John K. Wright and Human Nature in Geography

Abstract

John K. Wright introduced concept of geosophy into in 1947. By emphasizing role of human nature, geosophy differed from dominant geographical approaches of time. A survey of subsequent use of term by geographers suggests that some geographical ideas are transmitted largely by undocumented, informal methods. Wright anticipated rise of subjective in geography. OHN K. Wright was of intellectual leaders of American Geo- graphical Society (AGS) during second quarter of twentieth cen- tury. As librarian from 1920 to 1937, he designed AGS research catalog, a bibliographical retrieval system organized exclusively for geographical purposes, and he was director of society from 1938 to 1949. A prolific writer, he published numerous articles on a wide range of topics. His career has been described as one of most fruitful and illustrious in history of American geography (Lowenthal 1969, 598). In 1946, he served as pres- ident of Association of American Geographers and presented annual presidential address with its traditional focus on geographical thought and methodology. His address, Terrae Incognitae: The Place of Imagination in Geog- raphy touched on several topics, including geosophy, which he proposed to be a new subfield of geography. Geosophy was to encompass the study of geographical knowledge from any or all points of view and to deal with the nature and expression of geographical knowledge both past and (Wright 1947, 12; 1966, 83). Although Wright did not coin term geosophy, his definition of it is accepted (Dunbar 1980). Wright's address is now accepted as a seminal contribution to geograph- ical thought, an important starting point for study of subjective in geography. Yet concept of geosophy remains obscure at best, familiar to a few geographers but unknown to most. Only about half of dictionaries of discipline deem term worthy of inclusion. There is little need for such an entry; word has probably never been published without an accompanying definition. In this article, I trace concept of geosophy from its inception to present day. In doing so, I assess importance and current influence of *I thank Alex Gibson and Lisa Kahn for their encouragement and for comments on early drafts of this article.