GEOG 220 Lecture Notes - Lecture 21: Neo-Medievalism
Document Summary
Modern understanding of borders: really new relatively speaking(19th-20th century) Depends on which part of the world you"re looking at: pre-modern borders drawn on different bases: less fixed, clear, territorial, before preindustrial society, no power to control border territories(tech capabilities relatively new) Much less state programs, no need to control the population: reading the past to reveal the present(no) Tend to think of political power as territorial. Tend to think that territorial holdings are mutually exclusive: if you"re in canada, then you"re not in us(not possible) Tend to think that power as fixed(border is fixed: seems very natural. But in these times(premodern), power was not seen as exclusive: things are very different today. There must be enormous trade routes: there is control of territory, but modern territorial lines do not exist(because no tech capabilities to control and sustain. Tendency to draw lines(where one territory ends and the other begins)
