On relevance in geography: Thünen's isolated state in relation to agriculture and political economy

Thünen's Isolated State as a whole is suggested here as a methodological model for a socially relevant geographical theory. In contrast to the usual approach in economic geography, of deriving a spatial model from a general economic theory, Thünen's methodology is to begin with a specific reality, to derive from it the specialized model of the Isolated State and to use it as an instrument for the construction of a general economic theory. This general economic theory, in turn, is designed to act upon society as a whole. Thünen's work is an example of how geography can be a specialized scientific activity within a holistic-integrative reality.