Date of Award

2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Brain, David

Area of Concentration

Environmental Studies

Abstract

The motivation for this research is to investigate the historical development of the nature-culture divide, an anthropological concept that identifies tension between the ideas of nature and culture and seeks to understand where on the scale between autonomy and interaction the two operate. This study analyzes the divide in late medieval and Tudor period England (1250-1600) through the lens of urban infrastructure in order to add to literature concerned with human-environmental interaction and thinking. Using documents from lay culture, such as ordinances, building contracts, financial accounts, and wills, as evidence, this study demonstrates that Englishmen during this period were clearly thinking in terms of a human-nature dichotomy, as exhibited by the conscious separation between the natural and built environments, intentional changes made to the environment, the recognition and resolution of issues with the environment, and the development of professional statuses that were associated with mastery over natural materials.

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