The City and Citizenship1. Taking a Historical Approach The most noticeable aspects of cities are...
-
Upload
rudolph-magnus-warren -
Category
Documents
-
view
215 -
download
0
Transcript of The City and Citizenship1. Taking a Historical Approach The most noticeable aspects of cities are...
Taking a Historical Approach The most noticeable aspects of cities are “modern,” e.g.
Physical elements: skyscrapers, mass transit Social relations: ethnic/racial conflict, anomie
What distinguishes the modern city from Older city forms? “post-modern” (or late-modern) cities?
How has the relationship between cities and citizenship changed? Key development of modernity is creation of nation-state
and shift of citizenship identification to national level Consider earlier links, e.g. in Greek polis Consider possible emergence of citizenship on a global
scale, or its revival on the local scale Need to understand why cities emerged, what forms
they’ve taken and how they are now changing
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 2
The Emergence of Cities Earliest “true” cities in Mesopotamia (4000-3000 BCE), then Egypt and
Indus Valley Uruk (Akkad) Babylon (later)
Why did cities emerge? Agricultural developments
Increasing agricultural productivity Need to centralize control over irrigation Development of surplus and centralized storage Market centers
Political developments Monarchies, empires - palaces Walls and military defenses
Religion Temples and priests Civic religion and god-kings
Culture and Civilization Center for arts, theater, etc. Role of writing (also involved in commerce, politics, religion)
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 3
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 4
Irigal templeSteingebaude
Uruk (Akkad): c. 3100 BCE
Reconstruction of Anu Ziggurat
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 5
Reconstruction, c. 6th century
BCE
Hanging Gardens
Restored Temple of Nabû sha harê
Babylon
The Greek Polis Distinctive political form
“city-state” (not imperial center) Political community (not monarchy) “Houses make a town, but citizens make a city.” (Rousseau echoing
this ideal writing about Geneva) Public space and public participation central
Family life subordinate to public participation (for free males) Point of politics and polis was to live well (not, cf. Aristotle, mutual
defense or commercial prosperity) Kitto: “In the winning of his livelihood he [the Greek citizen] was
essentially individualist, in the filling of his life he was essentially ‘communist’” (p. 40)
Athenian democracy Large polis, center of culture and learning Citizenship relatively open; very participatory
Eventually displaced by empires (Macedonia, Persia, Rome) Cities persisted as administrative, economic and cultural centers The political community and participation of the polis didn’t last
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 6
Ancient Athens
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 7
Theatre of Dionysus Parthenon (temple of Athena)
The Agora
Other Pre-Modern CitiesDescriptions by travelers, e.g. Marco Polo, at
time when European cities not as large or developedMarveled at scale, prosperity, technological
achievements, etc.Described key elements such as markets, temples,
palaces, transportation, fortificationsBernal Diaz and Tenochtitlan
Contrast to Dürer’s account of AntwerpFocus on “social” organization of city and its
cultural expression in a religious processionAlso expresses key “economic” sectors
What would you focus on if you were to describe a visit to a major city (other than Chicago) today?
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 8
Tenochtitlan
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 9
Reconstruction of the Main TempleCity in a Lake
Conquistadors marching along the causeway
Cities in EuropeComplex, stratified social structures interrelated
with economic and politicalCommerce: guilds, merchants, markets, etc.Culture: cathedrals, houses, festivalsCivilization seen as urban, not rural
High point of cities as centers of civilization and citizenship Italian city-states c. 1150-1350; Flanders late 1300sCreated a kind of “civic freedom” with emphasis on
neighborhoods and shift in power from nobles to the people (merchants, artisans, etc.)
Increasingly replaced by nation-states
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 10
The Modern Industrial City Model: London, Manchester in early 19th century
Engels’ descriptions of London and Manchester emphasize chaos, filth, poverty
Dramatic growth leads to changed character of city, especially unhealthy mix of industry and residence
Contrasted to “healthy” country living (irony of rural migration to city) Politics also changes, as does demographics with external migration
“Ecological” analyses Urban environment is cause of poverty, crime, urban pathologies Density and diversity weaken social (and political) controls
Engels’ explanation is economic Modern cities have been shaped by the emergence of industrial
capitalism Basic focus is on urban poverty - slums exist because of economic
exploitation (“wage slavery”) Industrial capitalism evolved out of (and displaced) small-scale
agriculture and craft production Factory owners need large, pliant workforce near factories Factory workers’ low pay compels them to survive in dense, dirty
dwellingsApril 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 11
Planning and Modern CitiesReformers urged planning as a response to the
problems of industrial citiesSegregate land uses, especially industry from
residential areasrationalize organization and municipal services, e.g.
transportation and sewageProvide “healthy” environments and recreation (e.g.
parks and playgrounds)Goal was to impose order on chaos
Not only spatial order, but also social, political and aesthetic
Von Hausman’s plans for Paris Grand boulevards aesthetically pleasing and allow promenades Allowed easy mobilization of troops to deal with civil unrest demolished or hid working-class housing and neigborhoods
April 19, 2023 The City and Citizenship 12