Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers

Culture and Imperialism

Selecting and interpreting measures of thematic classification accuracy

Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder

In this chapter we will be concentrating on one of the key processes in the ‘cultural circuit’ (see Du Gay et al., 1997, and the Introduction to this volume) – the practices of representation. The aim of this chapter is to introduce you to this topic, and to explain what it is about and why we give it such importance in cultural studies. The concept of representation has come to occupy a new and important place in the study of culture. Representation connects meaning and language to culture. But what exactly do people mean by it? What does representation have to do with culture and meaning? One common-sense usage of the term is as follows: ‘Representation means using language to say something meaningful about, or to represent, the world meaningfully, to other people.’ You may well ask, ‘Is that all?’ Well, yes and no. Representation is an essential part of the process by which meaning is produced and exchanged between members of a culture. It does involve the use of language, of signs and images which stand for or represent things. But this is a far from simple or straightforward process, as you will soon discover. How does the concept of representation connect meaning and language to culture? In order to explore this connection further, we will look at a number of different theories about how language is used to represent the world. Here we will be drawing a distinction between three different accounts or theories: the reflective, the intentional and the constructionist approaches to representation. Does language simply reflect a meaning which already exists out there in the world of objects, people and events (reflective)? Does language express only what the speaker or writer or painter wants to say, his or her personally intended meaning (intentional)? Or is meaning constructed in and through language (constructionist)? You will learn more in a moment about these three approaches. Most of the chapter will be spent exploring the constructionist approach, because it is this perspective which has had the most significant impact on cultural studies in recent years. This CHAPTER ONE

From Work to Representation

For people with locomotor difficulties space can frequently raise insurmountable problems which at first sight may seem so trivial to able-bodied persons that they become ignored. Space is often difficult to deal with, but seldom are the views of the physically disabled acknowledged in mapping and urban design.

Private worlds and public places: mapping the environmental values of wheelchair users

To what extent do European state topographic maps exhibit unique styles of cartography? This paper describes an investigation to classify and analyse stylistic diversity in the official 1 : 50 000 topographical mapping of 20 European countries. The method involves the construction of a typology of cartographic style, based upon the classification of distinct graphical legend symbols into mutually exclusive thematic categories. In order to identify stylistic similarities between national symbologies, hierarchical cluster analysis was performed to compare the relative proportions of symbols within each category. This was complemented by a qualitative analysis of various aspects of cartographic design: colour, 'white' space, visual hierarchy, and lettering. The results indicate a high degree of stylistic diversity throughout Europe, with the symbologies of Great Britain and Ireland demonstrating the strongest example of a supranational style. The typology of cartographic symbologies is shown to be an...

Stylistic Diversity in European State 1 : 50 000 Topographic Maps

The Routledge Handbook of Mapping and Cartography

This paper explores the merit of incorporating the personal geographies of individuals with impaired mobility into the production of access and mobility maps. If cartographers take it upon themselves to produce maps without first seeking to understand these geographies or images of place, they are likely to infuse their work with their own values and meanings. This becomes especially important if it is accepted that maps may have a political role. The issue of accessibility is inherently political, cities are literally crippled when members of their population are restricted from reaching their full potential due to inadequate planning and design. The paper describes an attempt to develop a cartographic process which incorporates the values of the user group into all stages of map design. The project highlights the complex nature of environmental imagery and the merit of producing symbolic cartographic representations of environmental values.

Contorted, Folded, Torn: Environmental Values, Cartographic Representation and the Politics of Disability

To what extent can similarity and difference in the cartographic style of state topographic maps be explained within the context of the cartographic language paradigm? This paper explores the suitability of this approach as a hermeneutic for stylistic diversity, the persistence of nationally-specific conventions and problems of symbol standardisation. After reviewing earlier treatments of map language as analogy and metaphor in cartographic theory, we consider the construction of cartographic meaning and its role within a semiological system and suggest how variations in denotation and connotation allow a deeper understanding of the cultural significance of state topographic map symbologies. In treating topographic cartography as a natural visual language for communicating place, a new paradigm is proposed through which problems of international collaboration concerning the portrayal of transnational landscapes (especially at larger map scales) may be approached and potentially overcome.

Peter Vujakovic

Papers

Private worlds and public places: mapping the environmental values of wheelchair users

Stylistic Diversity in European State 1 : 50 000 Topographic Maps

The Routledge Handbook of Mapping and Cartography

Contorted, Folded, Torn: Environmental Values, Cartographic Representation and the Politics of Disability

Cartographic Language: Towards a New Paradigm for Understanding Stylistic Diversity in Topographic Maps