Short Chapter synopsis
There has been an increasing need in the society for knowledge regarding the layout and geography of the globe. This is essential since it enables humanity to comprehend their environments and factors, which influence their political, economic and social inclinations. The book Realms Regions and Concepts by H. J. de Blij and Peter Muller provide an insight, whereby, the authors explore a comprehensive and authoritative content on global history. When analyzing chapter 3 and 4 of the book, the perspective of the authors, are narrowed to the regions of north, and Middle America. The chapters explore the histories of these regions exploring the foundations, which led to the current situations in the aforementioned regions.
Chapter 3 Synopsis: North America
In chapter three, the authors explore the North America region. The author begins by describing the North American realm. In the description, it is apparent that the realm encompasses two countries namely the U.S. and Canada. The criteria used by the author in order to define the aforementioned realm include the location. Other factors included the cultural, physical, population structures, economic and historical perspectives. The premise of the authors is that, despite North America being associated with being a continent, it is also a realm (De, Blij and Muller 147). This approach enables the authors to differentiate the geographical and social contrasts in the realm. Also included in the chapter are the immigration issues in the realm, the physical geography, hydrography, climate and physiography of the region. These perspectives are used to explore the realm collectively. However, the authors are not confined to the broad approach and divide the realm, in order to explore the individual countries, namely the U.S. and Canada. When exploring the U.S., the authors explore the population using the phenomena of time and space. This approach highlights how the population was diffused across space through the ages (De, Blij and Muller 153). This involves the utilization of historical data to explore the demographic landscape of the U.S. The book also explores the cultural geography of the region and on how it has changed over time. The authors explicitly correlate the influence of the population diffusion and cultural developments with the regional issues and the dynamism of the economical scenario in the region. These approaches enable the comprehension of the current situation in the region using historical developments and geographical transformations. This approach is more comprehensive and links the events, which have shaped the American society.
The chapter also differentiates the situation in Canada using the criteria used for the U.S. It was essential for the chapter to consider the two countries separately since despite being in the same realm, they experienced different situations, which shaped their current situations. The next part of the chapter majored on factors, which influenced the economic landscape of the region. This included an exploration of the regions, which had numerous potential during the postindustrial era. These regions formed the North American core for economic development. The regions, which were identified in this scenario, included upper New England, French Canada, and Maritime Northeast among others. Agriculture was also an influential sector in the development of the realm. This reality is attested by the chapter’s analysis on the agricultural supremacy of the region. Ethanol was also an essential resource during the era due to the development of the agricultural sector (De, Blij and Muller 164). Considering that the agricultural sector was a key force of change in the region, there was uneven development socially and economically during the transition. Energy was cited to be an essential factor of development. This was also encompassed in the chapter whereby the significance of Alaska as an energy storehouse was analyzed. The chapter provided detailed and systematic information on the factors and event, which influenced the shape of the North American realm.
Chapter 4 Synopsis: Middle America
In chapter 4, the book focuses of Middle America. This region involves Mexico region and the realm was identified through considerations of the position, cultural, physical, population structures, economic and historical perspectives. The chapter explores the historical event, which led to the development of civilization in the region. This involves the creation of the land bridges and their development to form island chains. This development led to the development of civilizations in the region an event, which influenced the social and economic landscape of the region. The pre-colonial situation is explored with the legacy of the Mesoamerican era (De, Blij and Muller 182). The chapter also analyzes the main cultures, which were experienced in the region mainly the Mayan, and Aztec cultures. These civilizations were located in different regions with the Mayans dominating the lowlands while the Aztecs were situated in the highlands. These cultures were instrumental since they were the foundation of the social and cultural landscape experienced in Middle America.
The author also explores the inevitability of the cultural collusion in the region and the resulting cultural landscape in the region. The wealth associated with the region was instrumental in attracting western influences in the region. The chapter analyzes the effects of conquest by the western influences on the region. Some of the influences, which are highlighted, include the hacienda system, whereby, the settlers carried out large scale farming using local slaves. The plantation system was an instrumental development in the region since it revolutionized the regions political and economical inclinations. This premise is evident with the political fragmentation, which was witnessed in the region. The transition of political inclination from hereditary to colonial systems was realized (De, Blij and Muller 186). However, this changed with the independence of the region from colonial influences adopting the western political structures. This event changed the region’s perspective of leadership and politics in the long term. The chapter proceeds to explore the dynamism of the region’s economy in the postcolonial era. Other influential events, which included the revolution and its outcomes, were also highlighted in the chapter. The authors also explored the changing patterns in the population and the psychography of the region. The chapter also considers the future of Mexico when considering the changes, which have been experienced in the realm. The chapter is not confined to Mexico, and it proceeds to analyze the republics in Central America. The environment of the region is also explored and the influence of the turbulent era in the environment of the region.
The chapter also investigates recent problems in the region including the gang issue, which plagues Mexico and Central America. The CAFTA agreement and its potential are also a subject in the chapter (De, Blij and Muller 188). The chapter also introduces the Caribbean region into the picture and its influence in Middle America. Finally, the chapter also explores regional issues. This includes the lesser and Greater Antilles region and the economic and social patterns. The chapter gives an overview of the events, which have influenced the geopolitical situation in Middle America.
Reference
De, Blij H. J, and Peter O. Muller. Geography: Realms, Regions, and Concepts. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley, 2008. Print.
