Author Bio: The author of "The Cartographer's Mirror," Arthur Jay Klinghoffer, make a point throughout the document that maps are biased. He says repeatedly that the way a map looks depends on its creator, and that there is no exact science to cartography.
Data/Context: This document fits into our understanding of history and culture because it gives a history of maps, which lets us know how much early people knew about the world. The first cartographers drew only Europe, parts of Asia, and parts of Africa because that was all that they knew. As exploration increased, so did their knowledge, and so did the land that was shown on the maps. Because many people hadn't been to the new world, cartographers' understanding of it was uncertain at first, so the maps were vague.
Summary: Generally speaking, the document "The Cartographer's Mirror" by Arthur Jay Klinghoffer gives a history of maps and provides insight about mapmakers' thoughts. Greeks were the first ones to make advancements in cartography, such as calculating the circumference of the earth, while other things progressed slowly, such as the creation of the magnetic compass. Maps may seem objective, but are in fact very subjective. Cartographers use as much information as they have to create maps, but they use their imagination, too. More often then not, mapmakers create maps of places they've never seen, which means that country borders, landmarks, and the physical parts of the land could all be inaccurate. Geography can also change over time. Also, cartographers could purposely make a country's border larger or smaller on a map to try and benefit that country. In short, maps can be very unreliable, and an essential part to comprehending them is to know what the cartographer wants the reader to see.
Key Quotation: "Discerning the cartographer's vision is therefore the key to analyzing maps."
Excellent quote selection!
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