ABSTRACT
Landscape has a long and distinguished history within the discipline of geography, but by its own admission is but one mode of ordering the facts of the geographical world. Parallax, the apparent change in appearance of an object when viewed from different positions, is conventionally associated with the discipline of astronomy and, within geography, in the practice of photogrammetry. Parallax, the noticeable change in appearance when an object is viewed from different positions, is clearly discernible in the various yet complementary landscape perspectives surrounding national parks. The American national park perspective of natural landscapes devoid of human impact or occupation is premised upon the separation of humans and nature, ideologically and practically. However, most natural areas protected as parks have been changed appreciably by humans. The very idea of protecting nature from human impact through the creation of preserved landscapes is inherently paradoxical and reflects the philosophical dilemma created by the perception of humans as separate from nature.
