Ensaio de geografia humana da montanha

Resumo

The author, Professor Pierre Deffontaines, in the two chapters of his essay about the human occupation of the mountain, studied the forested and industrially exploited mountain and the mountainous migrations. He analyzed the role played by the first one, mainly around the Mediterranean and in Central Europe. Then, he explained how the presence of forests in mountain being a source of combustible helped the introduction of industry there. He showed how the mountain started to have its own industries which were previously unknown to them. This represented the fruit of the inventive spirit developed by its inhabitants in touch with hard conditions of life which they had to face in that ambient and also on account of the natural resources which existed there.

            To achieve such goal the activities in mining had much to do with it as they extended to numerous mountains and made possible the rise of several and small complementary industries. The more recent exploitation of water power energy also played an important role. He examined minutely the specific solutions made effective: in the Alps, the Pyreness, Central Massif as well as in Brazil.

            Chapter IV refers to those migrations which had as starting point the mountain. He explained them as a second solution for the insufficiencies of the mountain. This would give as a result new local and complementary occupations.

            The causes for those migrations listed by the author are complementary farming, attraction of new horizons of labor, diffusion of products derived from local riches and several Others which it becomes hard to point out exactly. At length, the author stressed the importance of such phenomenon. He emphasized his conviction that the mountains are the main source which supply and renovate the human groups of the lowland. And if this is true, he thinks, we are entitled to consider mankind as having sprung up from the mountain, He also analyzed the recent trend towards the depopulation of the mountains, and preference given to them by them by tourists.