Four traditions of geography W.D. Pattison

W.D. Pattison In 1964, W.D. Pattison, a professor at the University of Chicago, wanted to counter the idea that geography was an undisciplined science by saying that geographers had exhibited broad enough consistency such that there were four distinctive, but affiliated traditions.

Tradition One 1)  A spatial tradition - spatial unifying theme, similar patterns between physical & human geography.  includes: boundaries, densities, movement, transportation, spatial patterns of development, uniqueness of place, central place theory (Units 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) Intellectual legacy: Claudius Ptolemy (A.D. 100?-170?); a Greek, who wrote 8-volume Geographia in the second century A.D. containing numerous maps (also father of geometry).   Modern geographer: Alfred Wegener; climatologist 1)   Studied spatial arrangement of landmasses, used geographical and geological evidence 2)   Continental drift – landmasses were once part of supercontinent (plate tectonics) Distribution of one aspect over an area…using quantitative techniques…Follows routes across time and space…mapping, boundaries and densities, movement, distribution

Tradition Two 2) An area-studies tradition - regional geography Nature of places, character, regions, areas, international relationships, regional differentiation (Units, 3,4,5,6) Intellectual legacy: Strabo (63? B.C.-A.D. 24?); Roman investigator, who wrote a report called Geography, a massive production for the statesmen intended to sum up and regularize knowledge of location and place, their character, and their differentiation. Modern geographer: Carl Sauer (1889-1975); American 1)  The work of human geography is to discern the relationships among social and physical phenomena 2)  Everything in the landscape is interrelated. Looks at concept of culture and how people do things (customary beliefs, regional geography, description of regions, how regions are different from each other)

Tradition Three 3)   A man-land tradition - relationships between human societies and natural environments. Human impact on nature, impact of nature on humans, perception of environment, environmentalism Population, Cultural and Political Geography (Units 2,3,4,5,6,7))—Religion, language, population, etc. Intellectual legacy:         Hippocrates; a Greek Physician of 5th century B.C. who wrote that places affect the health and character of man. Modern geographer(s):  Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) and Carl Ritter (1779-1859) 1)   Move beyond describing earth’s surface to explaining why certain phenomena are present or absent. 2)   Origin of “where” and “why” approach 3)   Environmental determinism – how the physical environment causes social development Human impact on nature on humans, natural hazards, relationship between humans and the physical environment

Tradition Four 4) An earth-science tradition - physical (natural) geography. Physical geography, descriptions according to place, atmosphere, biosphere, geology. “Study of the earth as a home to humans” Intellectual legacy: Aristotle (384-322 B.C.); Greek philosopher who looked at natural processes, Earth is spherical, matter falls together toward a common center.   Physical geography, biosphere, earth sun interaction, study of the earth as a home to humans

Four traditions into five themes of geography

The Five Themes of Geography: Purpose The five themes of geography help us in answering the “where”, “how” and “why” dealing with occurrences that take place in our world. By using these themes as a basis for understanding geographic information, we can gain a better appreciation of cultural and environmental changes around the world.

Location (Theme 1) 1) Location . position on the earth’s surface. This helps us answer “Where” Ways to indicate location: Maps Absolute Location-Latitude and Longitude (Parallels and Meridians), determine exact location. Ex. Atlanta, GA-33°N, 84°W Observe Map Relative Location-location of a place relative to other places (situational) Why use relative location? Unfamiliar place, centrality

Human Environment Interaction-crazy SEC football fans

Regions (Theme 3) 3. Regions . areas of unique characteristics, ways of organizing people. Types of Regions Formal-distinctive characteristics that can be proven (uniform, homogeneous) Ex. Wheat Belt, Republican state-GA Functional-product of interactions, organized around a node or core Ex. Newspapers, radio stations, “The Perimeter” Perceptual-vernacular (exists only in the mind) Ex. Dixie South

Place (Theme 4) 4. Place . associations of phenomena in an area. (What makes an area unique) A) Physical Characteristics-landforms or bodies of water that make a place unique (climate, vegetation, soil, landforms) B) Human or Cultural Characteristics-people’s lifestyles, values, beliefs and traits What people care about: language, religion, ethnicity What people take care of: daily necessities, leisure activities Components of Culture: Culture Region-the area in which a particular cultural system prevails Ex. Building styles, farms Culture Trait-a single attribute of culture Ex. Food, clothing Culture Complex-a discrete combination of traits Ex. Nationalism/Patriotism Culture System-a grouping of certain complexes, usually based on ethnicity, language, religion Ex. Spanish-speaking, Catholic Mexicans Culture Realm-an assemblage of culture (highly generalized) Ex. Sub-Saharan Africa (assuming that all of Africa south of the Sahara is virtually the same)

Movement (Theme 5) 5. Movement . interconnection between areas. Movement of… 1) Goods and Services-transportation 2) People and Animals-migration 3) Ideas and Information-communication See below as to how ideas, information spread through communication… Culture Hearths-source of idea, innovation or ideology Cultural Diffusion-spread of idea, innovation or ideology from hearth to another culture Types of Diffusion Expansion Diffusion-idea, innovation or ideology develops in a source area and remains strong there while also spreading outward (spreads across spatial areas in close proximity) Ex. computers, television, cell phones, religion Relocation Diffusion (Transculturation)-spread of idea, innovation or ideology through physical movement of individuals and across large spatial areas Ex. Italian immigrants to NYC taught Irish-Americans how to make pizza