At the End of the Earth: How Polar Ice and Imagination Shape the World

Author: Brackett, G L

Source: Terrae Incognitae, Volume 42, Number 1, September 2010 , pp. 19-33(15)

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Abstract:

This article explores the historical relationship between the polar regions and their representation in Western literature, starting with classical texts and working through several important journals of discovery in the Renaissance while referencing the defining maps of the age. Working chronologically, it also traces the impact of Cook's journals on the imaginative work of the Romantic Period, and investigates the impact of the Age of Exploration on the twentieth-century view of the polar realms. The central tenet of this article is that the Arctic and the Antarctic are critical reference points for understanding humanity's place in the world; and, as perception of the poles has changed, so has our collective human understanding. The exploration illustrates a paradox: that while our scientific understanding of polar regions has increased, the declining mythical power of these terrae incognitae has eliminated a critical reverence we once had for them.

Keywords: ANTARCTICA; POLAR REGIONS; ARCTIC; ROMANTIC SUBLIME; EMPIRICISM VERSUS IMAGINATION

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1179/008228810X12755564743480

Publication date: 2010-09-01

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