From one generation to another: A reading and interpretation of hedgerow and field landscapes by farmers from three dairy areas in Lower Normandy (France)
Following a process initiated during the 1960s in a large number of Europe’s rural areas, the transformation of agricultural production systems brought about significant changes in both the landscape of Lower Normandy and the relationship people had with it. The purpose of this paper is to apply proven survey methodology to analyze how farmers see their landscapes. We begin by explaining the method used to select the photographic corpus used as the basis for the study. We then examine the way two generations of farmers interpret their landscapes. Our discourse analysis reveals significant differences between these farmers, differences that reflect a major shift in perceptions between those who were part of the agricultural productivism reforms of the 1970s, and members of the younger generation who began working in agriculture in the mid-1980s. Furthermore, our analysis of their discourse on wastelands and crops highlights the crucial importance of professional identity in the ways these farmers construct their particular representations of their landscapes.