Chapter 8: Geographies of Identity and Difference

What is the thought of Saurien landscape school tradition?

They saw humans modifying physical geography into a cultural landscape and emphasized the regional mapping of material and visible features of landscape on the grounds that such mapping assumes the existence of a single distinctive and unchanging cultural constituting a culture.

What is acculturation?

It is the process by which an ethnic group is absorbed into a larger society while retaining aspects of distinct identity.

What is microculture?

It also known as subcultural identity and is understood as relatively small groups of people within a larger culture who differ in some way from the majority.

Attitudes

________ or beliefs that serve to justify sexual inequalities by incorrectly attributing or denying certain capacities either to women or to men.

How are humans categorized?

They are categorized based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society.

Identity

________; what sexual orientation is claimed by an individual.

What are the requirements of genocide

It requires participation of many people in the perpetrator group and this level of participation is more likely to occur when the actions taken are formally authorized by the state.

gender inequality

Eliminating ________ not only ought to be a fundamental goal of any civilized society, but is also essential to winning the war on global poverty.

What has been the role of feminist geographers in the last decade on on geography?

It has been at the forefront of geographic research about the production of difference and the way that some groups are marginalized and excluded; there is a focus on gender, but many other categories of difference are incorporated.

Constructionist view

________ stresses that those characteristics are socially made or acquired and that they are contested in the sense that there are no unequivocal meanings.

Assimilation

It is the process by which an ethnic group is absorbed into a larger society and loses its own identity.

common identity

Some people are defined as insiders because they share the ________ of the group, while others are seen as outsiders because they are different.

What is multiculturalism?

It is a policy that endorses the right of ethnic groups to remain distinct rather than to be assimilated into a dominant society.

Feminist research

________ has also been inspired by Marxist ideas about inequality and need for social justice and by postmodern ideas about excluded groups.

Used in context of recent changes in many of the social sciences and humanities

suggests both a different understanding of culture and an increased appreciation of culture in understanding humans and their political and economic activities

According to this, cultures are not objects but mediums or processes, but as described by Peter Jackson as maps of meaning

the "codes with which meaning is constructed, conveyed and understood"

Most groups who self-identify as ethnic; base their ethnicity on one or both of the two principal cultural variables

language and religion

In urban areas, statues and monuments reinforce the idea of male power by commemorating male military and political leaders

"Conveyed to us in the urban landscapes of Western societies is a heritage of masculine power, accomplishment, and heroism; women are largely invisible, present occasionally if they enter the male sphere of politics or militarism"

In common with other topics investigated within the general rubric of feminist geography

concerned with how the life experiences of men and women differ

Landscape is resisted by microculture in the form of new social movements

in support of the environment, social justice, ethnic separatism, and so on; and they are best interpreted as expressions of opposition to power

What are the main components of well-being?

Components of well-being are:
- income, wealth and employment
- the living environment, including housing
- physical and mental health
- education
- social order
- social belonging
- recreation and leisure

What is folk culture?

Folk cultures tend to be characterized by a rural setting and a strong sense of place.

Why is diffusion of popular culture important?

Diffusion of popular culture is an important part of cultural globalization.

What are common tourist attractions?

Common tourist attractions:
-bgood weather
- attractive scenery
- amenities for activities
- historical and cultural features
- accessibilities and infrastructure
- accommodation

What is mass tourism?

It is a form of mass consumption; it involves the purchase of commodities produced under conditions of mass production.

Why do people visit exotic places?

- Such places are rarely authentic; in many cases they have been constructed to satisfy the tourist gaze as described earlier.
- Travel companies frequently play on the desire for novelty by using ‘exotic’ images and descriptions in their brochures.

What are benefits of tourism?

Benefits of tourism;
- local employment
- stimulation for local economies
- foreign exchange
- improvements in services such as communications.