Final answer:
The young Dumas would likely be surprised by the limited knowledge of geography in America, despite the importance of geography in the nation's development and the ongoing efforts to explore and map the country's vast territory.
Step-by-step explanation:
The young Dumas would likely have been surprised by America's knowledge of geography due to the evolving understanding of the world during his time. In the late 18th century, geographical knowledge was expanding rapidly with new discoveries and explorations.
Maps like the one made by Samuel Dunn in 1794 included scientific calculations and mapped regions based on European explorations, yet many areas, particularly in the interior of North America, remained unknown. Western areas beyond the Mississippi and the massiveness of the Rocky Mountains were especially ambiguous, and expeditions by figures such as Lewis and Clark were conducted to map these areas and search for trade routes.
By the early 20th century, while the geography of the United States had enabled its growth and expansion, American students were still noted by commentators such as Jules Jusserand as displaying a notable ignorance of world geography. This trend of geographical ignorance continued despite the clear importance that geography played in America’s development, expansion, and readiness for events like the Industrial Revolution.
The surprise comes from the dichotomy that despite the vast geographical challenges that had been overcome and the clear advantages America held due to its geography, there remained a significant gap in geographical knowledge among its inhabitants.