Faits divers, rendez-vous, necrología et vernissage at the French School of Geography (1903-1939). Based on a Reading of the Annales de Géographie

Abstract

This is a kind of cros-sectional reading: leafing over the key years in the French School of Geography, not by the expected itinerary through the scientific texts wich are the legacy to the history of the discipline, but rather in search for what has remained of the gestures and worldly ticks of its elders. What is sought is not another portrait of the School, because that would provide another definition, even though the same model were applied. The objective is less arnbitious: simply a sort of leisure-time stroll in the company of Mr. de la Blache, his children and grandchildren. What we do or say here may not add much to what is already known about them; it may, however, help us to understand them better.