Suchergebnisse

SAMUEL VAN VALKENBURG WAS A PROMINENT GEOGRAPHER WORKING IN THE UNITED STATES WHOSE CAREER SPANNED THE PERIOD FROM THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES TO THE COLD WAR. HE IS BEST KNOWN FOR HIS GEOPOLITICAL WRITINGS OF THE PRE WORLD WAR II PERIOD, FASHIONING ONE OF THE FEW AMERICAN-ORIENTED GEOPOLITICAL THEORIES COMPARABLE TO THOSE OF MACKINDER OR HAUSOFER. THIS PAPER TRACES THE EVOLUTION OF HIS WORK FROM GEOPOLITICAL THEORY TO WAR-TIME PROPAGANDA TO POST-WAR MAINSTREAM POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY. CENTRAL TO THIS ANALYSIS IS A COMPARISON OF HIS PERSONAL HISTORY WITH THAT OF THE GENERAL FIELD OF POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY. SPECIAL EFFORT IS MADE TO INFORM CURRENT INTEREST ON THE STATUS OF 'EMPIRICIST' POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY AS WELL AS ON THE HISTORY OF THE 'POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY V. GEOPOLITICS' DEBATE. THE CONCLUSION DRAWN IS THAT NEITHER GEOPOLITICS NOR POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY CAN BE UNDERSTOOD IN RELATION TO ONE ANOTHER AND THE TRUE COMPARISON IS AND ALWAYS HAS BEEN BETWEEN THESE AND REGIONAL GEOGRAPHY.