Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Shared future or separate paths?
Notwithstanding the mutual dependencies that have been
emphasized in this chapter, it is clear from the recent history
and current practice of physical and human geography that
the discipline as a whole faces a dilemma. On the one hand,
the shared past of physical and human geography, and the
concepts they have in common, bind them together. On the
other hand, the differences between them, in terms of subject
matter and approach, which were highlighted in Chapters 2 and
3, respectively, suggest divisions and at least the beginnings of
separate pathways of development.
The commonalities are most apparent between physical
geography and those aspects of human geography that can be
described as belonging to the social science tradition. The aspects
of human geography that fall within the humanities tradition are
more diffi cult to accommodate in a single intellectual framework
with the natural science tradition of physical geography. This
does not detract, however, from the fact that physical geography
still has an essential role at the core of integrated geography.
The dilemma, then, which is probably the main challenge facing
geographers today, is whether and how the discipline of geography
as a whole can hold together? This theme will be returned to again
in the last two chapters of the topic.
