Geography and Enlightenment

Abstract

Explores both the Enlightenment as a geographical phenomenon and the place of geography in the Enlightenment. From disciplinary and topical perspectives, contributors consider the many ways in which the world of the long 18th century was brought to view and shaped through map and text, exploration and argument, within and across spatial and intellectual borders. The first set of chapters charts the intellectual and geographical contexts in which Enlightenment ideas began to form, including both the sites in which knowledge was created and discussed and the different means used to investigate the globe. Explorations of maps created during this period show how these new ways of representing the world and its peoples influenced conceptions of the nature and progress of human societies, while studies of the travels of people and ideas reveal the influence of far-flung places on Enlightenment science and scientific credibility. The final set of chapters emphasizes the role of particular local contexts in Enlightenment thought.

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