. However, wisdom and folly are human concepts. The nature knows nothing of them.
This theory says that in no environment are the possibilities limitless and for every choice a price
must be paid. Man makes his choice and man himself judges its relative wisdom or folly by
reference to goals he himself has established. George Tatham considered Taylors ‘stop and go
determinism’ might be called ‘pragmatic possibilism’.

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