The Natural Environment

Abstract

Chapter 4 shows that late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century geography books frequently posit a causal relationship between environmental conditions and social development. Europe’s beneficial natural environment is often presumed to be at the heart of its advanced societal achievements, although a rival theory suggests that Europeans have thrived by overcoming specific environmental adversities. At the root of these debates are questions about determinism and human agency, and uncertainty about whether to define Europe in terms of natural conditions or social accomplishments.