Cities and Urban Life, 7th edition Published by John J. Macionis Solution Manual

Type:

Solution Manual

Resource:

Cities and Urban Life

Edition:

7th Edition

Author(s):

John J. Macionis Vincent N. Parrillo

CHAPTER 1: EXPLORING THE CITY Summary Why Study the City?

LO 1.1: Recognize how most people are captivated by cities.

The authors argue that due to rapid urbanization, urban life is now the norm for most residing in Western society and is quickly becoming so in the rest of the world. The loci of unprecedented population growth, cities harbor the best and the worst of human existence. Consequently, to understand the city is to understand ourselves, our culture, the impact of a global economy, and the world—in short, contemporary existence.

Deciding What is “Urban” LO 1.2: Examine the four criteria for defining an urban area Most people interpret the term “urban” as being characteristic of, or pertaining to, the city.

Despite this seemingly simple definition, the 195 countries with urban areas use a range of criteria, including administrative function, economic characteristics, functional nature, and population size and density to define these areas. Difficulties with cross-national comparisons aside, the world’s urban population is increasing everywhere, and estimates indicate that by 2050, two-thirds of the world’s population will reside in urban areas. Urbanization trends reveal that the while urban growth rates have dropped significantly in more industrialized areas, they have increased in the developing world.

The Urban Transformation LO 1.3a: Investigate the factors that lead to urban growth and development 1.3b: Evaluate the characteristics of the urban way of life Whether urbanization is planned and deliberate, or unplanned and spontaneous, it transforms land use (from rural to urban economic activities), the nature of land (from porous to nonporous through construction), and patterns of social life. The case of San Francisco depicts the impact of urbanization as the city was transformed from a sleepy village to feverish city by the gold rush, and 70 years later, to a sophisticated and laidback city. The authors offer a range of concepts to assist our understanding of the complexity and scale of urbanization, including the metropolitan area, the megalopolis, the megaregion, the megacity, and the global city. The size of a city has direct links to its well-being, a concept the authors explore via world-systems analysis.

1A .

Urbanism—the culture or way of life of city dwellers—results from the process of urbanization and depicts the interactive nature between human behavior and the environment. The range of lifestyles within the city and citizens’ ability to achieve their goals and shape events are impacted by the unequal distribution of urban resources and their positions within the city’s social hierarchy. Concepts such social power, social structure, and social stratification are central to this discussion.

The Complexity of the City: Various Perspectives LO 1.4: Describe the ecological process of invasion–succession as seen in emerging cities Although cities and urban life are fundamentally sociological in orientation, cities are complex human creations and require a historical, multidisciplinary investigation. Given that cities did not begin to appear until 2000 B.C.E. and did not become the principal type of settlement until the late 18th century C.E., they are very new in human history. Not surprisingly, although historians have studied cities for centuries, sociologists did not until the late 19th century. While early sociologists primarily saw the city as a dangerous socioeconomic byproduct of emerging industrial capitalism, more recent scholars have questioned this and suggest that any existing danger is not essentially “urban,” but rather a byproduct of larger political and economic forces.

Thus, the city is viewed today more as a neutral phenomenon and is studied with the guidance of four disciplinary orientations. Urban geography and ecology investigate the significance of the city’s location relative to natural resources and how people occupy the city spatially; urban political economy highlights the influence of global rather than local political and economic decision-making on the economic, political, social, and physical character of a city; social psychology emphasizes how the social environment of the city stimulates people; and comparative urbanism demonstrates the role that cultural beliefs play in shaping city life.

These four orientations, combined with those of the historical origins and development of cities and the classic statements of urban sociology, provide the basic analytical framework for a detailed analysis of cities in the contemporary world.

The Anatomy of Modern North American Cities LO 1.5: Enumerate the population percentage change of the 30 largest U.S. Cities Although North American urban population growth has slowed, there has been substantial population movement to Sunbelt (southern and western) cities and the growth of “exurbs” (smaller cities or areas outside central cities and surrounding suburbs). This migration is mostly driven by an aging, relatively wealthy cohort, desirous of a less costly and more comfortable environment, and by younger labor force participants seeking jobs and less congestion. The result of diminishing urban population size in certain cities is lost federal representation and funding, and consequently, fewer resources for meeting the needs of elderly and poor persons.

Understanding the anatomy of the city requires an investigation of its social structure.

2A .

The City in Global Perspective LO 1.6: Explain how the urban situation is desperate in most cities of the developing world The greatest urban growth is occurring in developing countries in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. In these areas urbanization has not resulted in anticipated quality of life improvements as cities have not kept up with the rapid increase in population. The results include poverty, malnutrition, and disease for many.

The Quality of City Life LO 1.7: Express the role played by cities in the progress of human civilization Although people come to the city in search of what Aristotle called “the good life,” millions do not find it. The heightened importance of the city to the future of human civilization and the fact that the quality of life in cities varies tremendously beckons a need to understand the range of conditions that contribute to a more stimulating and fulfilling urban life. The question remains: are we simply idle spectators to the rage and competition that sometimes characterize cities, or can we shape them into the ideal they are sometimes said to be?

Suggestions Readings and Websites Albon, J. 1971. “Retention of Cultural Values and Differential Urban Adaptation in a West Coast City,” Social Forces 49: March.

Davis, F. 1959. “The Cab Driver and His Face,” American Journal of Sociology 65: September.

The foregoing are two excellent short supplemental readings, which are easy to understand and illustrate the hands-on approach of urban sociology (e.g., participant observation).

Doctorow, E. L. 1975. Ragtime (New York: Bantam).

Wilson, W. J. 1996. When Work Disappears: The World of the New Urban Poor (New York: Knopf).

These two longer possibilities may be used for the entire course. Doctorow provides a turn-ofthe-century portrait of all social strata and the interaction between individuals and groups in New York City, and Wilson demonstrates how the disappearance of blue-collar jobs has constrained upward economic mobility of many black urban persons in contemporary Chicago.

3A .

Urban Sociology Site (Go to: http://www.urbansociology.com) This is a very useful website, with numerous resources that may be used by students in writing term papers, completing projects, etc.

“Urban Sociology Links” http://www.sociosite.net/topics/city.php This is a website that provides a number of interesting links for urban sociology.

“Profiles of the Fifty Largest Cities in the United States” http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108477.html This website provides brief descriptions of the 50 largest cities in America.

Project A group project that has had some success in capturing or augmenting student interest requires them to go to the city to take pictures of different areas (e.g., the central business district, poorer and wealthier areas, and commercial centers) and to write individually brief essays about their experiences. Questions may include: (1) In what important ways do the various areas of the city differ?; (2) Why are certain areas of the city are located where they are?; and (3) What reactions did you have to being in these various areas?

4A .

CHAPTER 2: EVOLUTION OF THE WORLD’S CITIES Summary Urban Origins LO 2.1: Examine the cosmic calendar to better understand the urban evolution According to archeologists, the first city emerged approximately 10,000 years ago, but it is only in the last few centuries that urban population expanded considerably. Hence, cities are quite recent in world history. When human beings appeared some 200,000 years ago, they lived in small groups as hunters and gatherers and moved every few weeks to look for food. As the population expanded and competition for food increased, our ancestors decided to settle in a fertile area, grow food, and eventually pursue other crafts. This is known as the agricultural revolution, which occurred roughly 10,000 years ago. Humans created permanent settlements, where they raised crops and domesticated animals. In these settlements, they developed a more complex division of labor, a hierarchical power structure, and a productive surplus. These factors contributed to the transformation of villages into towns and cities.

Jericho, whose settlement dates back to 8000 B.C.E., is thought to be the first city. Its size, also its complex social structure, observed in the remains of houses and fortification, define it as a city. In the following millennia, Jericho changed hands several times and experienced both progress and setbacks. Archeological research in Catal Hüyük in Turkey reveals the existence of a large and complex city dating back to 6000 B.C.E. However, it was only in about 3500 B.C.E. that the idea of a city took hold as people began to see the benefits of specialization. As more people moved to cities and increased the demand for goods and services, the state emerged to manage the needs of the inhabitants. City-states conquered others and made alliances to form urban empires in Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, Central America, and other areas of the world.

This corresponds to the first urban revolution, which lasted from 4000 B.C.E. until 500 C.E. The history of cities shows a combination of benefits and suffering.

City-States and Urban Empires LO 2.2: Recall some of the early city-states and the urban empires The first urban empire was in Mesopotamia. All the cities were ruled by a priest-king and organized according to a hierarchical structure supported by religious beliefs. A surplus in the agriculture supported the construction of public buildings, school systems, and the military elite.

By 3500 B.C.E., cities organized as politically distinct city-states often at war with each other.

This led to the formation of urban empires. In the context of trading urban dominance, cities experienced many changes, including, but not limited to, cultural and technological advancements.

5A .

Unlike Mesopotamian cities, the first Egyptian cities were not well preserved. The pharaohs were considered gods and had control over the Nile region creating a peaceful environment for cities to develop. Again, cities exhibited a rigid social structure. During the Old Kingdom period (2700-2180 B.C.E.), pharaohs began to conquer neighboring areas, stealing wealth and capturing slaves, who, in turn, were used to build many of Egypt’s famous monuments. This era ended with famines and riots and was followed by alternating periods of growth and decline in Egyptian cities.

The rest of the chapter surveys other cities such as Moenjo-Daro and Harrapa in the Indus region of present-day India and Pakistan; Liangzhu, Cheng-chou, and An-yang in China; and the early cities of Central and South America. By 2500 B.C.E., Moenjo-Daro had a gridiron system, a well-developed sanitation system, and evidence of a large prosperous middle class. In contrast, early Chinese cities reflect their hierarchical social structure with the political and social elite living apart from common people. All early cities had relatively favorable ecological conditions, a surplus of trade or food, a complex social structure characterized by a division of labor, and a power hierarchy often based on theocratic rule. Early cities were relatively small compared to today’s cities and did not guarantee a high standard of living for most residents.

Cities in the Western world did not emerge until about 1800 B.C.E. in Crete and then in Greece.

The Greek city-states were more egalitarian than Mesopotamian and Egyptian cities and highlighted the great potential of urban civilization. Following the collapse of Greece due to a series of destructive wars, Rome emerged as the center of the Roman Empire. The city’s growth was based on the expansion of military power and of wealth. Roads and waterworks are two great Roman achievements, but like other amenities, they were built for the benefit of the military elite and at the expense of the poor. With the collapse of Rome began the Middle Ages, during which trade practically disappeared, and cities declined into small towns and villages centered on feudal estates. Around the 11th century, the crusades contributed to the reemergence of trade and cities. As Carcassonne illustrates, cities often remained small, were typically located at the intersection of rivers and roads, were enclosed in high protective walls, and were centered on a church and public square. During the Renaissance, cities continued to expand and became learning centers for the elite.

With the expansion of trade and the growth of cities, the bourgeoisie earned more and more power. Progressively capitalism replaced feudalism and the industrial revolution began. The demographic transition—a decline in death rates combined with constant birth rates and rapid urban migration, contributed to a major population explosion in European cities. The rest of the chapter focuses on a case study of London to illustrate the growth of a modern city.

The Rise of Modern Cities LO 2.3: Review the genesis of the modern city where commerce replaced agriculture as the primary mode of making a living

6A .

As commerce replaced agriculture as the primary means of income a middle class emerged.

People engaging in shop keeping, trade, government work and commercial ventures became known as the bourgeoisie. Thus, by the mid-17th century, feudalism was diminished. Capitalism became the norm and, as a result, cities began growing at exponential rates. Europe became known as a continent dominated by cities. Further, even with the threat of plague, urban populations expanded, wealth dominated and demographic transitions began and would continue into the 20th century. Additionally, population control took the form of fewer families producing multiple children as the number in a family was no longer linked to economic production.

Case Study: London---The History of a World City London was developed as an outpost of the Roman Empire in the 1st century B.C.E. The Romans retreated in 410 C.E. and left London to defend itself against a number of tribes until 1066 when William the Conqueror took control of the city and became King of England. For five centuries, London grew steadily; however, in 1550, it had become a world city mostly due to its preeminence in sailing and international trade. London experienced a period of renaissance similar to other European cities: the population grew; commerce thrived; and art, literature, music, and drama flourished. Overcrowding contributed to the Black Plague of 1665-66 and to the great fire of 1666. Nevertheless, by 1700, the population had increased again, and the city was rebuilt. The expansion of the British Empire led to rapid urban growth with millions of people moving to London to find jobs and adding to the concentration of poverty. During the first half of the 20th century, poverty decreased partially because of the equalizing effects of the Great Depression, but in 1940, Hitler’s forces destroyed much of the city. Although tourism and the service sector expanded following World War II, many industries and the empire were lost contributing to economic decline. In the 21st century, London’s economic structure changed dramatically. London became viewed as an example of blending the past and the present.

Additionally, property values have increased, and as a result, the division between social classes has become more obvious. Growth in terms of race, ethnicity, and immigration are also more visible. Today, infrastructural deterioration, environmental problems, and long-term unemployment affect London, much as they do many other cities.

Conclusion The emergence of cities as a dominant force in human affairs is one of the crucial events of history. In many instances, cities were the driving force behind the development of civilization.

They combined ideas in new ways, produced great wealth, wielded incredible power, and became home to an increasing proportion of the world’s population.

Yet throughout history, cities have not always had the same character. The city is largely synonymous with civilization itself. Each chapter in the story of human civilization has thus produced distinctive cities: cities of the early empires, the medieval city, the Renaissance city, and most recently, the industrial-capitalist city. Thus, both constancy and flux coexist in the

7A .

history of cities. Together, these processes create urban living.

Suggestions Readings and Websites Hamblin, Dora Jane. 1973. The First Cities. New York: Time-Life.

To date, this book is still one of the most comprehensive surveys of the history of early cities. It is also accessible to students.

Liverani, Mario. 2006. Uruk: The First City. London: Equinox Publishing.

This book is a comprehensive overview of the city of Uruk.

Mumford, Lewis. 1961. The City in History. New York: Harcourt, Brace, and World.

This book, which has now become a classic, provides an extensive study of the history of Western cities.

Sjoberg, Gideon. 1965. The Preindustrial City. New York: Free Press.

This book discusses the history of the preindustrial city. It helps students who have never experienced this context better understand the elements of these cities.

Thorp, Robert L. 2006. China in the Early Bronze Age: Shang Civilization. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

This book provides students with an overview of early Chinese civilization.

“A Pictorial History of Cities” http://www.picturehistory.com/category/cat_id/11/subcat_id/251 This is a website that provides viewable photographs of cities in history.

“A Population History of the World’s Cities” http://www.demographia.com/dbx-uscitypophist.htm This website provides a population-based history of the world’s major cities.

Projects 1.

Research the history of the city in which you live. When did it first emerge? What factors promoted its growth? Has it been expanding at a constant rate or has it experienced ups and downs? This project could be applied to ancient cities as well as modern U.S. cities.

2.

Obtain maps or archeological pictures and descriptions of an ancient city. Find evidence of

8A .

the size of the city’s population, the extent of the division of labor and the complexity of the social and political structure.

9A .

CHAPTER 3: THE DEVELOPMENT OF NORTH AMERICAN CITIES Summary The Colonial Era: 1600-1800 LO 3.1: Evaluate housing patterns, commercial activity, and revolutionary ideas that originated in colonial cities This chapter examines five centuries of history of the North American cities that began during the colonial period. While before British colonization, a few Native American groups had established permanent settlements, and the Spanish founded an outpost in St. Augustine, Florida.

It was the English, Dutch, and French who created the first urban settlements in North America.

The settlements began with Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607 and a number of other cities such as Boston, Newport, Charleston, Philadelphia, New Amsterdam, and Montreal during the 1600s.

Unlike today’s cities, these towns were very small in both size and population and followed no regular street pattern. Unlike medieval European towns, American settlements were based on trade and designed to grow economically. By the time of the Revolutionary War, at least 12 major cities had been established on the East Coast, and population, as well as economic activity, was growing. To a large extent, the Revolutionary War was motivated by American merchants and colonists’ desires to pursue these economic activities freely.

Growth and Expansion: 1800-1870 LO 3.2: Analyze the growth trajectories of some of the major North American cities Following the Revolutionary War, the United States territory expanded westward past the Mississippi River. The economic potential of these inland regions were high, and it was crucial for business leaders to promote links between the East Coast cities and these new regions.

Roads, canals, and railroads were built in competitive races between coastal cities. This rapid expansion was related to the beginning of industrialization in the United States and the growing private investment in textiles, shoemaking, and iron. This growth, however, created new tensions between the ideals of the original settlers and the realities of urban life. It also spurred conflict between the fast-growing industrial North and the traditional rural South, leading eventually to the Civil War in 1861. With the North’s victory came the dominance of the urban lifestyle and the unfettered growth of industrial production.

The Era of the Great Metropolis: 1870-1950 LO 3.3: Recount the two historical events that led to the urbanization of the North American cities Both technological advances and urban migration provided the impetus for the transformation of small cities into large urban centers. On one hand, the improvement of building materials

10A .

promoted the construction of high-rise buildings, steam-powered trains, and electric trolleys, contributing to the outward expansion of the city and to suburbanization in the late 1800s. On the other hand, rural-to-urban migration and immigration from abroad provided a huge labor force for the growing industrial economy, especially in the North and Midwest. Massive immigration led to cultural heterogeneity in the city and raised important political questions. Although some benefited greatly from this rapid urban growth, others suffered from poor housing conditions and serious health hazards. Cities often seemed to grow uncontrollably, and pressures on city governments were high. Despite a decline during World War I, urban migration continued, and by 1920, more than half of the U.S. population resided in cities. People began to question the ability of the United States and of the cities to absorb a continuous flow of immigrants. A series of restrictive immigration laws were passed in the 1920s, but soon international migration was replaced by the domestic migration of blacks from the South, leading to new social conflicts. The Great Depression seriously endangered the financial health of cities, but as the New Deal was established, federal funds were allocated to public works projects such as housing, roads, and highways. This marked the beginning of cities’ dependence on the federal government.

Today’s North American Cities LO 3.4: Recognize the three main trends that characterize today’s North American cities Three major changes are identified in today’s cities: (1) decentralization and (2) Sunbelt expansion. Each of these changes is examined in greater detail below. While all previous periods saw growth in urban population size (city implosion), in 1950, there was a decline in central city population and a movement toward the suburbs (city explosion). This movement was primarily due to the relocation of industries and manufacturers in outer urban areas, improved transportation and communication technologies, and the fulfillment of the American dream to own a home a possibility in the suburbs.

The Evolution of Megaregions LO 3.5: Evaluate the development of the megalopolis This outward expansion and the need to include the central city and the surrounding counties in one measure led the Census Bureau to develop the concept of the Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA) in 1959 and the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) in 1989. In Europe and Canada, new political institutions were created to cope with the expanding size of metropolitan areas beyond the traditional city. More recently, Gottmann (1961) identified megalopolises—highly linked groups of independent urban municipalities—like the BostonWashington area (BosWash corridor) or Southern California (SanSan), prompting the Census Bureau to create a new concept, the Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA).

The population in the Southwest United States has increased considerably since 1980. The problems in Northeastern cities, such as obsolete industries, infrastructural degradation, highenergy costs, and expansive union labor, pushed businesses to move to the Sunbelt. The region 11A .

benefited from less rigid municipal boundaries, giving these Southern cities a greater fiscal basis than Northeastern cities, which are legally cut off from suburbs. Nevertheless, Sunbelt cities also experienced problems: pollution, water shortages, underdeveloped infrastructure, rapid population growth fueled by legal and illegal immigration, and cultural and racial tensions.

The Postindustrial City LO 3.6: Review the seemingly irreversible path to self-destruction of most North American cities in the 1960s In the 1960s, many cities experienced riots and violence, but today, those same cities are being transformed by an urban renaissance to bring life back to those areas. According to Banfield (1970), cities are such great economic forces that they are bound to prosper even without help from the federal government. While a number of tasks have been subcontracted to other producers, the number of white-collar jobs in high-tech industries has increased and promoted the revival of many urban areas, both by firms and by residents. Two trends are identified for the future: (1) new edge cities are emerging outside older cities, near major freeway intersections and shopping malls, and (2) older cities are being revitalized through public-private partnerships designed to attract investments, as illustrated by the example of Cleveland, Ohio. However, gentrification often displaces the poorer residents who can no longer afford the higher rents, and new economic activities fail to provide jobs to unskilled workers, creating a skills mismatch. The postindustrial city is characterized by two labor markets—one for well-paid, white-collar workers and another for low-paid service workers—which generates greater inequality.

Case Study: New York – The “Big Apple” Like many large U.S. cities, the world-famous New York City represents great wealth and great poverty. Established by the Dutch in the early 1600s, Jews, Quakers, and English settlers followed in the second half of the 17th century. Trade and population grew, but resentment with the British trade restrictions in the colonies led to conflicts that culminated with the Revolutionary War. With the inauguration of George Washington as first president of the United States, New York became the capital of the newly formed federal government.

During this period, New York City and state experienced great changes and novelties, including Wall Street’s stock exchange, a grid plan for street development, a connection to the Erie Canal to improve the transport of goods across the country, steamship service with Europe, the first telegraph lines with Philadelphia, the nation’s first expo, and a plan for Central Park. After the Civil War, population growth skyrocketed due to extensive foreign immigration. Ethnic and racial diversity was often accompanied by social tensions, especially in densely populated neighborhoods with tenements. During the same period, new construction technology brought skyscrapers to New York. Today, the city is part of a rapidly expanding metropolitan area that is continually being transformed by economic restructuring. Though some New York-area neighborhoods benefit from these changes and experience revival, others face important 12A .

challenges in solving poverty and urban decay.

On September 11, 2001, New York City suffered the worst tragedy in its history with the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center buildings. Huge financial losses followed immediately after, but the city rebuilt itself, symbolizing all that is triumphant and tragic about great cities.

Conclusion In the three centuries since urbanization took hold in the New World, North Americans have not really built Cotton Mather’s hoped-for “heavenly city.” If we continue to see the city as something to “use,” but not as something warranting our concern, then the outlook probably is not very bright. If, on the other hand, we see the city as a human creation and, thus, subject to understanding and human control, then we might be justified in being more optimistic about the outcome.

Suggestions Readings Garreau, Joel. 1991. Edge City. New York: Doubleday.

This book introduces the concept of an edge city and provides many case studies. A specific chapter could be assigned as an example of an edge city.

Scott, Allen J. 1990. Metropolis. Berkeley: University of California Press.

This book explores the notion of the metropolis in a global context.

Scott, Allen J., and Edward Soja. 1996. The City: Los Angeles and Urban Theory at the End of the Twentieth Century. Berkeley: University of California Press.

This book offers a collection of essays on Los Angeles. The introductory chapter will help students understand the importance of economic restructuring in Sunbelt cities and to understand the history of Los Angeles in general.

Still, Bayrd. 1999. Mirror for Gotham: New York as Seen by Contemporaries from Dutch Days to the Present, 2nd ed. New York: Fordham University Press.

This book provides a historical overview of New York City from the days of the Dutch settlers to the present.

Projects 1. Compare a Snowbelt and a Sunbelt city with respect to population composition, economic activities, lifestyles, political structure, infrastructure, etc.

2. Select one of the cities mentioned in the text. Research its components by following the 13A .

four-period framework.

14A .

CHAPTER 4: TODAY’S CITIES AND SUBURBS Urban and Suburban Sprawl LO 4.1: Differentiate sprawl from other forms of urban growth “Sprawl” is the term used to describe spread-out or low-density development beyond the edge of services and employment. Cumulative effects identifying this development include automobile dependency, inefficiency, and wastefulness of natural resources. As people move farther from core cities into outlying regions, so do all the trappings of urban life: stores, offices, factories, hospitals, crime, congestion, and pollution.

Sprawl is like that cartoon snowball rolling down the hill, growing in size and momentum, becoming practically unstoppable. In the past half-century, the combination of suburban housing, shopping centers, offices, and industrial parks have transformed the landscape. Sprawl occurs everywhere, but it is most obvious and grows most spectacularly in the rapid growth areas in the South and West. Sprawl doesn’t occur simply because of population growth; in fact, some cities have actually lost population. Most people don’t recognize all of the negative aspects of sprawl, but all suburbanites pay a price in terms of air pollution, traffic congestion, and visual blight.

Everyone and everything is too spread out to make public transportation economically feasible.

As new structures arbitrarily emerge in a scattered fashion across the countryside, they disrupt wildlife habitats and fragment rural regions once abounding in farmland, fields, forests, lakes, and ponds. There are many financial costs associated with sprawl. Because sprawl is low-density and automobile-dependent and develops on the edge of service and employment areas, traffic problems worsen. Sprawl also has a distinctly urban counterpart, hurting cities in a host of different ways that include eroding downtown commerce and the character of cities.

Smart Growth LO 4.2: Review how a growth in population and land development are complementary to each other Smart growth, an alternative to sprawl, relies on comprehensive land-use planning and focuses on regional growth. Among the proposed solutions to sprawl are land purchases, urban growth boundaries, revitalization of existing cities and towns, and transit-oriented approaches designed to create better traffic flow. Eminent domain has become controversial as an approach to urban redevelopment. Opponents assert that it favors large corporations over individual homeowners.

Exurbs LO 4.3: Recall the exurbs A.C. Spectorsky was the first to use the term “exurb” in describing the appearance of new residential areas developing on the metropolitan fringe. Small towns have become new suburbs to new cities, dramatically altering the regions in which this phenomenon has taken place.

15A .

The New Cities LO 4.4: Examine life of the Americans in the new cities Not since the expansion of small cities into huge metropolises a century ago have we seen as profound a change in our urban world as the emergence of “edge cities.” Edge cities are defined as new, sprawling, middle-class, automobile-dependent centers typically located at the fringe of an older urban area, at the intersection of major highways, where little existed three decades earlier, except villages or farmland. Garreau identified more than 200 edge cities in the United States and Canada. With their malls and office parks, these areas now dominate the nation’s retail trade and office facilities. Edge cities fall into one of three major categories: (1) uptowns, built on top of automobile settlements; (2) boomers, the typical edge city located at the intersection of two major highways and almost always centered on a mall; and (3) greenfields, a master-planned city by one developer on thousands of farmland acres. The majority of metropolitan North Americans now works, shops, and lives in and around the 200-plus “new hearths of our civilization.” The rise of edge cities is essentially a function of social class, not race. Edge cities have been criticized as plastic and sterile, lacking in livability, civilization, community, and neighborhood—in short, having little urban soul. However, not all edge cities are alike. They can serve as their own motivation, emerge as a solution to a problem, or simply become the problem.

Gated Communities LO 4.5: Express the exclusivity enjoyed by the gated community members Gated communities in the United States can be traced to the late 1800s, when upper-income gated developments such as New York’s Tuxedo Park and private streets in St. Louis sprang up as wealthy citizens sought to “insulate themselves from the troublesome aspects of rapidly industrializing cities.” But these communities were different from today’s gated communities.

Beginning in the 1980s, gated communities increased rapidly, not only as retirement villages, but also as resorts and country club developments, and then as middle-class suburban subdivisions, setting off a quiet but important trend that continues today. About 10.4 million U.S. households—more than 7 million—are in developments that are surrounded by fences or walls.

In their study of the development and social impact of this rapidly growing phenomenon, Blakely and Snyder suggest that they fall into one of three categories: “lifestyle communities” are an expression of conspicuous consumption and a new leisure class; “prestige communities” are status-oriented, primarily containing the rich and famous, the affluent, and the top one-fifth of Americans; and “security-zone communities” are “enclaves of fear” primarily concerned with protection. For several decades, social observers have noted a loss of community in modern life.

It is debatable whether gated communities accomplish any improvement in the quality of community, including whether they actually serve as a deterrent to crime.

16A .

Common-Interest Developments (CIDs) LO 4.6: Contrast gated communities with common-interest developments or CIDs Gated communities are often called Common Interest Developments (CIDs). Not all CIDs are segregated, though many are, and not all gated areas are CIDs, but most are. The rapid spread of CID housing is the largest and most dramatic privatization of local government functions in North American history. Currently, more than 323,600 of these developments exist in the United States, housing some 63.4 million people. These developments are extremely profitable to corporate builders. Some observers, like Charles Murray, believe CIDs threaten urban culture.

For some who live in these areas, CID living means having to fight to defend a semblance of privacy and personal freedom, while the few residents who enforce the rules enjoy a degree of personal power over their neighbors that the Constitution denies to public officials.

Case Study: Portland, Oregon Planners, sprawl opponents, and urban sociologists often cite Portland, Oregon, as a growing city that successfully controls its growth and development. Years ago, Portland, determined to defy the boom mentality, set out to consciously plan its future. But Portland has a dark history. In the 1960s, the city fell victim to the same ills afflicting other U.S. cities. Portland has rebounded with efforts to prevent its three-county metropolitan area from falling to the vagaries of sprawl.

Today, it stands as a model city and has retained its 19th-century small city block design, which yields a pedestrian-friendly city core. Will the city, with its 2014 metropolitan population of 2.3 million, maintain its urban growth boundaries and protect the surrounding countryside?

Population projections will test Portland’s resolve, and the city will have to invoke new strategies to meet it commitment to maintaining boundaries to urban growth.

Summary There are four patterns in development that have grown rapidly and have had a strong effect on urban areas: sprawl, edge cities, gated communities, and common-interest developments.

Conclusion Although Canada has stronger central government controls over land use compared to the United States, both countries experienced sprawl, the development of new cities, and an increase in exclusive communities. The evolution of new cities and exclusive communities continues, and the dominance of these urban forms in North America is easily evident.

Suggestions Readings Gratz, R.B., and N. Mintz. 1998. Cities Back from the Edge: New Life for Downtown. New York: John Wiley and Sons.

17A .

This book is a discussion of downtown culture and rehabilitation in major cities.

Holman, James. 2008. “Portland Area Population Projected to Hit 3.85 Million by 2060.”

Oregon Environmental Times, June 7, p. 1.

This article discusses the rapid growth of Portland, Oregon.

Kling, R., S. Olin, and M. Poster, eds. 1995. Postsuburban California: The Transformation of Postwar Orange County, California. 2nd ed. Irvine: University of California Press.

This collection includes a number of interesting articles, including several that focus on edge cities.

Vesselinov, Elena. 2008. “Members Only: Gated Communities and Residential Segregation in the Metropolitan United States.” Sociological Forum 23 (September): 536–65.

This article discusses the phenomenon of residential segregation in metropolitan areas within the United States.

Project The text identifies Portland, Oregon, as a “model city” in terms of conscious limitations placed by city planners on its physical expansion. Access a search engine on the Internet (Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.) and type in “Portland, Oregon.” Then, explore a number of sites dealing directly with Portland as a city that has served as a model for others in terms of its planning. Be sure to focus on websites with legitimate resources such as .edu, .gov, etc.

18A .

CHAPTER 5: URBAN SOCIOLOGY: CLASSIC AND MODERN STATEMENTS Summary The European Tradition: 1846-1921 LO 5.1: Recognize the role played by thinkers in promoting ideas of sociology in Europe Given its start by August Comte (1798-1857), sociology was first nurtured by Karl Marx (18181883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895). These scholars advanced the idea that social structure (e.g., customs, laws, religion) is a product of the fundamental material conflict between capitalists and laborers within the economic structure (e.g., ownership of capital or labor). Thus, capitalism—not individuals—causes poverty. Cities play an important role within a capitalist society because they permit productive specialization, leading to individual agency and civilization. But not all reap the material benefits, only the economic elite who own the means of production. Although the city was nothing less than a transition from barbarism to civilization, it was far from the most desirable type of civilization (socialism), which only an anti-capitalist revolution could obtain.

Ferdinand Tönnies (1855-1936) provided one of the first analytical continuums of human settlement, ranging from gemeinschaft to gesellschaft. The former was organic, desirable, and natural, and it represented the intimate, private, and exclusive living together seen in small villages; the latter represented the autonomous and individualistic pattern of living seen in cities.

While villages are living organisms of unity, purpose, and common good, cities are merely associations of disunity, selfishness, and hostility.

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) could not have disagreed more. Where Tönnies saw chaos and selfishness in the city, Durkheim saw powerful, natural forces of coordination and solidarity. Put simply, the individual differences found in cities require interdependence and an underlying moral foundation on which contracts may be made and enforced.

Georg Simmel (1858-1918) focused on the social and psychological aspects of city life. Simmel argued that personality accommodates itself to an urban environment. Similar to Durkheim, he advanced the idea that the division of labor that exists in cities fosters a more sophisticated and rational populace. However, he warned that apathy or antagonism would be the likely response of most rational individuals to a system of impersonal exchange, with alienation as the end result.

Max Weber (1864-1920) brought to urban studies a historical and comparative approach that saw the ideal city (or “full urban community”) as one that was characterized by (1) trade and commerce, (2) at least partial political autonomy, and (3) opportunity for meaningful participation. Like Simmel, Weber agreed with Durkheim that cities could be liberating but were not likely to be so. However, rather than interurban characteristics such as political autonomy,

19A .

pressure to adapt psychologically, and other elements fostering a sense of community, Weber stressed the dominant role of larger, not infrequently external, political and economic forces.

Most importantly, and contrary to his colleagues, Weber suggested that history may not be progressive, and the ideal urban form may be of a time past.

While Marx, Engels, Tönnies, and Durkheim announced the city worthy of study, Simmel and Weber provided the first theories of how cities functioned. All six emphasized the distinctive ability of a city to augment individual choice, rationality, and a division of labor; but while Marx and Engels highlighted the need to study economic disparity and conflict, Tönnies, Durkheim, and Weber stressed urban social structure, while Simmel elaborated the psychological effects of urban life. In sum, though there were differences in interpretation regarding the city (Tönnies vs.

Durkheim on whether it is natural, Weber vs. Simmel on whether cities foster psychological adaptation, and Weber vs. Marx and Engels on the unilateral influence of economic conflict), overall, the European traditionalists’ usually pessimistic view simply reflected the conditions accompanying nascent capitalism and unprecedented population growth.

Urban Sociology in North America: 1915-1970 LO 5.2: Investigate the growth of the elements of U.S. urban sociology in late nineteenth century Chicago About the time of World War I, urban sociology began to develop in the United States. The changing economic and demographic conditions were not unlike those that influenced contributors to the European tradition. Not surprisingly, therefore, the human ecological model of the city promoted by Robert Park (1864-1944) of the University of Chicago, arguably the first American urban sociologist, consisted of (1) a commercial structure (Weber) fostering a complex division of labor (Tönnies) that would steadily erode traditional ties and generate occupationbased relations; (2) a formal social structure of large bureaucracies, courts, etc. and of impersonal mass media that would gradually replace informal networks and face-to-face communication; and (3) the rational replacing the sentimental, and the formation of social bonds in the form of interest groups. Park emphasized “doing” urban research rather than “theorizing abstractly” about the city and saw both the problems and possibilities of urban life.

Louis Wirth (1897-1952) offered the first truly sociological theory of the city, and in doing so, he broke with the descriptive tradition of his Chicago colleagues. He highlighted cities as (1) large (leading to increased diversity, a greater need for control, greater specialization, and organization based on self-interest, and finally, increased human interdependence and objectification based on monetary valuation); (2) dense (intensifying ecological specialization and social distance); and (3) heterogeneous (promoting social and physical mobility, and moneyoriented relations). For Wirth, the tendency of cities to destroy traditional values and institutions and to promote an impersonal way of life had to be counterbalanced by urban planning to make the city more humane.

20A .

Herbert Gans contended that the city is a mosaic of many lifestyles, only some of which resemble the cosmopolitanism described by Wirth. Exploring lifestyle diversity in North American cities, Gans identified four types of urban lifestyles: the cosmopolites, the unmarried or childless, the ethnic villagers, and the deprived or trapped.

We must not be too quick to accept the negative judgments from Wirth and other Chicago sociologists. Like their European colleagues, Chicago sociologists were responding to one kind of city. Limitations notwithstanding, the Chicago group made great contributions. Gans’s contribution, on the other hand, was to call attention to the complexities of urban life. Wirth’s mistake was in generalizing too much from the urban conditions of the time in which he lived.

Today, we can conclude that urbanization does not necessarily generate urbanism—a single distinctive way of life.

Claude Fischer’s subcultural theory of urbanism maintains that Wirth’s size, density, and heterogeneity of cities generate the social dynamics to produce intense subcultures such as those characterized by Gans. When a subculture reaches a critical mass, elements of the subculture diffuse into the general characteristics of urban dwellers.

Classic Theories and Modern Research LO 5.3: Evaluate theories on social pathology as applicable in cities Modern researchers have continued to investigate cities and urban life and have revised some of the earlier findings of Wirth and Park. First, most researchers would argue that tolerance is not necessarily an urban characteristic but may be explained by the socioeconomic status of urban residents, their access to information, or their cultural beliefs. Second, cities are also less impersonal than Wirth and his contemporaries thought. Ethnic neighborhoods, college districts, and gay communities all reflect a sense of common interest. Moreover, relationships in cities are less localized and more often based on modern means of communication as well as social organizations than in nonurban areas, especially for upper middle class people. Wirth failed to see this because of his focus on the public sphere of urban life rather than the private sphere.

Third, the link between density and social pathologies may be biased by the fact the pathologies are caused by other factors such as poverty, unemployment, and racial discrimination, which may be concentrated in urban areas. No evidence supports a genetic response to crowding that would produce pathological behavior. Similarly, surveys reveal that cities do not create a higher level of psychological malaise than rural areas do. These new findings have paved the way for “the new urban sociology,” which focuses on the structural factors shaping cities and affecting urbanites rather than on the role of ecology.

The authors suggest that a useful urban analysis must take into account social and psychological factors, be empirical and comparative, improve theory, and use quality of life as its evaluation criteria.

21A .

Conclusion What we take from the classical tradition is its interest in urban studies per se and its combined model of urban analysis. A useful urban analysis must (1) examine the city in both its socialstructural and psychosocial dimensions, (2) study actual cities in historical and comparative perspectives, (3) be aware that no overarching theory of the city can explain urban life, and (4) evaluate cities in terms of the quality of human life.

Suggestions Readings and Websites It may be appropriate to assign chapters or sections from the original essays by the classic authors.

Tönnies, Ferdinand. 1963. Community and Society. New York: Harper and Row. Durkheim, Emile. 1964. The Division of Labor in Society. New York: Free Press.

Simmel, Georg. 1964. “The Metropolis and Mental Life.” pp. 409-424 in The Sociology of Georg Simmel, edited by K. Wolff. New York: Free Press.

Weber, Max. 1966. The City. New York: Free Press.

Park, Robert, and Eugene Burgess. 1967. The City. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Wirth, Louis. 1938. “Urbanism as a Way of Life.” American Journal of Sociology 44: 1-24.

“Urban Sociology” http://www.sociosite.net/topics/city.php This website provides a generous list of links to other websites that are integral to urban sociology.

“The Community Web” http://www.commurb.org/ This website represents the American Sociological Association’s urban and community sociology section.

Projects 1.

Place familiar settlements in your community, region, or state in a continuum between gemeinschaft and gesellschaft. Identify some of the important differences and similarities

22A .

between these places.

2.

Analyze a contemporary city or urban issue using the theoretical framework of one of the authors studied in this chapter.

23A .

CHAPTER 6: SPATIAL PERSPECTIVES: MAKING SENSE OF SPACE Summary Urban Geography LO 6.1: Report how the location and design a city mirrors its physical environment This chapter investigates the relationships between cities and their geographical settings. Using the example of Los Angeles as an introduction, the first section highlights how both the physical environment and people’s reactions to it have shaped the city.

A look at the map of the most populous North American metropolitan areas illustrates that geography and climate are determining factors in locating a city. In fact, each of these cities is found on waterways (with the exception of Atlanta, which is found at a railroad terminus). The section surveys five cities to further illustrate the importance of the physical environment.

Houston has boomed since the 1950s because of oil processing and shipping via the Gulf of Mexico. Miami has expanded as a tourism center and a connecting point with Latin America.

Montreal was built at the junction of two large rivers linking the Atlantic to the Great Lakes and emerged as a service headquarters. Salt Lake City was a remote area selected by the Mormon leaders to practice their religion freely. Finally, Washington, D.C., was selected as the political capital of the United States to avoid choosing between larger, already established cities. The initial advantage of their geography served as the impetus for their growth as cities.

With these examples in mind, we can develop a more systematic explanation of the location of urban areas. Environmental (physical), economic, and social factors have to be taken into account. First, basic environmental conditions have to be met: the environment must be minimally hospitable, and there has to be access to adequate supplies of food, water, and building materials. Of course, ingenuity and technology can help in overcoming environmental limitations. Economics is a second driving force in situating cities. One example of the economic advantage of location is observed in port cities, which usually thrive as centers of trade and commerce. A second is demonstrated by industries’ decision to establish themselves in cities that offer economic advantages such as lower transportation costs, cheap labor, agglomeration effects, and access to markets. Once the basic environmental and economic conditions are met, then social factors play a role. Seven social factors are identified, and examples from the five cities mentioned above are provided to illustrate each factor. They include whether a city (1) is situated at a natural regional crossroads, (2) is located at “break-of-bulk” point (where goods are transferred from one type of transportation to another), (3) has access to some valuable raw material, (4) offers some unique amenity, (5) serves an administrative or political purpose, (6) has a strategic military location, and (7) offers a religious or educational advantage. It is the combination of physical and social factors that explain the development of cities. Consequently, when these factors change through time, cities are affected and must adapt.

24A .

The Shape of the City LO 6.2: Recognize the city’s social and economic functions that determine whether it will take a radiocentric or a gridiron shape Once the location of a city has been established, the city’s social and economic function determines the shape it will take. While cities like Athens, Edinburgh, Paris, or Mexico City illustrate the primary consideration of defense, others, like most North American cities, reflect the importance of economic activity. Cities where defense was a primary concern usually exhibit a radiocentric form in which city streets spread from the center and are contained within city walls or natural barriers (i.e. island, hilltop). This city form was functional because it made travel easier by minimizing the distance to the center of the city. Preindustrial Baghdad and Ming Peking are used as two examples of radiocentric cities.

North American cities, on the other hand, are described as gridiron cities in which streets cross at right angles to form regular city blocks. This particular shape was developed to facilitate the movement of goods and people and to divide the land more easily. Often, the grid expanded outward from an original main-street location.

Urban Ecology LO 6.3: Recall the phenomenon of invasion–succession leading to the growth of cities Urban ecology, as developed by Robert Park (1916) and his followers, studies the relationship between human beings and their urban environment. For Park, competition and population movements shape and reshape cities. First, social life is characterized by economic competition over scarce resources and political competition over neighborhoods. Second, population movements produce an invasion-succession effect as poorer and less skilled new immigrants come in and more successful groups move to other neighborhoods.

Ernest Burgess, one of Park’s students, argues that the city expands outwards in a series of concentric zones from its central business district. Economic competition as well as prestige are the main forces of this urban development. Using Chicago as an example, Burgess distinguishes between five main zones: (1) the central business district; (2) an area in transition, which includes light manufacturing, ethnic communities, and slums; (3) a zone of workingmen’s homes inhabited by second-generation immigrants escaping the slums; (4) a residential zone with apartments and restricted single-family dwellings; and (5) a commuters’ zone furthest from the city. This model, Burgess argues, could describe any city.

The sector theory, developed by Hoyt (1939), suggests that cities are divided into pie-shaped residential sectors rather than strictly concentric zones. Several upscale residential districts

25A .

surrounded by poorer areas were found in most cities. Hoyt suggested that over time, sectors moved out radially along paths they had begun in earlier years and that competition and population movements were not always responsible for the location of sectors.

With the multiple nuclei theory, Harris and Ullman (1945) argued that through time, the city diversified and developed many distinct sectors of activity. For economic, cultural, and historical reasons, a variety of industrial and residential districts are created and constantly transformed, often in an unpredictable fashion. For example, the relocation of heavy manufacturing from central business districts to outlying areas reflects the desire to minimize the cost of land and taxes.

Burgess assumed his concentric zone model would describe any city, but this pattern of urban growth tends to occur among industrially based, older, larger, and more dispersed metropolitan communities. Both Hoyt’s sector theory and the multiple nuclei model are critiqued for providing a descriptive analysis of land use within cities. In general, these models are limited because they suggest uniformity within zones and rely on the concepts of unrestrained competition and large population movement to explain growth patterns. Consequently, they ignore the impact that forces such as globalization, technological advances, communications, and transportation can have on a city’s spatial development. The urban ecological approach is often seen as too biological because it negates the impact of choice, culture in the city, and community.

The Economics of Land Use LO 6.4: Review how economics is central to the patterns of land usage in cities The possibilities available in city life are limitless. According to central place theory, cities exist because of the greater economic advantages they can offer over smaller settlements. First, cities are located where important goods or services are available in abundance and at lower cost.

Second, cities permit agglomeration effects in industries such as car manufacturing (e.g. Detroit), entertainment (e.g. Los Angeles), and meatpacking (e.g. Chicago). Third, cities allow for competition among producers, increasing the quality of goods and services and lowering their costs. Fourth, cities benefit from a greater population and from larger pools of workers with various skill levels. Because of these economic advantages, cities, and more specifically urban centers, operate as magnets, attracting more people and resources. These basic economic advantages can also be used to understand why there exists a wide range of city sizes from local cities to world cities, with the largest ones playing a greater economic function.

Political economy also offers explanations that help one to understand land-use patterns. Alonso (1971) provides a model to understand the increased density as one nears the city’s center. In short, businesses have a greater economic interest in being located near or in the central business district (CBD). Consequently, they are willing to pay higher rent than residents or agricultural businesses. As the distance from the CBD increases, rents drop, as do the number of businesses,

26A .

and residential neighborhoods appear. At some point, the distance to the CBD is so large that transportation becomes problematic, and population density decreases. It is in these most remote areas that rent is the cheapest and agricultural businesses choose to locate. From this model, we can see that one reason poor people would live in high-density housing in the CBD is to avoid transportation costs and be close to jobs, despite high rents.

Several criticisms limit the validity of Alonso’s model. Todaro (1977) questions the idea that free enterprise exists at all. According to Williams (1978), people of color often face discrimination in housing markets through zoning laws and real estate practices. Another type of criticism points out that the type of city Alonso is theorizing about is only one of five historical forms (i.e. regal-ritual, administrative, colonial, mercantile, and capitalist). Free markets do not characterize all—or perhaps any—of these types.

Social Area Analysis and Mapping LO 6.5: Examine some useful research tools for urban land use analysis Social area analysis describes urban land use by comparing the socioeconomic characteristics of urbanites living in different census tracts. Classifying census tracts help a city develop a profile of the larger community. Social area analysis is also useful in determining the level of segregation within a city, and it can help the city depict its community structure and identify how it changes over time. This approach is considered most helpful in exploring relationships between the social characteristics and other measurable aspects of city life.

GIS mapping is a useful tool for displaying socioeconomic and geographic data. This computerbased method allows us to view, understand, question, interpret, and visualize data in a number of ways. They add value to the data by revealing relationships, patterns, and trends in a variety of forms, including maps and charts.

While social area analysis provides a systematic measurement of the complexities in urban communities, it has been criticized by several authors for being too descriptive and empirical and lacking predictive ability and theoretical foundations.

The Los Angeles School: Postmodernism LO 6.6: Review the four basic ecologies that were different from the ones popularized by the Chicago school The Los Angeles School emerged in the 1980s as a rejection of the Chicago School. This approach uses a critical spatial perspective and postmodern viewpoint to understand the multicentered and dispersed patterns of growth of the five-county region of Southern California (Los Angeles, Ventura, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Orange counties). It emphasizes the region’s multiple urban centers, its political fragmentation, and its multicultural/multiethnic nature to

27A .

highlight the problems of governance and community within a metropolitan area increasingly affected by global capitalism. This form of development results in a number of problems related to political representation that Dear suggests will result in either autocratic rule or “polarization along class, income and racial and ethnic lines.” Proponents of the Los Angeles School assert that Los Angeles closely resembles other emerging cities, and consequently, that their depiction of the city accurately represents modern cities in North America and abroad.

It remains to be seen whether the postmodernists are correct in saying that cities are developing in a way that is no longer rational or manageable according to the old logic of urban development advocated by the urban ecologists.

Critics of the Los Angeles School contend that 1) it overemphasizes the uniqueness, importance, and applicability of the model; 2) Los Angeles is not the first city to have deviated from the Chicago model; and 3) neither Los Angeles nor Chicago can be reduced to a single model.

Conclusion Urban land use is extremely complex. This chapter traced increasingly sophisticated efforts to capture this multifaceted reality. We can be pleased with major advances, particularly in our understanding of how cities in the modern world organize space, but we also need to understand the external forces outside the cities’ control that also affect their fortunes and, therefore, their space.

Suggestions Readings and Websites Nicholls, Walter J. 2011. “The Los Angeles School: Difference, Politics, City.” International Journal of Urban & Regional Research 35: 189–206.

This article discusses the postmodernist approach of the Los Angeles School.

Park, Robert, and Eugene Burgess. 1967. The City. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

This book, edited by Park and Burgess, includes essays by both authors presenting their ecological framework of urban analysis.

Powell, Kimberly. 2010. “Making Sense of Place: Mapping as a Multisensory Research Method.” Qualitative Inquiry 16 (7): 539–55.

This article discusses the use of mapping when conducting research on urban areas.

“Urban Ecology” http://www.urbanecology.org/ The contents of this website provide an excellent overview of urban ecology.

28A .

Film Chinatown, with Jack Nicholson, illustrates the importance of geographical setting and specifically focuses on the role of water for the development of Los Angeles in a classic film noir.

Project Ask students to describe the different areas of a familiar city and to identify the characteristics of their inhabitants, using maps, pictures, and/or personal interviews with people from these different areas.

29A .

CHAPTER 7: CRITICAL URBAN SOCIOLOGY: THE CITY AND CAPITALISM Summary In response to the social unrest of the 1960s and 1970s, the “new urban sociology” emerged as an alternative to the older urban ecology view. While the latter emphasized geography or technology, the former highlighted the distribution of wealth and political power as the main factors explaining how cities are shaped. This new approach borrows from Marxism and the political economy theory in order to understand the structure of cities.

Urban Political Economy LO 7.1: Indicate that by the end of the 1960s, sociologists needed to look into newer theories to understand important changes in cities By the end of the 1960s, some scholars, mostly geographers, philosophers, and sociologists, suspected one must look beyond the city to explain the decline in industrial jobs, the increased migration to suburbs and Sunbelt cities, and the growing financial problems of cities—thus rendering the traditional urban ecology and economic models inadequate. Questioning the notion that cities emerge and evolve as “natural processes,” these scholars asserted that (1) any city exists within larger political structures that influence them; (2) local economies operate interdependently with others to form state, national, and international networks; and (3) political economic institutions like banks, governments, and international corporations shape urban life.

According to Henri Lefebvre, two circuits of capital determine the stability, decline, or rejuvenation of urban areas. A primary circuit consists of investments in factors of production to create goods and services that are sold for profits and subsequently reinvested. A secondary circuit consists of real estate investments that also generate profits used to acquire more land.

The study of the latter constitutes a turning point in theories of urban development. Furthermore, Lefebvre argues that space is socially constructed and influences or constrains opportunity.

However, governments and businesses that have great control over urban land and resources often ignore this social component of space and look at it in an abstract way.

Since the 1960s, one dominant land-use pattern has been the transformation of public space into packaged, thematic environments. Some theme parks are apparent, like Disney World or tourist cities like Las Vegas. Some themed public space areas are well known and prosperous, such as Baltimore’s Harborplace and New York’s South Street Seaport. The epitome of themed urban space is not in the rebuilding of an old urban environment, but rather in the building of an artificial city environment as a theme park away from the city, such as Disney’s Main Street and CityWalk in Universal City, California. Whatever entertainment value such private themed environments may have, critics warn of their dangers.

David Harvey’s (1973) study of Baltimore, built on Lefebvre’s “second circuit” of real estate

30A .

investment, argued that various areas of the city displayed different patterns of buying and selling property, accompanied by different levels of commitment by financial institutions and government agencies. This uneven urban growth, characterized by central city decay and suburbanization, was the result of actions by real estate investors aided by the government rather than actions by industrial capitalists.

Manuel Castells (1977, 1983, 1989) maintains a more orthodox Marxist approach but highlights the importance of conflict between local government and the working class via the distribution of welfare programs instead of between labor and capital directly. Local governments, by providing housing, education, welfare, etc., extend capitalism and create new urban struggles.

Castells also introduces the concept of “mode of development.” While the industrial mode of development was based on new sources of energy, and new sources and forms of information fuel today’s informational mode of development. Consequently, corporations are freed from the need to locate close to raw material or large pools of labor, and they can move outside of cities.

Logan and Molotoch (1987) apply Lefebvre’s idea of abstract and social space in an effort to understand the impact of decision-makers in cities. Investors, businesses, and politicians want to promote an abstract “good business climate,” which often contradicts most local residents’ “social space” concerns by generating higher rents, environmental degradation, and infrastructural abuse. Similarly, globalization may benefit corporations and stockholders, but they often do so at the expense of ordinary people.

Evolution of a Global Economy LO 7.2: Examine some of the phenomena that led to the revamp of global economies In the 1950s, most U.S. cities were manufacturing centers. However, by the 1970s, manufacturing began to decline, and North American cities became service centers, specializing in the management of the increasingly global economy. The 1980s and 1990s bore witness to economic restructuring and the globalization of the economy. Most entry-level jobs traditionally filled by lower-skilled immigrants and inner-city residents disappeared, while the demand for highly educated workers increased.

According to the world-system perspective, cities occupy a place in a world urban hierarchy, primarily determined by whether they are located in core, semi-periphery, or periphery countries.

The role of cities in the global economy is to link capital, labor, production, and commodities.

For example, New York is a major world city because it is a financial capital of core countries.

Although cities are shaped by the world system, they also influence it.

Allen J. Scott emphasizes that the city-centered region may consist of more than one metropolis and an extensive surrounding area. This means they may contain multiple urban settlements all of which become part of the even wider global economy. Further, Richard Child Hill and Kuniko Fujita address the concept of the nested city. Russian nesting dolls are a set of five or more

31A .

painted wooden dolls which, when opened, reveals another smaller one inside, and so on until the smallest core doll is revealed. Similarly, the nested city model says cities are lodged within national, regional, and global systems. They exist within its own context and functions within a distinctive national culture. Much like the nesting dolls, Hill and Fujita contend that the nation is situated within a particular geographic region whose configuration differs from other regions.

Critical Urban Theory: Four Principles 7.3: Enumerate the four basic principles to base studies of cities on Despite the diversity found among urban political economists, four main principles can be identified as a basis for understanding cities and urban life. First, the form and growth of cities are the results of decisions made by an economic and political elite. Second, the conflict over resources shapes the social arrangements and form of cities. Third, governments continue to play an important role in urban life directly through spending or indirectly through regulations.

Fourth, globalization and economic restructuring have had a profound impact on urban growth patterns.

The Urbanization of Poverty 7.4: Contrast the lot of the urban poor in developing and in developed nations The world’s poor once huddled mostly in rural areas, but no longer. Now, they live mostly in cities, and in 2012, 2.6 billion people lived in already expanding urban slums. The population of cities in poor countries is expected to increase by 2 billion in the next 15 years. Poverty is present in the developing world and in the developed world. Unlike the less-developed countries, the more-developed countries of Asia, Europe, and North America have maintained urban societies for generations, if not for centuries. The pattern of concentration of the poor in urban areas is more pronounced in Canada than in the United States. In the United States, central cities contain the highest concentration of poverty, although these areas do not house the majority of the United States’ poor, as nearly two-fifths live in suburban areas, one-fifth live in nonmetropolitan areas, and the remaining two-fifths live in central cities. The homeless are perhaps the most visible of the city’s poor.

To conclude, the authors offer some criticism of the political economic approach. Given the increasing importance of globalization, this approach is becoming more relevant and allows for

32A .

some comparisons of world cities. Indeed, it has become the dominant perspective in urban studies. However, broad approaches such as that of Castells ignore local differences and individual factors. Moreover, political economists often fail to explain successful cases of capitalist urban growth, as well as socialist failures.

Conclusion The economic trends that have produced major changes in the economic and employment opportunities of North American cities will continue. So, too, will the increased integration of poor countries and their cities into the world economy. Globalization is a process that no one can stop or reverse. Therefore, an understanding of global political economy remains essential in any study of cities and urban life.

Suggestions Readings and Websites The original writings of political economists are often too abstract and theoretical to be used as supplementary readings for students. However, the following maybe useful: Castells, Manuel. 1978. City, Class, and Power. New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Scott, Allan. 1988. Metropolis: From Division of Labor to Urban Form. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Sassen, Saskia. 1994. Cities in a World Economy. London: Pine Forge Press.

This is a highly accessible book clearly illustrating the importance of global economic forces on the shape of cities.

Timmer, Doug A., D. Stanley Eitzen, and Kathryn D. Talley. 1994. Paths to Homelessness: Extreme Poverty and the Housing Crisis. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

This book discusses the related phenomena of urban poverty and homelessness.

“South Street Seaport” http://www.southstreetseaport.com These are websites for urban theme parks: Baltimore’s Harborplace and New York’s South Street Seaport.

“The Urbanization of Poverty” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-lewis/urbanization-of-poverty_b_795346.html This link provides an interesting article on the urbanization of poverty.

Projects

33A .

1. Ask students to choose a decaying or fast-growing neighborhood in a familiar city and to identify the most important factors that promoted either decline or growth.

2. Ask students to draw a map of a familiar city and to identify different real estate submarkets (one possible way to do so is to compare rent prices in newspaper ads) and to explain the differences between areas.

34A .

CHAPTER 8: THE CONTEXT OF CITIES: THE URBAN EXPERIENCE Summary The authors begin the chapter with the proposition that the city is stimulated by the concentration of the human experience in a confined space. To make sense of the myriad of attacks on the senses, it is necessary to emphasize certain aspects and to dismiss others.

The Physical Environment LO 8.1: Analyze how people visualize their personal impressions of cities Because a city is a physical location it differs from virtual ones such as those found in cyberspace. This section deals with writings of Kevin Lynch and his theory on how individuals view the city as a physical entity. Lynch argues that people view cities as mental images with five common elements: paths, edges, districts, nodes, and landmarks. The commonality of these elements among respondents is particularly striking to Lynch. In each of the three cities he studied (Los Angeles, Boston, and Jersey City), respondents would name the same paths, edges, and other elements. However, certain cities generated more sharply defined images than others: Boston was well described while Los Angeles was essentially formless. Lynch concludes that the more precise the mental image of the city, the greater the identification and emotional ease its residents have with it. The section ends with a discussion of multiple urban realities and how race and wealth (which are correlated with one another) cause differences in the mental maps of individuals.

The Social Environment: Gesellschaft 8.2: Evaluate the ways to deal with gesellschaft characteristics of cities Beyond the physical characteristics of the city are the social aspects. The city can be a very lonely place despite the sheer number of people found in it. This trait, known as gesellschaft, is examined in this section through the writings of two theorists: Erving Goffman and Lyn Lofland.

Goffman emphasized the social rules pedestrians observe as they travel about the city. These rules ensure that collisions do not occur, but they differ from society to society. Vietnamese pedestrians simply march in front of traffic, while Americans look for traffic to stop before proceeding. European society differs from American society. In Europe, escalator riders allow those who wish to walk up to pass on the left while Americans do not allow such passage.

Lyn Lofland describes the techniques that are used to identify individuals and their place in society. Individual appearance and dress identifies people by social standing even though these distinctions have become less sharp over time. The importance of clothing in preindustrial societies is emphasized in the Urban Living box Clothes Make the Man. In the modern era, location has taken on greater importance. People identify with these locations and come to

35A .

spatially segregate themselves with neighborhoods taking on racial, ethnic, class, and age-based characteristics. Each has their own experiences which shape their understanding of the city.

The Social Environment: Gemeinschaft 8.3: Indicate that interpersonal bonds form the cornerstone of city life for most people Aside from the anonymity found when surrounded by strangers, one also finds common bonds and relationships in the city. The study of interpersonal ties, known as network analysis, has been examined by many social psychologists. Elizabeth Bott Spillius examined social class in London working-class families via the husband’s and wife’s strict division of labor in the household and different sets of friends with whom they share many experiences (typically found in working-class families). Common activities tend to be ones involving family. On the other hand, joint marriage networks emphasize the shared aspects of marriage, including household responsibilities, leisure time activity, and friends (typically found in middle-class families). Eliot Liebow examined the networking of men who congregated on street corners in Washington, D.C. He found that these men found a common bond in their shared failures to maintain a dignified life for themselves and their families. By coming together, they realized they needed one another and regained self-esteem. Herbert Gans examined Boston’s West End slum district and found that it took on a small-town character within the big city.

It is not just through neighborhoods that one forms friendships and interpersonal ties. Work and social activities bring people into contact with a wide variety of other individuals; these shared experiences form the basis for other interpersonal relationships. These social activities take place in what John Irwin calls “scenes.” There are four main types which vary in terms of the area from which the clientele is drawn and the type of people who congregate there. Local scenes find their patrons from a small surrounding area. Open scenes are areas where a variety of people from a wide area may congregate. Specialized scenes center on a particular activity, but have a diverse population. Lifestyle scenes tend to attract individuals with a common interest, such as artists. A final type of network relationship does not normally make for long-term friendships.

These are the temporary networks, such as dating agencies or call-in talk shows.

Certain activities also define relationships and how one views the city. Sports teams, urban rituals, industrial structures (such as the large entertainment industry in Los Angeles), local personalities, and historical events serve to bind residents to their cities and define that city in the eyes of others.

The Texture of the City 8.4: Recognize that every city has a unique characteristic Each city has a stereotypical image that Gerald Suttles calls its texture. When its image is positive, the city may try to capitalize on it to create tourism. When it is negative, it tries to

36A .

combat those impressions. Detroit has been much maligned, and city officials funded large-scale cultural projects and increased police enforcement to overcome its image. Additionally, it is hoped that development projects such as the Renaissance Center and Compuware’s headquarters will help.

Humanizing the City 8.5: Examine how positive personal relationships are the lifeline for most in city life People try to humanize their city by forming networks. In doing so they are able to maintain the sense of self-identity in the face of anonymity. These networks allow people to share responsibilities in the time of crisis. Through reciprocal aid, each person gives with the expectation that they can receive when they are in need. When individuals ignore the principle of reciprocity, they lose out on this important safety cushion.

Social Movements and City Life 8.6: Review group actions that occur in city life to initiate or resist social change Social movements find the most fertile ground in cities where the concentration of large numbers of people facilitate social interaction and enable people of like mind to find each other and organize and initiate grassroots campaigns. The focus of social movements ranges from national, in the case of the Urban League, to local, in the case of city of Seattle, where civic engagement projects involved 30,000 people between 1988 and 2002.

Suburban Life 8.7: Recount different aspects of suburban life The fact that the majority of people in the United States now live outside the city warrants a discussion of the psychology of suburban life. While there is some truth to the stereotypes of suburban life, they fail to capture the diversity of suburbs and the changes that take place as suburbs evolve. As with cities, suburbs have an image that is linked to their physical environment and tells of their history. With the absence of landmarks, suburbanites rely heavily on mental mapping. Suburban life relies on comprehensive social networks where a sense of community marks most everyday activities. Organized activities, especially for school-aged children, abound, and parents are expected to participate. Young people are socialized through a number of suburban rituals that include cookouts and sleepovers.

Conclusion The city is a big place. It has more people, more buildings, more paths, more nodes, and more possibilities for interactions and relationships than any other form of settlement. As Georg

37A .

Simmel argued many years ago, cities demand a great deal of mental work from those who wish to make sense of them. In the end, such extra mental effort may be the unique element that creates the sophistication attributed to urban dwellers. Low-density residence patterns deter pedestrian and bus traffic, and dependence on the car is high. The physical homogeneity and lack of landmarks put the visitor who lacks the detailed mental mapping of suburbanites at a disadvantage in moving about.

Suggestions Readings and Websites Riesman, David. 1958. “The Suburban Sadness.” pp. 375–408 in The Suburban Community, edited by William Dobriner. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons.

This chapter examines the phenomenon of “suburban sadness.” Placed in its historical context, it provides students with a view of suburban life in the 1950s.

Lynch, Kevin. 1961. The Image of the City. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.

This book examines how individuals in Boston, Jersey City, and Los Angeles form the images they have of their cities. It is an easy read, and its thorough comparative analysis demonstrates that different cities evoke vastly different images in their populace.

Lofland, Lyn. 1973. A World of Strangers. New York: Basic Books.

This text shows how people deal with the city’s gesellschaft characteristics in an easy to read and entertaining way. It is especially worthwhile in how it discusses the historical aspects of how people tried to classify strangers in the urban world.

Nicolaides, Becky M. 2002. My Blue Heaven: Life and Politics in the Working-Class Suburbs of Los Angeles, 1920–1965. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

This book examines life in mid-century suburban Southern California.

“Georg Simmel and the Sociology of Space” http://csiss.ncgia.ucsb.edu/classics/content/75 This website provides insight into the philosophies of Georg Simmel on “space.”

Project Ask students in your class to draw a detailed map of the city where they live on a piece of paper.

Then ask them to form small groups and compare their maps with other students. What places did they emphasize? Do they perceive the city in a similar way? What could explain their different views?

38A .

CHAPTER 9: COMPARATIVE URBANISM: THE CITY AND CULTURE Introduction The difference between cities is explained by culture. Cities reflect and intensify the world’s cultures. Cities are never completely self-defining; they are human creations that display the same variety as all human culture.

The City and the Countryside 9.1: Review the reciprocal relationship shared between the city and its countryside Country and city ways are often quite different, but one must be wary of overgeneralizations.

Much of the population of the city initially came from the countryside. The relationship between the city and its countryside involves more than the dynamics of migration and includes a reciprocal dependence on the resources each supplies and the reciprocal shaping of lifestyles.

The city receives much from the countryside and vice versa. North American cities have maintained cultural dominance over society, far out of proportion to the number of city dwellers since the coming of European settlers in the 17th century. North American growth is intertwined with the story of the development of cities. This pattern of urban dominance is not limited to North America and is a central pattern of the modern and the historical world. Older cities or edge cities, urban dominance, affects both the old and the new.

The City and Civilization 9.2: Evaluate how the city has influenced civilization Cities have become increasingly dominant because everything human converges there. The city can encapsulate an entire culture. Oswald Spengler saw in cities the drama of the rise and fall of civilization; he contended that cities developed, ultimately dominated a society, and then declined, carrying with them the culture built over generations and centuries. Modern sociologists generally view Spengler’s contribution to urban sociology as modest because few accept his cyclical ideas of historical change. Lewis Mumford argued that the city has, indeed, been at the very center of Western civilization from its beginnings. The story of civilization became the story of urban history, but care must be taken. Despite Spengler’s and Mumford’s claims, all of civilization should not be linked to cities. Daniel J. Monti rejects the suggestion of some social scientists that cities have become “sinkholes of civic indifference”—cities coexist and cooperate in the everyday routines of public habits and customs, thus manifesting a civic culture. Urban public behavior reflects the shared values, norms, and practices of a civic culture that makes it possible for people to become part of an inclusive community.

39A .

The City and Societal Culture 9.3: Report the historical development of some of the major cities of the world Although the city and civilization are not precisely synonymous, the city has a unique power to intensify and symbolize culture. The text uses two cities, Peking during the Ming Dynasty and Hellenic Athens, to illustrate how cities may be markedly different from one another. Ming Peking is a striking example of the city’s ability to intensify culture. Hellenic Athens illustrates how a rich civilization can take form in such a short period of time. The culture that prevailed in classical Athens was of a radically different character from that of Ming Peking, but the cities had certain parallels and important differences. Comparing the two cities allows the observer to see how different cities in different cultures can be.

The Culture of Capitalism and the City 9.4: Analyze how capitalism as a means of livelihood is as old as the cities themselves The United States urbanist Louis Wirth saw the city as a consequence of a large, differentiated population. In contrast, Friedrich Engels interpreted this phenomenon in terms of cultural forces at work: Western culture, under the influence of capitalism, spawned cities where economic gain was an unrestrained obsession. As a means of livelihood, capitalism is very old. Gradually, from the 16th century onward, the economic interest of life came to dominate Western European cities.

Like capitalism, industrialism had existed in Western society to a limited degree before the 18th century, but it was only after the adoption of capitalism on a large scale that the influence of industrialism began to grow. For all intents and purposes, large-scale industrialism began in England in about 1750. For the city dweller, the most important change was the invention of the factory. With the domination of the factory, the very symbolism of the city changed. The dominant capitalist cultural theme, in conjunction with industrial mechanization, created a new emphasis in urban consciousness. This new consciousness not only transformed how city people acted, it transformed the physical structure of the city itself. The capitalist city has unquestionably been successful in generating a higher material standard of living for a larger proportion of its population than any other urban system in history, but there are downsides as well, including poverty and decay. Another type of modern city has communism at its base. The text focuses on Communist Beijing as a case study. Comparing capitalist and communist cities makes it clear that if we don’t understand the relationship between the city and culture, we can’t properly understand the city.

Conclusion The city’s physical layout reflects cultural priorities. Streets are arranged on a grid for easy movement and buying and selling, and the most important buildings—or at least those that dominate the skyline of any major North American city—are those of commerce. In such comparative observations lies a crucial lesson about studying cities: Quite simply, if we don’t

40A .

understand the relationship between the city and culture, we can’t properly understand the city.

Suggestions Readings and Websites Encourage students to read texts by the major thinkers discussed in this chapter in order to provide them with a more complete picture of how these writers influenced urbanist thought.

Consider the following suggestions: Engels, Friedrich. 2009. The Condition of the Working Class in England, trans. by Florence Kelly Wischenewetsky. Springfield, MA: Seven Treasures Publications; originally published 1844.

Monti, Daniel J. 1999. The American City: A Social and Cultural History. New York: Blackwell.

Mumford, Lewis. 1991. The City in History: Its Origins, Its Transformations, and Its Prospects, New ed. New York: Penguin Books; originally published 1961.

Spengler, Oswald. 2004. The Decline of the West. New York: Vintage; originally published 1928.

Wirth, Louis. 1938. “Urbanism as a Way of Life.” American Journal of Sociology 44 (July): 1– 24.

Project On the Internet, access a search engine and type in the keyword “urban anthropology.” There are a variety of interesting sites to choose from. Specifically, see if you can find information on how China has moved toward a capitalist, market economy, and how this has changed large cities such as Beijing.

41A .

CHAPTER 10: STRATIFICATION AND SOCIAL CLASS: URBAN AND SUBURBAN LIFESTYLES Summary Social Stratification 10.1: Examine the social stratifications that define people’s quality of life This chapter investigates the diversity found in America’s cities and suburbs, highlighting the social class differences found within them. The United States, Canada, and all other countries are stratified societies. Two classical social theorists—Karl Marx and Max Weber—offered ideas about social stratification that still influence sociological thinking today. Following Weber’s concepts, most sociologists define social stratification as the hierarchical ranking within a society of various social class groups according to wealth, power, and prestige. The term socioeconomic status refers to a composite ranking based on various dimensions of social inequality. W. Lloyd Warner used the reputational method in conducting the first comprehensive study of social stratification in the United States in their examination of “Yankee City” in the 1930s. Social class distinctions usually consist of the upper class, the middle class, the working class, and the lower class. The disparity of wealth and power is a matter of the proportionate share of total income that each socioeconomic group possesses. Those living outside central cities in metropolitan areas are better off than those living within central cities. Economic wellbeing is also measure by “wealth” (marketable assets) and “net wealth” (one’s assets minus one’s liabilities). In 2013, the poverty threshold for a U.S. family of four was $27,376—the official poverty rate was 14.5 percent, a total of 45.3 million Americans. The mere presence of immigrants does not translate to poor neighborhoods.

Urban Social Class Diversity 10.2: Recall the different types of urban neighborhoods Urban areas display considerable social class diversity. The upper classes typically have several homes and alternate where they live at different times of the year. Most of the middle class live in suburbia, not the city. The presence of young, well-paid, urban professionals has led to the coinage of new acronyms like “yuppies” (young, urban professionals), “dinks” (dual-income, no kids), and “buppies” (black, urban professionals). Brooks highlights a new social class, Bobos, described as a combination of bourgeois and bohemians. Often, but not always, a city’s workingclass neighborhoods are distinguishable by the ethnic and racial minority groups who predominate. In most cities, there are neighborhoods that contain people from a mixture of income levels. Typically, we find neighborhoods with high poverty levels in a city’s oldest districts. Because these areas of high population density and substandard housing are most often located near the central business district, they came to be called inner-city neighborhoods, as well as ghettos or slums. For the trapped poor left behind in the inner city, the future is bleak.

42A .

Unlike the immigrant poor of the past, today’s poor inner-city residents face social isolation.

Homelessness is an ongoing problem and is particularly disturbing because the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population is families with children. Clearly, lack of affordable housing is the leading cause of homelessness.

Suburban Social Class Diversity 10.3: Review the different types of suburban neighborhoods Today’s suburbs, particularly those closest to the city, no longer fit the white, middle-class, and family-with-kids stereotype. More and more, suburbs are home to minorities, the working class and poor, and the aged. A century ago, suburban residence symbolized the lifestyle of the wellto-do. Today’s upper-class suburbs resemble the old aristocratic ones of yesteryear. In middleincome suburbs, life revolves around the family and child-centered activities. Working suburbs multiplied rapidly after World War II. In marked contrast to the living areas of the working class, suburbs are communities whose members are deeply interested in “high culture.” Minority suburbanization is most pronounced in metropolitan regions. Most suburbs are now racially diverse and becoming more so all of the time. Muller distinguished three subtypes of black suburbs: “spillover,” “colonies,” and “satellite.” The continuing influx of Asian and Hispanic immigrants, together with the tendency of many to settle directly in the suburbs, suggests that suburbs will become more diverse in the years to come.

Conclusion Ultimately, what we have learned is that the manifestations of social stratification in North America are found within both the city and the suburb. Any simplistic socioeconomic comparison of the two ignores the lifestyle variations existing within each and really does a disservice to the many positive attributes that cities possess. Of course, central cities do have their problems, as do some of the older suburbs.

Suggestions Readings and Websites The original works of Wirth, Gans, and Fischer provide a useful theoretical foundation to this chapter: Wirth, Louis. 1969. “Urbanism As a Way of Life.” American Journal of Sociology 94: 1154-1169.

Gans, Herbert. 1968. “Urbanism and Suburbanism as a Way of Life.” pp. 34-52 in People and Plans. New York: Basic Books.

43A .

Fischer, Claude. 1975. “Toward a Subcultural Theory of Urbanism.” American Journal of Sociology 80: 1319-1341.

Domhoff, G. William. 2011. “Wealth, Income, and Power.” Accessed at http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html on July 23, 2011.

This article provides an interesting study of the relationship between wealth, income, and power.

Talen, Emily. 2006. “Neighborhood-Level Social Diversity.” Journal of the American Planning Association 72: 431–46.

This is a study of social diversity in American neighborhoods.

“Why the Centers for Disease Control Hate the Suburbs” http://reason.org/news/show/why-the-centers-for-disease-co This website showcases an article focusing on how the CDC has declared the suburbs and urban sprawl as a public health problem.

Projects 1. On a map of a large familiar metropolitan area, identify places where the different urban and suburban lifestyles discussed in this chapter are located.

2. Ask students to describe their experience with the city. What do they like about the city? What do they dislike or fear about the city?

44A .

CHAPTER 11: RACE, ETHNICITY, AND GENDER: URBAN DIVERSITY Summary Cities and Immigrants 11.1: Evaluate the role of immigrants in defining the diversity and economics of cities This chapter focuses on social diversity and the role of race, ethnicity, and gender in shaping urban life. During the great immigration period, between 1880 and 1910, the share of immigrants in many Northeastern cities rose up to one-fourth of the population. Today, although the share of the foreign-born population has decreased significantly, ethnic and racial diversity has actually increased given the rise of immigration from Asia and Latin America. Immigrants tend to affect the shape of cities by creating ethnic enclaves, which grew as newcomers joined older immigrants through a process of chain migration. New York and Los Angeles provide examples of racially and ethnically diverse cities composed of many immigrant communities.

Racial and Ethnic Minorities 11.2: Review the different ethnic groups that form a part of mainstream North America and Canada Historically, African Americans have been the main minority group in U.S. cities. Until the beginning of the 20th century, most blacks lived in rural areas of the South. After 1900, however, racial segregation and poor economic conditions, as well as greater economic opportunities in the North, contributed to black migrations to Northeastern cities. This movement was intensified by the restriction of European immigration, which followed World War I, and despite a brief decrease during the great depression, continued with the rise of industrial production from World War II until the 1970s. Since then, urban decentralization and suburbanization have slowed black urban migration. Nevertheless, blacks represent a majority in many cities such as Baltimore, Washington, and Detroit, although they make up only 13% of the U.S. population.

Unlike earlier European immigrants who assimilated and moved out of poor central city neighborhoods, blacks have often remained isolated in racial ghettos. Karl and Alma Taeuber’s “index of dissimilarity” shows that in 1960 there was a high level of racial segregation in many U.S. cities. Subsequent studies suggest that racial segmentation has decreased since the 1970s but nevertheless remains high in central city neighborhoods. Social class or an individual choice can explain racial segregation, but it can be explained more importantly by the existence of dual housing markets whereby whites attempt to keep blacks out of their neighborhoods. According to William J. Wilson, racial segregation has dramatic consequences for the African American poor who remain in the city and face very limited economic opportunities.

45A .

While the Chinese, Filipinos, and Japanese represent the three major groups of Asian Americans, recent immigration from India, Korea, and Vietnam has increased the diversity among this population. Asian Americans are often perceived as the “model minority” given their generally higher levels of education and income; however, like for other minority groups, a certain proportion of the population remains poor.

Hispanics represent the fastest growing non-white group in the United States, surpassing African Americans in many cities including Houston, Los Angeles, Denver, and San Francisco. They constitute a majority of the population in cities like Miami. A comparison of Puerto Ricans, Mexican Americans, and Central and South Americans illustrates the diversity of the Hispanic people in the United States.

For more than 100 years, Muslim immigrants have settled in U.S. cities. These are difficult times for Muslim Americans, particularly those living in cities. Despite the fact that nearly all of these people follow the nonviolent teachings of their religion, the recent terrorist attacks have led to heightened prejudice, discrimination, and even the phenomenon of racial profiling.

Although Native Americans have typically lived in rural areas, in recent decades, more than half of them have moved to urban areas hoping to find better living conditions. However, the city often fails to improve their economic status and creates a cultural shock that can lead to drunkenness and isolation.

Women and Urban Life 11.3: Recall evolution of the concepts of women’s rights and social interaction in the second half of the twentieth century Issues of gender in the city are linked to issues of class, race, and ethnicity. Historically, poor women, mostly immigrants, sought work in central city factories. This was especially true for women who migrated alone or whose husbands died. In contrast, very few middle- and upperclass women worked outside their home, following the prevailing notion of women as housekeepers and mothers. However, the labor shortage created by World War II drew an increasingly large number of women in the labor force. By 1970, the dual-career family became the norm. By 2014, the female labor force participation rate reached 57 percent.

The greater participation of women in the labor force transformed cities by creating new types of jobs such as childcare and household cleaning by promoting the development of fast-food restaurants, dry cleaners, supermarkets, and shopping malls. In turn, feminists argue, urban space influences and constrains women’s behavior to the extent that it is male-dominated. The fact that more and more women hold elected public offices may challenge this male dominance in the future by pushing new issues onto the political agenda.

Case Study: Chicago

46A .

Chicago, like many other U.S. cities, illustrates the paradoxical combination of wealth and poverty. Its site was chosen by the French in 1673 and taken over by the British in 1763 before it became part of the United States. In 1830, growth began, population soared, property values rose, and new housing was built. By 1850, Chicago was connected to all parts of the country by a system of canals and railroads that allowed for the growth of manufacturing and trading activities. A fire in Chicago in 1871 burned most of the city; however, the city grew even faster following this destructive fire.

In 1889, Jane Addams founded the Hull House in one of Chicago’s poorest ethnic neighborhoods to fight the social problems associated with modern growth. She emphasized the need for community and ethnic pride and fought for women’s rights to unionize and vote. Following the Hull House model, many settlement houses sprung up in other poor urban neighborhoods across the United States in order to promote activism and feminism.

In the early 20th century, immigration from Europe increased. Many immigrants moved first to densely populated poor urban neighborhoods and eventually moved to middle-class neighborhoods as soon as their income permitted it. However, African Americans rarely moved outwards and remained concentrated in urban ghettos where violence was not uncommon.

Chicago’s social problems were exacerbated by organized crime between 1920 and 1930 and by the beginning of the Great Depression in 1930. It is only after World War II that growth reemerged. The new growth, however, took place mostly in areas outside of Chicago’s city limits, leaving blacks and Hispanics as the majority population of the central city with limited opportunities. The dominance of political machines in Chicago contributed to a lack of allocation of public resources in the poorer neighborhoods. According to Suttles (1968), these neighborhoods were organized according to an “ordered segmentation” whereby Italians, African Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Mexicans claimed their own territory and organized separate communities. However, he argues, blacks, as opposed to Italians, had a poor sense of community, often distrusted each other, and were the poorest. Today, diversity has increased with immigration from third-world countries. The most resourceful immigrants quickly move to the suburbs, while those with fewer social advantages form ethnic and racial enclaves similar to earlier immigrant cohorts.

In conclusion, class, gender, ethnic, and racial forces shape cities. These forces often interact to create different levels of opportunities for different groups in the city.

Conclusion The larger insight from Suttles’s work is that prejudice always works to distinguish an ingroup from an outgroup. Some of the success experienced by white ethnics is a result of their ability, over time, to “pass”—that is, to assimilate into the dominant urban culture. The same opportunity is not as easily afforded to others with more clearly identifiable differences. This

47A .

pattern reminds us that cities do not exist in a cultural vacuum, for the values, norms, and stratification that shape the broader society also shape cities.

Suggestions Readings and Websites Frey, William H. 2011. “Melting Pot Cities and Suburbs: Racial and Ethnic Change in Metro America in the 2000s.” Washington, D.C.: Brookings. Accessed at http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/papers/2011/0504_census_ethnicity_frey/0504_cens us_ethnicity_frey.pdf on April 14, 2012.

An examination of the melting pot phenomenon in metro America at the dawn of the 21st century.

Green, Robert L. 1977. The Urban Challenge: Poverty and Race. Chicago: Follett.

This book addresses the relationship between poverty and race in the 1970s in America.

Kerber, Linda K. Jane Sherron De Hart, and Cornelia H. Dayton. 2010. Women’s America: Refocusing the Past, 7th ed. New York: Oxford University Press.

This book provides an examination of the challenges faced by women living in American cities.

Wilson, William. 1987. The Truly Disadvantaged. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

A highly acclaimed study of poverty in inner-city black neighborhoods of Chicago.

Zielenbach, Sean. 2005. “Understanding Community Change: A Look at Low-Income Chicago Neighborhoods in the 1990s.” Neighborhood Change in America. Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute. Accessed at http://www.urban.org/publications/311151.html on June 29, 2012.

A study of low-income neighborhoods in Chicago at the end of the 20th century.

Films Combination Platter. 1993, 84 minutes, directed by Tony Chan. The discovery of New York City through the eyes of a Hong Kong immigrant in search of a green card.

Hoop Dreams. 1994, 169 minutes, directed by Steve James. An award-winning documentary about the lives of two young and talented African American basketball players from challenging inner-city neighborhoods.

Project Ask students to choose a specific ethnic group of immigrants and to trace their progress in a familiar city. Focus on when and where they settled first, and how they assimilated. It may be interesting for students to use personal information from their own families.

48A .

CHAPTER 12: HOUSING, EDUCATION, CRIME: CONFRONTING URBAN PROBLEMS Summary This chapter investigates the role of housing, education, and crime in shaping the quality of urban life. Such problems are often exacerbated in the city along with other social ills like ethnic and racial tension and poverty.

Housing: A Place to Live 12.1: Indicate that choice of housing is a matter of economics and personal tastes Millions of people, mostly poor and minorities, live in substandard housing characterized by structural defects, such as inadequate plumbing, heating, or sanitation. Obviously, people do not choose to live in poor-quality housing, but rather are faced with limited options. The reduction in the number of low-rent housing units, due primarily to cuts in government funding as well as landlords’ search for greater profits, has further expanded overcrowding and homelessness.

Housing problems are not new in the United States, but it was only during the Great Depression of the 1930s that the government took a first step to address them. Under the New Deal, the federal government (1) provided funds to promote the construction of new housing, (2) offered assistance to homeowners unable to pay their mortgage debts, (3) guaranteed construction loans to increase the supply of housing, and (4) hired unemployed workers to build low-rent public housing through the Public Works Administration. After World War II, the Federal Housing Administration expanded mortgage guarantees to veterans and moderate-income families.

The 1949 Housing Act also gave the government the ability to seize decaying properties and sell them to private developers for redevelopment. Boston’s West End neighborhood illustrates how such urban renewal projects can fail to provide affordable housing for those who need it most.

Public housing has always been problematic in the United States. People see it as less efficient than private ownership and deplore the fact that it creates a concentration of poor, welfaredependent minorities. In 1968, a new Housing Act provided an alternative to public housing by promoting home ownership among low- and middle-income families through loan guarantees and subsidies. However, corruption between government officials and real estate developers led to the failure of the program in the early 1970s. In 1974, the Section 8 program began to provide rent subsidies to low-income tenants in private housing. However, the program is severely underfunded, and many eligible people cannot benefit from it. The history of housing policies in the United States reveals that the economic interests of developers often dominated the needs of the poor, who have little to say in the decision-making process.

Besides a lack of affordable housing, some parts of the city suffer from serious deterioration and even abandonment of buildings. The relocation of economic activities and the outmigration of wealthier individuals toward the suburbs contributed to this phenomenon, as illustrated by New York’s South Bronx in the 1980s. The people who remain in the inner city often have low

49A .

incomes and are unable to pay high rents, cutting into landlords’ revenues for repairs and maintenance.

Although public programs to revive the city have been rather unsuccessful, two private movements have achieved some results. First, in the early 1970s through “homesteading,” local governments began to give buildings it had acquired to people who were willing to rehabilitate them and stay for a minimum of three years. Community groups and national organizations such as Habitat for Humanity began to organize to help people reclaim their neighborhoods or build homes. Second, through “gentrification,” wealthier individuals have renovated decaying areas of the city to be near administrative and professional jobs, benefit from some of the city’s amenities, or avoid the suburbs. However, gentrification often raises property values in the neighborhood and displaces the poor, while providing great bargains to real estate owners.

Today, city planners have become more aware of sociological principles and have promoted a “New Urbanism,” which places more emphasis on social spaces. Boston’s Columbia Point/Harbor Point neighborhood illustrates the importance of public spaces where people can socialize and create a sense of community. New Urbanism also emphasizes the importance of aesthetic elements such as water views, parks, and the need to integrate the poor in a community rather than isolate them in “project high-rises.” However, although more successful than traditional housing projects, New Urbanism tends to decrease the number of housing units available, requires large-scale investment, and does not address the socioeconomic roots of the public housing problem.

Education: The Urban Challenge 12.2: Recall some of the obstacles that educators face Schools in urban settings face a variety of challenges, often more daunting than those school districts face elsewhere. Immigration remains primarily an urban phenomenon, and whether immigrant or native-born, many students come from home environments where poverty, family instability, or poor health may limit educational success. The landmark No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 dramatically increased the role of the federal government in guaranteeing the quality of public education for all children. Prior to this legislation, most urban schools had a policy of social promotions. Cities actually have limited control over their affairs, including problems in funding schools. Magnet schools began as an alternative to mandatory busing, but their success in raising students’ scholastic achievements gained them even more popularity.

About 20 percent of U.S. students living in or around cities attend one of the nation’s more than 3,000 magnet schools. Another choice option in some school districts is to give parents a voucher equal to the state’s share of the cost of educating a child (usually about 90 percent of the average private school’s tuition); parents can then use this voucher to place their child in a public or private school of their choice. Charter schools are a recent alternative to traditional public schools, and in cities where a voucher plan exists, a major beneficiary of such payments.

Charters are private schools that operate with less state regulation so that teachers and

50A .

administrators can try out new teaching strategies. In fact, some charter schools aren’t better than their public school counterparts. Critics note that many charter schools have weak curricula and teaching, substandard buildings, and financial abuses. Additionally, many are segregated along ethnic, racial, and religious lines.

Crime: Perception and Reality 12.3: Report some of the factors that cause differences in perception of crime Despite the recent drop in U.S. and Canadian crime rates, people perceive cities as highly violent and dangerous places. The media certainly contributes to this perception by emphasizing the rise in stranger-on-stranger homicide and juvenile violence. Despite a decline in the murder rate, an increasing share of killings is stranger-on-stranger homicides. Attitudes toward crime are a mix of facts and fears. Most violent crimes take place in cities, often growing out of street, school, or social club altercations. Crime statistics are notoriously imperfect. Discussions of crime always raise the issue of race. Contrary to popular belief, two-thirds of the arrests police make for serious crimes involve white people. Crime is largely intra-racial. The crime problem is worst in black urban ghettos.

Criminal offenses often take place in poor neighborhoods and black ghettos and are consequently more likely to affect low-income and black individuals. Social scientists have developed four explanations. First, Banfield (1990) argues that inner cities are characterized by a lower-class culture where crime thrives. However, critics argue that this type of culture is a consequence of poverty. Second, Herrnstein and Murray (1996) assert that the lower IQ of inner-city residents explains their irresponsible behaviors, including crime. Critics reject the validity of IQ tests.

Others argue that racial and economic inequalities create alienation, resentment, and crime.

Unlike the previous approaches, this third perspective sees the cause of crime not in the offenders themselves but in society.

A high incidence of crime in a neighborhood lowers property values and generates a climate of fear detrimental to the community. To solve these problems, urban planners such as Newman (1996) have argued for improved buildings designs in order to create “defensible space” which residents can easily monitor. Other strategies include street patrols by local citizens to complement police work and a tougher attitude toward crime. However, these proposed solutions are unlikely to eliminate crime in the long run unless economic opportunities in poor communities are improved.

Conclusion While there is some reason for pessimism and concern, recent decades have witnessed positive signs of improvement in urban life. Many cities have also reduced crime, but whether this trend will persist remains to be seen. Similarly, time will tell whether the recent innovations in housing and education improve the quality of life and the life chances for all segments of a city’s population.

51A .

Suggestions Readings and Websites Jacobs, Jane. 1993. The Death and Life of Great American Cities. New York: Random House; originally published in 1961.

This book includes several chapters on urban problems.

Massey, Douglas S., and Nancy A. Denton. 1993. American Apartheid: Segregation and the Making of the Underclass. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

This book deals with racial residential segregation, its measurement, and its impact on urban life.

Timmer, Doug A., D. Stanley Eitzen, and Kathryn D. Talley. 1994. Paths to Homelessness: Extreme Poverty and the Housing Crisis. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

This book discusses the housing crisis and related phenomenon of poverty.

Tita, George E., Tricia L. Petras, and Robert T. Greenbaum. 2006. “Crime and Residential Choice: A Neighborhood Level Analysis of the Impact of Crime on Housing Prices.” Journal of Quantitative Criminology 22(4) (December): 299–317.

A study of the impact of crime rates on housing prices in U.S. neighborhoods.

Zhou, Min. 2003. “Urban Education: Challenges in Educating Culturally Diverse Children.”

Teachers College Record 105 (May): 208–25.

A discussion of the challenges associated with providing educational services in culturally diverse areas.

Films Streetwise. 1984, 92 minutes, directed by Martin Bell.

This dramatized documentary shows the life of children in the streets of Seattle and the dangers of cities.

City of Hope. 1991, 132 minutes, directed by John Sayles.

This movie exemplifies the despair and malaise associated with contemporary U.S. central cities.

Projects 1. Ask students to research the extent of the housing problem in their area or a familiar city and the solutions adopted. Apply the concepts from this chapter. Discuss their success or lack thereof and compare with the solutions adopted in one or more other cities. This could be a term paper project.

52A .

2. Ask students to obtain information about the housing options for low-income individuals in their area. What programs are available, and what are their requirements in terms of conditions and paperwork?

3. Have your students research the availability of magnet schools, school vouchers, and charter schools in the community where your college or university is located. See if they can locate a few people to interview in order to assess the success of these programs, if they exist.

4. Ask students to obtain crime rate data on their city. What types of crime are more common?

Who are the offenders and the victims? Where is crime concentrated? Do these findings correspond to what people perceive?

53A .

CHAPTER 13: GLOBAL URBANIZATION Summary When most Americans think of large cities, they usually imagine towering New York City or sprawling Los Angeles. Yet São Paulo is the largest city in the Western Hemisphere, with a population of approximately 11 million. Major cities like São Paolo, Brazil, Tokyo, Bombay, Cairo, and Shanghai, and many others throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, have urban histories unlike that of Canada or the United States. This chapter explores the development of cities throughout the developing world, with an eye to what they have in common, how they vary, and how they compare with Canadian and U.S. cities.

African Cities 13.1: Review the transition of the coastal African cities from indigenous ones to those dominated

by Europeans African urbanization is uneven, owing to its geographic, cultural, and linguistic diversity. The Great Sahara Desert kept much of Africa’s interior outside the scope of European knowledge, but cities were extant on the continent as early as 3000 B.C.E. These cities served as capitals for nascent African empires and as trade and manufacturing centers. When Islam spread across the northern part of the continent in the 7th and 8th centuries, African cities began to show extensive trade patterns. The city of Kano, founded in 999 C.E., was linked through trade with these Islamic cities to the North. Narrow streets and walls surrounding the city typified early African cities, and location of residence was determined by religious, tribal, or professional affiliation, unlike the modern Western separations based on income.

Colonization came during the late 1400s, and with it came not only the economic exploitation found in Latin America, but a dramatic increase in the slave trade as well. This human cargo was needed in the New World to replace Indian populations that were succumbing to European diseases such as smallpox. By the 19th century, the Europeans were no longer interested in the slave trade; they now saw Africa on its own terms as a source of unbridled raw materials. This rush to colonize also produced vastly different cities as different conquerors enacted vastly different urban policies. The British allowed local rulers a measure of home rule, and the French sought assimilation, while a dual city pattern emerged in regions that had a preexisting major city. This last variant had a stone European city centered on a business district adjacent to the earlier city made of mud bricks. Racial segregation policies were prevalent throughout colonized Africa.

54A .

Asian Cities 13.2: Describe some of the world's most populous cities in Asia Of all global regions, Asia provides the greatest challenge because it encompasses almost 30 percent of the earth’s land area and is a region of many sharp contrasts. Japan is a highly industrialized, rich nation, with one of the world’s lowest birth rates. China is very poor, with a highly centralized urban policy to manage the largest urban population of any country in the world. Southeast Asia stands out as having no real tradition of indigenous cities at all; yet, despite this history, major cities now are growing at a startling rate.

The European colonization of India, like that of Africa and Latin America, was based on the establishment of cities for political and economic control of the surrounding area. Fueled by tales of opulence from explorers such as Marco Polo, Europeans established both new cities on the coastlines as well as secondary settlements akin to the dual city approach. The older city was typically centered on a central market with a residential area divided into quarters by ethnicity and social standing. The new city would be established on a grid pattern like most Western cities, with trading and manufacturing in the central district and a railroad for transporting goods and passengers leading through it.

Like India, China is a land of ancient cities. From the mid-19th century until the end of World War II, China was subjected to foreign control, first by Europeans and then by the Japanese. The Chinese people resented this, and when the People’s Republic was established in 1949, Mao Zedong and his followers made a concerted effort to eradicate all aspects of European influence and privilege from China’s cities. China’s urban population has continued to grow despite the highly regimented and often brutal Maoist system that forced perhaps 25 million urbanites from large cities to small towns and rural villages during the 1970s.

The urban roots of Japan extend back at least to the 8th century C.E., when ruling elites established a series of provincial capitals. Over the centuries, the growth of Japanese cities produced a wealthy and powerful middle class. By the mid-1800s, these merchants controlled the purse strings in the country, and the power of the previous shogun-type of system declined considerably. In 1868, the shogun stepped down. Industrialization progressed and proceeded throughout the 20th century, leading to foreign expansion and finally, into the disaster of World War II. Latin American Cities 13.3: Evaluate the characteristics of some major Latin American cities For the most part, the great cities of today were not in existence at the time of the Spanish and Portuguese conquest in the 16th century; however, major metropolises did exist then. For example, the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán reached a population of 350,000 by the end of the 15th

55A .

century. Both Tenochtitlán and the Inca capital of Cuzco were the major cities in Latin America at the time of the European invasion. The conquistadors, Cortes and Pizarro, respectively, destroyed these empires and centers of commerce in the New World. Each was driven by a desire to conquer and extract the wealth of these newfound lands for European masters. Leading uprisings against the local overlords, they erected new cities based on European models designed as administrative and export-oriented trade centers, and new port cities were built to facilitate external trade. The local population was decimated through military might, the introduction of disease, and an imposition of European culture and religion. Most cities were constructed using a similar pattern: a central plaza, the plaza mayor, which was constructed with the Catholic church on one side, and government offices, businesses, and expensive residences on the others.

Surrounding this district resided the middle class, while encircling areas were the residences of the poor.

These cities remained small, but had large entrenched bureaucracies, owing to the expropriation of much of the wealth of the area by the European homelands. At the same time, the boundaries of conquest created divisions that cut across linguistic and ethnic lines, creating tensions when areas were given their independence during the 19th century. Ethnic divisions also were present in the social caste system that developed, with those of European descent finding themselves in a favorable position vis-à-vis the indigenous population.

After local insurgencies and the decline of mining activities in the 1800s made the region less palatable to the colonial powers, Latin American colonies were granted independence. This is the time of the establishment of primate cities, the major metropolises. Many of the port cities grew rapidly, reaching hundreds of thousands, or even millions, in population by the beginning of the 20th century. Their rapid growth was attributable to both internal migration and immigration. Immigrants generally had more skills than indigenous workers, and they took over much of the burgeoning middle class.

Middle Eastern Cities 13.4: Record the history and the modern-day features of some prominent Middle Eastern cities The Middle East has a number of cities in crisis, with population growth causing the collapse of the urban infrastructure. The lack of housing forces many into the streets or substandard living accommodations, and traffic conditions are abysmal. Still, it was not always this way. The Middle East is the site of the world’s first city, Jericho. The Persian and Egyptian empires had extensive city networks as early as the 4th millennium B.C.E. With the arrival of Alexander the Great to the region and the later conquest by the Roman Empire, coastal cities were established to bolster trade. With the rise of Islam in the 7th century, however, Middle Eastern cities were to enter into a renaissance. Established based on major trade routes, Muslim cities were constructed within the confines of a large wall to protect them from invasion and dust storms. Residences were built closely to one another, and the streets were narrow. Houses were constructed so that they opened onto private courtyards where guests could be entertained. Throughout the city were

56A .

mosques, each built so that everyone could be reached by the call to prayer. Still, this also had the effect of segregating people into neighborhoods based on their proximate mosques, and allegiances to their neighborhoods intensified. Toward the end of the Middle Ages, however, overgrazing of the regions led to topsoil depletion and a loss of water and timber. The loss of these resources caused dramatic declines in the populations of cities until the coming of Europeans in the 1800s.

The Europeans did not attempt to colonize the Middle East like they had other regions of the world. Instead, they were satisfied with limited foreign investment and trading for raw materials.

This had the same ultimate effect as in the colonized regions, however, by making the Middle East increasingly trade dependent on Europe, a process that only intensified after the discovery of oil.

Common Problems 13.5: Recount some of the common problems that plague most cities The crisis of developing world cities goes beyond economic dependency on other nations. All over the globe, poor countries are experiencing a demographic transition based on falling death rates, with predictable consequences for population size.

During the colonial era, most African cities grew slowly, hampered like their Latin American counterparts by one-sided trade policies. In the 1960s, 32 former colonies in Africa gained their freedom. In some cases, the aftermath was a debilitating political disorder. In global perspective, Africa is still the least urbanized continent, but it has the highest rate of increase in urbanization.

This increase is due to in migration from the hinterland as well as to natural population increase.

Africa is a continent in severe crisis; aside from the country’s health crisis, much of its population is starving.

Most Latin American cities have not followed the pattern of rapid industrialization typical of Europe, Canada, and the United States. Most Latin American cities were export-oriented. With raw material exports as their primary source of wealth, most Latin American cities never developed much of an industrial base. This disadvantageous situation is not simply the result of poor investment policies and lack of foresight; the rich nations and their corporations importing the products have contributed significantly to the problem as well.

The main effects of economic development in the Middle East have been 1) to increase the prominence of coastal cities, downplaying the significance of inland urban areas, and 2) to spark a major migration to all cities. Political conflicts in the region have only made the population problem worse. Capitalist markets have created a relatively large middle class of affluent entrepreneurs. Finally, rapid urban growth has established a primate-city pattern for the entire region. In short, contemporary Middle Eastern cities are in a period of intense social change, and their development is impacted by their economic and political context.

57A .

India’s high rate of population increase leads demographers to project that within 40 years, India may even pass China to become the world’s most populous nation. Calcutta is a city on the eastern coast that shows the often quixotic nature of urban planning in India. Aside from the central city with its grid patterns and broad streets, most of the city has narrow roads. There are few river crossings for a city that extends, at most, five miles from the river that runs through its center. Roads are in disrepair, but the city boasts India’s only subway system. It has a major port, but the river entrance can handle only a small fraction of India’s trade. Although disease-infested and populated with hundreds of thousands of homeless persons, it is a thriving cultural center and has three major universities. Bombay, a port city located on the opposite coast, has great linguistic, religious, and cultural diversity. It has a thriving textile industry, but most migrants to the city cannot find work due to their illiteracy and lack of industrial skills. India does have good prospects elsewhere. Foreign investment and government reforms have brought real economic growth. Smaller cities tend to do better than these large primate cities, and some rural areas are self-sufficient. Still, widespread poverty, overpopulation, and environmental degradation make India’s future uncertain.

In the 1970s, China introduced major reforms to curb population growth and to stimulate economic growth to help Chinese cities “catch up quick.” Special Economic Zones were created.

These are cities and regions where responsibility for economic regulation has been given to the locality, such as those in Xiamen, Chongqing, and Guangzhou, and these zones have flourished under free trade and enterprise. The resulting increase in productivity has lifted economic standards throughout these areas. Still, gambling, prostitution, and other forms of crime have increased with the economic freedom.

With a standard of living far above anywhere in China, Hong Kong, which reverted to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, has long been a magnet for those who sought to escape Chinese communism. The city now has 7.2 million residents and a population density of 16,400 people per square mile. Prior to 1980, mainland migrants were welcomed, but since then, they have been deported back to China. Hong Kong’s industrialization has not been without its problems.

Shantytowns provide residency for 15 percent of the population despite one of the largest public housing systems in the world. Hundreds of thousands of residents live on Chinese boats known as junks that are moored in the harbor. Prolific industrialization and high population density has resulted in a serious pollution problem.

Southeast Asia does not have large indigenous cities. Its major cities are products of European or Chinese influence over the past few hundred years. Singapore, a city-state on the Malay Peninsula, is the largest port in the region, and it prospers as a center of East-West trade. With a 2010 population of 5.1 million people and limited land, congestion and pollution have been problems. Expensive permits are required to drive in the central business district during peak hours. Shantytowns were destroyed by the government, which then constructed high-rise apartments in their place. Most residents own their own housing through government incentive programs. These activities cause Singapore to have the look and feel of a Western city with a

58A .

well-defined downtown and well-maintained apartment buildings, schools, and landscaping. It also means that neighborhoods have an impersonal feel due to the rapid urban renewal process.

Population growth is under control, and Singaporeans enjoy a high standard of living. However, the government is very autocratic, and social regulation is harsh, but the populace accepts it.

Japan is a well-developed country with a strong economy. However, exorbitant land costs and expensive housing result in long commutes or small dwellings. During peak periods, the subway commuter lines operate at 250 percent capacity. These problems are offset by an exemplary health care system, a reduced crime rate, and low unemployment. Japan’s population of 127.3 million (2010) will fall to 95.2 million by 2050 if the current fertility rate persists. Its rapidly aging population is placing an economic strain on the country’s health care system.

The cities examined in this chapter vary enormously from the Western cities with which we are most familiar, but despite all of this diversity, these cities share some common concerns: spiraling populations and problems with quality-of-life concerns, including the presence of shantytowns.

Conclusion The simple fact is that most cities in the developing world are inundated with so many people that they cannot provide adequately for their populations without major advances in economic vitality and technological efficiency. Massive over-urbanization is occurring in the less developed parts of the globe.

Suggestions Readings and Websites Herskovits, Melville J. 2007. The Human Factor in Changing Africa. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Publishing.

This book explores how Africa has changed throughout history and the role of urban development.

Morse, Richard J., and Jorge E. Hardoy, eds. 1993. Rethinking the Latin American City.

Washington, D.C.: Woodrow Wilson Center.

This book provides insights into urban development in Latin American cities.

Neuwirth, Robert. 2004. Shadow Cities: A Billion Squatters, A New Urban World. London: Routledge.

This book explores the phenomenon of squatters in urban settings.

CNN. 2008. “All About: Developing Cities and Pollution.” Accessed at http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/09/eco.cities/index.html on July 2, 2012.

59A .

This CNN article explores the problem of pollution in developing cities.

Lei, Fu. 2010. “Shantytowns Face Hard Home Truths.” China Daily, December 13. Accessed at http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2010-12/13/content_11689451.htm on July 2, 2012.

This article examines challenges faced by those living in Chinese shantytowns.

Projects 1. Students should imagine how cities in Europe might be different had colonization occurred in the other direction (i.e. colonization of Europe by African or Latin American powers) and write a short paper describing the differences.

2. Ask students to compare urban development in different areas of the world and determine to what extent it can be thought of as an exercise in cultural differentiation.

60A .

CHAPTER 14: URBAN PLANNING: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE Summary Past Visions LO 14.1: Recognize the meticulous planning that created some of the major early world civilizations Ebenezer Howard had a vision in the late 1800s of a solution to the ills of the city. He saw cities both as engines of economic growth and prosperity and as congested, unhealthy, and constricting. To remedy this, he constructed a plan for a circular-style “garden city” that would marry aspects of both city and country life. Constructed around a central plaza, the city would extend out in concentric circles to residences, then factories, and finally a railroad line encompassing the town. Outside this central sphere would be agricultural land on all sides. This would allow for easy transport of goods with a minimal impact on traffic within the urban core, increase a sense of community, and allow individuals to escape to a countryside life quickly and easily. However, it was a utopian vision, unable to transform the established towns with their traditions and economic interests.

The New Towns Movement 14.2: Review new towns Howard’s vision inspired others to try their hand at urban design. The British government in the aftermath of World War II adopted some of Howard’s ideas in its New Towns Act. The sociological concept of a new town deals with the large-scale, holistic planning of a mixed-use, self-sufficient community. The first of these communities faithfully adopted Howard’s garden city plan, although later cities enacted under the plan have been larger and thus less able to fulfill Howard’s original intent. While providing housing and jobs, the smaller cities have done little to slow the growth of Britain’s larger ones, and their homogenous character have bred ethnic and class prejudices.

Other countries such as France and Spain have tried to stimulate urban growth in regional centers and away from primate cities. Sweden has tried to control suburban growth by planned communities linked to the central city via an efficient subway system. Australia designed its capital, Canberra, away from other urban centers in an effort to develop the hinterland. It has turned into an upper- and middle-class city revolving around government services. Brazil’s capital, Brasilia, was similarly planned, but it has degenerated into a city reminiscent of other Latin American ones, with shantytowns and poor infrastructure.

In the United States, privately developed planned cities are the rule. Only three government-built new towns exist, all of which trace their roots to Roosevelt’s New Deal legislation. Each has

61A .

become a suburb of a nearby metropolitan center. The privately developed towns have been mixed successes. Reston, Virginia, for example is successful but lacks economic diversity in its population, being a city for the affluent. Columbia, Maryland, on the other hand, has achieved racial and economic integration. One of the latest attempts to create a new town is found in Celebration, Florida, under the auspices of the Walt Disney Company. It tries to re-create the pre-World War II small town and has a mixture of expensive and low-cost housing available.

However, most new towns haven’t been able to achieve their stated objective of reduced congestion. They account for only a small percentage of housing in any of the countries that have tried them. Many people do not want to move to them because they lack employment opportunities. Instead, the authors argue that it might be better to try to improve major city housing.

Twentieth-Century Large-Scale Visions 14.3: Examine four large-scale visions of the street as done by architects Le Corbusier argued for having a radiant city which contained massive buildings surrounded by huge open spaces with equal densities throughout the city. This would aid in traffic flows by decentralizing business districts. Citywide transportation would link these areas. Frank Lloyd Wright, on the other hand, argued for huge low-density cities with personal automobiles (or even airplanes or helicopters) to transport people throughout the city. Interspersed would be agricultural areas among the urban dwellings. Paolo Soleri argued for something similar to Le Corbusier with an enormous complex that reached a third of a mile into the sky and covered the equivalent of a few city blocks. Half a million people would live in such a structure with industry and commercial areas developed underground. These three visions, however, are financially impractical and sociologically naive in that they attempt to alter the society by merely altering the physical city. Most recently, the Shimizu Corporation has proposed construction of a massive megacity, 12 times higher than the Great Pyramid of Giza. The plans include 240,000 housing units to accommodate as many as 750,000 residents and the use of cutting-edge nanotechnology not yet available.

Twentieth-Century Small-Scale Visions 14.4: Evaluate the significance and utility of different urban segments Utopian visions, however, reduce the diversity of the city experience. Some critics, such as Jane Jacobs, have argued that city planning should allow for social interaction and for local people to bring a sense of community to their lives. August Heckscher emphasized how spatial patterns reflect cultural values and argued that squares provide natural central meeting places and contribute to the vitality of the city. Parks allow residents a respite from the city atmosphere by bringing a bit of the country life to the city dweller. Architecture expresses the soul and emotion of the city and its residents. James Rouse has tried to capture some of these qualities with his

62A .

urban regeneration projects. Through transforming older, dying areas of a city by having new buildings blend in with older areas of the city, he has rejuvenated them.

The Realities of Urban Planning 14.5: Review how scientific discoveries and technological advances will impact our lives Urban planning’s future lies in continuing what has already been planned and implemented on different levels. Large scale, middle range and small scale each suggest future directions, which are laid out in this chapter. First, as gentrification continues, city centers are seeing an influx in population to avoid the ever-growing traffic congestion and to be closer to the many activities of the city. Second, developing countries are becoming more visible in the global economy and are, thus, the most likely places to build new cities. Third, many existing cities are taking steps to become more eco-friendly. Fourth, cities located in valleys, hillsides, and mountains are beginning to connect better by building systems of urban mass transportation.

Case Study: Toronto, Ontario With more than 6.1 million people living in the region, Toronto is the most populous metropolitan area in Canada. The region has the nation’s major concentration of industrial jobs and serves as the commercial and financial center of the country. Although it contains a large industrial base, Toronto has not experienced the problems of crime and population loss that plague the nearby industrial city of Detroit, Michigan. Toronto’s success as a city lies in a metropolitan approach to governance and policy making that enables city officials to address spatial development and quality-of-life issues in a more comprehensive manner and with greater resources at its disposal. Historically, the area that was to become the city of Toronto was first established as a trading post in the seventeenth century. Railway development in the mid-1800s led to rapid development. The Great Depression of the 1930s caused severe financial problems for the city that still remained at the end of World War II in 1945. Metropolitan Council was established to address the problems, and it worked out well. Essentially, Toronto functions with a two-tiered government, with local government focusing on neighborhood issues and metropolitan government addressing issues facing the entire region. Jon Caulfield describes two distinct planning phases, modern and postmodern, that Toronto experienced in its inner-city development. In 1998, Toronto restructured its municipal government again, merging six local governments into one city. As a result of its planning reforms and metropolitan governance, Toronto has emerged into a dynamic city with one of the world’s safest urban environments. In Jane Jacobs’ words, Toronto is “a city that works.” Of course, the city is not entirely free of problems, but Toronto has established an Official Plan, a vision of how Toronto will change and grow in the new millennium.

63A .

Conclusion Can we honestly say that one type of city planning has been spectacularly more effective than any other? Our review suggests a number of conclusions. First, all the evidence suggests that changing a city’s physical form does not automatically reshape social life. Second, all the planning experiments of the last century have fallen short of their goals. Third, we always must realize that urban planning occurs within a framework of certain unbending realities.

Cities and suburbs do not exist independently of one another. Their fates are inextricably linked, for many of the issues and problems that affect the quality of life transcend municipal boundaries. Furthermore, to ensure the vitality of cities in the 21st century, planners and the public need to gain an understanding of both the problems and the possibilities of urban life and try to learn from some of the utopian thinkers of the past.

Suggestions Readings Bell, Brandon. 2011. Perspectives on Urban Toronto. Raleigh, NC: Lulu.

This book provides perspectives on urban Toronto and serves as a supplement to the case study on Toronto in this chapter.

Howard, Ebenezer. 2007. Garden Cities of To-Morrow. New York: Routledge; originally published in 1898.

Although quite dated, this book is important from a historical standpoint for having launched the New Towns movement. Some of the language evokes the Victorian use of metaphor, and the policy of shunting out those with ailments to the outskirts will likely meet with disapproval from contemporary readers.

Le Corbusier. 1987. The City of Tomorrow and Its Planning. New York: Dover Publications; originally published in 1927.

Wright, Frank Lloyd. 1958. The Living City. New York: Horizon Press.

These two books are best read together to give contrasting utopian views. Neither is very practical but in each there is the spark of creative genius as only master architects can evoke.

From Le Corbusier we see the glorification of compactness, while Wright epitomizes the American desire for wide open spaces.

Olsen, Joshua. 2004. Better Places, Better Lives: A Biography of James Rouse. Washington, D.C.: Urbanland Institute.

This is a biography of James Rouse that will help students gain a better understanding of his philosophies and approach.

64A .

Project A good final project for this course would be to have students devise their own plans for making the city a more hospitable place. Drawing on the work of planners as well as their understanding of the problems faced by cities, such a project can showcase to students the difficulty of city planning and the necessity to make compromises in qualities, which they might see as necessary.

65A .