Environmental Determinism

An Ancient Belief

Belief in the power of the environment to shape society and mold human characteristics has been widely espoused since ancient times. Hippocrates, in his work On Airs, Waters and Places, asserts a connection between world climates and the perceived characteristics of different cultures. The proclivity of Northern Europeans to being poverty-stricken could be attributed to their poor environment, while more climatically favorable regions led to easygoing and amiable societies. Plato and Aristotle believed that the influence of climate extended to the development of governments and was ultimately responsible for stimulating the progress of societies. An acceptance of this direction of influence, strictly from the environment to humans, persisted throughout many centuries and found renewed interest during the Enlightenment. Montesquieu contended that the climate was a potent influence on human behavior, asserting that cold climates led people to be stronger in spirit and body, more trustful and straightforward, and less cunning, while the heat of the lower latitudes resulted in passivity and indolence. As during ancient times, this profound influence on human behavior was believed to be the fundamental explanation for varying forms of government and social organization. For example, it was believed that monarchies tended to occur in more fertile environments, while republics prevailed where the climate was harsh and people were pressured to better their circumstances. Despite the claim that the environment had a vast influence on human life, the environment was rarely the subject of study by environmental determinists as it was commonly viewed as an inexplicable force and considered important only in accounting for sociocultural variations among different peoples.

Environmental Determinism and Evolutionary Theory

Environmental determinism returned to the fore of intellectual consideration of human-environment relations during the late 19th and early 20th centuries following the advancement of Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace's theory of evolution. Even prior to evolution, scientists such as Herbert Spencer attempted to apply biological principles to the study of society. Although neither Darwin nor Wallace linked the principle of evolution with the concept of human social and economic development, many others did; they envisioned the potential for what, in their view, would allow for a more rational study of human society and culture. The theory of evolution was embraced as the [Page 917]bridge linking all organisms (including humans) to the natural laws governing their environment. Friedrich Ratzel, a central figure in the refinement of environmental determinism during the modern period, is perhaps best known as a result of his often-quoted student Ellen Churchill Semple. Semple's forceful arguments in favor of a strong version of environmental determinism overshadowed the more moderated writings of Ratzel. Anthropogeography, Semple's brand of environmental determinism, envisioned nature as the supreme agent of influence, molding the physical features of humans and shaping nearly all aspects of humanity's social development. Environmental factors during this period came to be commonly viewed as the determinative cause of racial differences, cultural practices, moral values, ingenuity, and the ultimate capabilities of any given population.

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