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Reframing the ‘South’: Divisions of the Globe and British Geographical Imaginations in the Victorian and Edwardian Era
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The idea of the South, conceptualized as a global geo-economic entity, is very recent. It imposed itself very gradually upon British and European geographical imaginations. The world was not divided along a North/South division in the 19th century. Most atlases and general maps published in London or Edinburgh in the late nineteenth century represented the earth along a longitudinal divide. This framework reflected deep-rooted cultural legacies dating back to the Renaissance. It took a paradigm shift in the early twentieth century and major political and scientific evolutions to witness the emergence of new categorizations. Halford Mackinder’s new political geography, constructive imperialism’s emphasis on the notion of development, the birth of international law and the structuration of the field of geopolitics all contributed to foster a new understanding of the world’s balance. This article sets out to demonstrate how these shifting British views of the world echoed wider cultural processes.
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J. R. Seeley (1834–1895) was Regius Professor of Modern History at Cambridge. He was concerned that classics and the study of the distant past were far too dominant at the university, and believed that the academic study of contemporary history could provide a moral and intellectual foundation for modern political life. The Expansion of England, first published in 1883 and based on his lectures, was his most successful book, remaining in print for over seventy years. He believed that the purpose of the study of history was to see patterns and tendencies which could be used to make predictions about the future. Foreseeing the rise of America and Russia as world powers, he wanted to ensure that the British Empire retained its position of dominance in the twentieth century, which he saw as its destiny. His clear arguments, and skill in writing often-quoted epigrams, ensured the book's continued popularity.
A bestseller in its day, this three-volume work vividly recounts significant voyages made by Britain's leading navigators. A prominent figure in London cultural life, John Hawkesworth (c.1720–73) was commissioned by the Admiralty to compile, from the captains' journals, the official record of voyages which included James Cook's first journey to the South Pacific. Reissued here is the Dublin edition based on the first printing of 1773; a second edition appeared later in the year. Critical opinion was fierce, however, with Hawkesworth accused of impiety, manipulating the original texts and promoting the sexual freedoms of Pacific islanders. Devastated by these attacks, he died the same year. Later taken aboard the Beagle with Darwin, the work still speaks to scholars and students of nautical exploration. Volume 3 continues Cook's account of his first voyage, including the first sighting of Australia and his landing at Botany Bay.
In this thoughtful and engaging critique, geographer Martin W. Lewis and historian Karen Wigen reexamine the basic geographical divisions we take for granted, and challenge the unconscious spatial frameworks that govern the way we perceive the world. Arguing that notions of East vs. West, First World vs. Third World, and even the sevenfold continental system are simplistic and misconceived, the authors trace the history of such misconceptions. Their up-to-the-minute study reflects both on the global scale and its relation to the specific continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa--actually part of one contiguous landmass. The Myth of Continents sheds new light on how our metageographical assumptions grew out of cultural concepts: how the first continental divisions developed from classical times; how the Urals became the division between the so-called continents of Europe and Asia; how countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan recently shifted macroregions in the general consciousness. This extremely readable and thought-provoking analysis also explores the ways that new economic regions, the end of the cold war, and the proliferation of communication technologies change our understanding of the world. It stimulates thinking about the role of large-scale spatial constructs as driving forces behind particular worldviews and encourages everyone to take a more thoughtful, geographically informed approach to the task of describing and interpreting the human diversity of the planet.
During the tumultuous closing decades of the nineteenth century, as the prospect of democracy loomed and as intensified global economic and strategic competition reshaped the political imagination, British thinkers grappled with the question of how best to organize the empire. Many found an answer to the anxieties of the age in the idea of Greater Britain, a union of the United Kingdom and its settler colonies in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and southern Africa. In The Idea of Greater Britain, Duncan Bell analyzes this fertile yet neglected debate, examining how a wide range of thinkers conceived of this vast "Anglo-Saxon" political community. Their proposals ranged from the fantastically ambitious--creating a globe-spanning nation-state--to the practical and mundane--reinforcing existing ties between the colonies and Britain. But all of these ideas were motivated by the disquiet generated by democracy, by challenges to British global supremacy, and by new possibilities for global cooperation and communication that anticipated today's globalization debates. Exploring attitudes toward the state, race, space, nationality, and empire, as well as highlighting the vital theoretical functions played by visions of Greece, Rome, and the United States, Bell illuminates important aspects of late-Victorian political thought and intellectual life.
During the tumultuous closing decades of the nineteenth century, as the prospect of democracy loomed and as intensified global economic and strategic competition reshaped the political imagination, British thinkers grappled with the question of how best to organize the empire. Many found an answer to the anxieties of the age in the idea of Greater Britain, a union of the United Kingdom and its settler colonies in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and southern Africa. InThe Idea of Greater Britain, Duncan Bell analyzes this fertile yet neglected debate, examining how a wide range of thinkers conceived of this vast "Anglo-Saxon" political community. Their proposals ranged from the fantastically ambitious--creating a globe-spanning nation-state--to the practical and mundane--reinforcing existing ties between the colonies and Britain. But all of these ideas were motivated by the disquiet generated by democracy, by challenges to British global supremacy, and by new possibilities for global cooperation and communication that anticipated today's globalization debates. Exploring attitudes toward the state, race, space, nationality, and empire, as well as highlighting the vital theoretical functions played by visions of Greece, Rome, and the United States, Bell illuminates important aspects of late-Victorian political thought and intellectual life.