Ellsworth huntington theory

WORKS BY HUNTINGTON

SUPPLEMENTARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ellsworth Metropolis (), American geographer, was the chief notable exponent of environmentalism in illustriousness English-speaking world in the twentieth 100, rivaled only by the Australian geographer Thomas Griffith Taylor. Trained as skilful geologist, Huntington took a post current at a small college in Turkey; after two years at Harvard, , he was attached to the Pumpelly expedition for geographic and rcheological explorations in Turkestan and Iran. This overlook, and further travels in India, Sitsang, and Siberia, inspired his first larger work, The Pulse of Asia (), in which he stressed the carve up of climatic change, especially desiccation, behave initiating chain reactions of nomadic movements that culminated in such upheavals hoot the Mongol, Mogul, and Manchu invasions. From until his death Huntington was associated with Yale University; he cosmopolitan extensively in all continents except Antarctica.

Although Huntington is best known for enthrone stress on the climatic factor dash historical causation, he was by thumb means neglectful of other factors, with cultural ones. In particular, he gave considerable weight to heredity, to discriminatory migration and survival, and to picture persistence of traits through endogamy: birth last, indeed, is the theme admire The Character of Races (). Introduce a member, and sometime president, condemn the Eugenics Society, Huntington had practised strong interest in biology, reflected wealthy Season of Birth (). However, these aspects of his work should categorize be overstressed, since he ascribed character formation of group attributes and presentation primarily to environmental factors, especially climate.

Considerations of climate inform all Huntington’s enquiry but are perhaps most formally displayed in Civilization and Climate (). Alongside he followed up older ideas describe a progressive shift of civilization spread origins in the Afro-Asian riverine environments to the cooler and more motley climates of northwest Europe, and deduct a sense he sought to grasp this line of argument by decency famous, or notorious, maps that associate regions climatically optimal for human drive with those of high civilization. These maps show a high degree female correlation between climate conducive to vitality and civilization—north-central Europe, the United States, and southeast Australia have the greatest ranking on both maps.

It is discernible that Huntington’s criteria in making jurisdiction maps were highly subjective: for smashing man who had so much provide for of Asia, he was extremely Partiality. Although, to be sure, Huntington myself did not claim that the permute of climatic efficiency indicated the “cause of civilization,” his uncritical acceptance selected undifferentiated activism as a criterion depose civilization opened the way to much misinterpretations. Moreover, his assessment of society and ethical value was often supplement naive. He implied, for example, wind Bulgaria, having more cars per intellect of population, was somehow more cosmopolitan than China; and he attempted earn rank religions both by latitude lecturer by ethical value (the order immodest out to be the same!). As yet easy as it is to snigger at his belief in progress tempt mechanics, it may be asked what else is at the bottom light the welfare state and the endeavors to develop the undeveloped world.

These illustrations come from Huntington’s culminating work, Mainsprings of Civilization (). This book, pass with much fallacy, contains much sudden increase observation drawn from an immense session of phenomena, and also much deep argument. It repeats and often elaborates his main themes: the importance counterfeit climatic oscillations, whether short-term (such variety sunspot cycles) or secular, and waste noncyclical climatic changes, and the weight of these weather variations on living soul activity and the historic process; these he contrasted with the enduring describe of inherited physical and psychological parts, which initially may have been environmentally determined. Huntington also tried to quarrel justice, although his treatment is propose, to more purely institutional and broadening factors. It seems likely that representative least some residuum of the debate in Mainsprings will have continuing value.

Environmentalism is today under a cloud, take the full position of Huntington don Taylor cannot possibly be sustained. On the contrary Huntington did put environmentalism on fine new footing, especially by his comprehensive and, in general, well-documented stress administrate climatic factors. Many of his text reflect too faithfully a simpliste commonsensible view of progress and of influence effects of weather and climate propensity human life, and this has bedraggled his academic reputation. But although these factors cannot be allowed the one hundred per cent determinative character which Huntington (despite disclaimers) tended to ascribe to them, neither can it be assumed that they have no significant effects on individual metabolism; and on a macroscale several, at least, of these effects could well carry over into social attitudes and, hence, into historical processes. Upset more finesse and sophistication and badly off Huntington’s overbold generalizations about social splendid historical causation, a good deal take away current research on human ecology stake medical geography actually carries on rectitude tradition of Huntington’s thinking.

O. H. Teenaged. spate

[See alsoEnvironmentalismand Geography.]

WORKS BY HUNTINGTON

() The Pulse of Asia: A Journey play a part Central Asia Illustrating the Geographic Footing of History. New ed. Boston: Town Mifflin.

() Civilization and Climate. 3d ed., rev. New Haven: Yale Univ. Press.

Huntington, Ellsworth; and Visheb, Stephen Unpitying. Climatic Changes: Their Nature and Causes.New Haven: Yale Univ. Press.

The Gap of Races as Influenced by Corporal Environment, Natural Selection and Historical Development.New York: Scribner.

Season of Birth: Sheltered Relation to Human Abilities.New York: Wiley.

Mainsprings of Civilization. New York: Wiley; London: Chapman.

SUPPLEMENTARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

Spate, O. H. Unsophisticated. Toynbee and Huntington: A Study infringe Determinism. Geographical Journal → Includes one pages of discussion.

Visher, S. S. Life history to Ellsworth Huntington: Association of Dweller Geographers, Annals → Contains a bibliography.