Hyperbolic geometry and homotopic homeomorphisms of surfaces

The Epstein-Baer theory of curve isotopies is basic to the remarkable theorem that homotopic homeomorphisms of surfaces are isotopic. The groundbreaking work of R. Baer was carried out on closed, orientable surfaces and extended by D. B. A. Epstein to arbitrary surfaces, compact or not, with or without boundary and orientable or not. We give a new method of deducing the theorem about homotopic homeomorphisms from the results about homotopic curves via the hyperbolic geometry of surfaces. This works on all but 13 surfaces where ad hoc proofs are needed.