ABSTRACT
If we look at an atlas, we find that it often begins with two maps of the world. One of these is physical, the other political. The first shows relief, depicting mountain ranges and plains, significant rivers, land masses and oceans. The second shows the same land and water, but this time the earth is brightly coloured, divided up and with clear lines separating out states from each other, and capital or other major cities marked as signs of human impact. We find the same divide when we move to maps of the continents later in the atlas.
