Carl Sauer on Culture and Landscape

by Denevan, William M.; Mathewson, Kent

• ISBN13: 9780807133941
• ISBN10: 0807133949
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-05-01
• Publisher: Louisiana State Univ Pr

Summary

Perhaps one of the most distinctive and studied geographers of the twentieth century, Carl O. Sauer (1889-1975) had influence that extends well beyond the confines of any one discipline. With a focus on historical and cultural geography, Sauer's essays have garnered praise from poets, natural historians, and social scientists alike who continue to explore Sauer's work. In Carl Sauer on Culture and Landscape, editors William M. Denevan and Kent Mathewson have compiled thirty-seven of Sauer's original works, including rare early writings, articles in now largely inaccessible publications, and transcriptions of key oral presentations that remain little known.

Author Biography

William M. Denevan is a professor emeritus in the Department of Geography at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is the author of Cultivated Landscapes of Native Amazonia and the Andes and editor of The Native Population of the Americas in 1492. Kent Mathewson is an associate professor in the Department of Geography and Anthropology at Louisiana State University. He is the author or coeditor of several books, including Culture, Land, and Legacy: Perspectives on Carl O. Sauer and Berkeley School Geography.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xi
Preface	p. xvii
About Carl Sauer
Carl Ortwin Sauer, 1889-1975 (1975)	p. 3
Carl Sauer and His Critics	p. 9
Thoughts on Bibliographic Citations to and by Carl Sauer	p. 29
Bibliography of Commentaries on the Life and Work of Carl Sauer Compiled	p. 53
Early Efforts
Introduction	p. 89
Exploration of the Kaiserin Augusta River in New Guinea, 1912-1913 (1915)	p. 95
Preface to The Geography of the Ozark Highland of Missouri (1920 [1915])	p. 99
Man's Influence Upon the Earth (1916)	p. 103
Notes on the Geographic Significance of Soils: A Neglected Side of Geography (1922)	p. 105
Toward Maturity
Introduction	p. 111
The Field of Geography (1927)	p. 119
Cultural Geography (1931)	p. 136
Correspondence [on Physical Geography in Regional Works] (1932)	p. 144
Economy/Economics
Introduction	p. 149
Abstract: Geography as Regional Economics (1921)	p. 160
Regional Reality in Economy (1984 [1936])	p. 162
Economic Prospects of the Caribbean (1954)	p. 173
Cultivated Plants
Introduction	p. 185
Age and Area of American Cultivated Plants (1959)	p. 198
Maize into Europe (1962)	p. 213
Man in Nature
Introduction	p. 231
Soil Conservation (1936)	p. 242
Destructive Exploitation in Modern Colonial Expansion (1938)	p. 245
The Relation of Man to Nature in the Southwest (1945)	p. 252
Grassland Climax, Fire, and Man (1950)	p. 261
Historical Geography
Introduction	p. 271
The Prospect for Redistribution of Population (1937)	p. 277
About Nature and Indians (1939)	p. 292
Middle America as a Culture Historical Location (1959)	p. 296
Terra Firma: Orbis Novus (1962)	p. 306
Chart of My Course (1980)	p. 324
Decline of Indian Population (1980)	p. 330
The End of the Century (1980)	p. 338
Carl Sauer on Geographers and Other Scholars
Introduction	p. 345
Ruliff S. Holway, 1857-1927 (1929)	p. 352
Oskar Peschel, 1826-1875 (1934)	p. 354
Friedrich Ratzel, 1844-1904 (1934)	p. 356
Carl Ritter, 1779-1859 (1934)	p. 358
Ellen Churchill Semple, 1863-1932 (1934)	p. 360
Herbert Eugene Bolton, 1870-1953 (1954)	p. 362
Homer LeRoy Shantz, 1876-1958 (1959)	p. 367
Erhard Rostlund, 1900-1961 (1962)	p. 371
Richard J. Russell, 1895-1971 (1967)	p. 375
David I. Blumenstock, 1913-1963 (1968)	p. 377
Informal Remarks
Introduction	p. 383
Letter to Landscape [on Past and Present American Culture] (1960)	p. 390
The Seminar as Exploration (1976 [1948])	p. 392
The Quality of Geography (1970)	p. 398
Casual Remarks (1976)	p. 407
Appendix: Doctoral Dissertations Supervised	p. 417
Bibliography of Publications	p. 421
Contributors	p. 433
Index	p. 437
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Perhaps the most distinctive and studied geographer of the twentieth century, Carl O. Sauer (18891975) had influence that extended well beyond the confines of any one academic discipline. A prolific historical and cultural geographer, Sauer's essays garnered praise from poets, natural historians, and social scientists. Anthropologists, archaeologists, ecologists, conservationists, and other scholars continue to explore Sauer's findings. In Carl Sauer on Culture and Landscape, editors William M. Denevan and Kent Mathewson have compiled thirty-seven of Sauer's original works, including obscure early writings, articles from now largely inaccessible publications, and transcriptions of oral presentations that remain little known. The volume opens with two extended essays on Sauer's critics and his works; and prominent geographers and other authorities on Sauer introduce each section of the book. A complete bibliography of Sauer's publications and a compilation of commentaries on his life and work make this an indispensable reference. Carl Sauer on Culture and Landscape sheds new light on Sauer's contributions to the history of geographic thought, sustainable land use, and the importance of biological and cultural diversity-all of which remain key issues today.