City Studies Midterm Notes PDF

City Study Notes LeGates, Richard. 2015. “Prologue.” Pp. 5-9 in The City Reader. How To Study Cities Legates' prologue explains how the study of cities is always changing, focusing on both what cities are like and what they should be. It shows why old ideas about cities still matter today, e...

City Study Notes LeGates, Richard. 2015. “Prologue.” Pp. 5-9 in The City Reader. How To Study Cities Legates' prologue explains how the study of cities is always changing, focusing on both what cities are like and what they should be. It shows why old ideas about cities still matter today, especially with new challenges like globalization. The reading is important because it teaches how different fields—like sociology, economics, and planning—come together to study cities. By learning both past and present ideas, students can better understand today’s city problems and think of solutions. This topic is included to help students build a strong foundation for studying cities now and in the future. Childe, V. Gordon. 2015. “The Urban Revolution.” Pp. 30-38 in The City Reader. Concept Of City Gordon explains that cities were created through big changes in how people lived and worked, marking a new phase in human development. He calls these changes a 'revolution' because they transformed society, similar to the Industrial Revolution. Childe divides early societies into three stages—savagery, barbarism, and civilization—based on how they got their food, starting with hunting and moving to farming. His essay shows how cities grew out of these important shifts in human society over time. Davis, Kingsley. 2015. “The Urbanization of the Human Population.” Pp 19-29 in The City Reader. A New Step In Social Evolution Kingsley Davis’ essay explains that urbanized societies are a new stage in human social evolution. While cities have existed for thousands of years, they were small and often returned to village life. In the 20th century, urbanization accelerated rapidly, with large populations concentrated in small areas. This growth brings complex social interactions, similar to insect communities. The essay highlights how urbanization is a recent phenomenon, with no society being mostly urban before 1850, and its pace continues to increase globally. Davis, Mike. 2004. Planet of Slums. New Left Review 26 (March-April): 5-34. Planet Of Slums  Mike Davis' Planet of Slums talks about how quickly urban populations are growing, with cities taking in most of the world's population increase since 1950. He predicts that by 2050, all population growth will happen in cities. There’s a rise in megacities (with over 8 million people) and hypercities (with over 20 million), especially in Asia, while smaller cities are also growing fast but often lack proper infrastructure. Urban poverty is a big problem, with many people living in slums without basic services. Davis points out that in the 1980s, income inequality and urban poverty increased, especially affecting women who had to take low-paying informal jobs. By 2001, nearly 1 billion people lived in slums, many of whom are young. United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-HABITAT). 2015. “Key Findings and Messages” Pp. 659-665 in The City Reader. Key Findings And Messages By The UN The United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-HABITAT) says that urbanization is changing a lot because of new technologies, social connections, global economies, and governance issues. Even with these changes, problems like poverty, social inequality, and slums are still very serious. Economic inequality has always existed in cities, with big gaps between rich and poor areas. Urban slums, which have extreme poverty and bad living conditions, affect almost one-third of people living in cities worldwide. Historically, slums have been a challenge for policymakers; even though there were improvements in housing for workers in the 19th century, slums continued to exist, including segregated Black neighborhoods in America, which were mostly poor. Sassen, Saskia. 2015. “The Impact of New Technologies and Globalization on Cities.” Pp. 651-658 in The City Reader. Impact Of New Technologies In The Global City, Saskia Sassen explains how globalization and new technology are changing how cities work, especially big cities like New York, London, and Tokyo. These cities have advanced communication systems that allow fast global information sharing, going against the idea that technology would make cities less important. Instead, these global cities have grown richer and more powerful, while smaller cities have struggled. Globalization has concentrated economic power in these cities but also spread some activities across worldwide networks. Global finance and specialized services make these cities key players in shaping the world economy, and new types of city centers are forming beyond the traditional downtown areas. Brenner, Neil and Roger Keil. 2015. “From Global Cities to Globalized Urbanization.” Pp. 666-676. The City Reader. Global Cities → Globalized Urbanization Urbanization is growing quickly around the world, happening unevenly in different places. This growth has created a global network of crowded cities and infrastructure. Despite earlier predictions that technology would reduce the need for cities, they have become even more important in the global economy. Since World War II and the Cold War, cities have changed with capitalism and are now more connected to global systems than to their own countries. To understand global cities, like those Saskia Sassen discusses, we need to look at how they connect with other cities and deal with governance and social issues. Burgess, Ernest W. 2015. “The Growth of the City.” Pp. 178-186 in The City Reader. Growth of Cities Ernest W. Burgess, in "The Growth of the City," discusses how the growth of large cities is a key part of modern society, especially in the U.S. Although the U.S. became urbanized later than Europe, the shift from rural to urban life followed a clear pattern. Cities in the U.S. are known for things like skyscrapers, subways, and social problems such as crime and divorce, which are more serious in big cities. Studies show that cities have more women, young people, middle-aged individuals, immigrants, and different kinds of jobs, which changes how society is organized. These shifts reflect the way cities grow and how they affect social life. Dear, Michael. 2015 “The Los Angeles School of Urbanism: An Intellectual History.” Pp. 187-192 in The City Reader. School Of Urbanism Michael Dear's "The Los Angeles School of Urbanism" discusses the Chicago School's ideas from the 1925 text The City, which influenced urban studies. The Chicago School viewed cities as organized, unified systems with a central core that influenced surrounding areas. It focused on how individual decisions, like where people live and work, shape urban problems like crime and poverty. E.W. Burgess’s Zonal or Concentric Ring Theory explains how cities grow in rings, with development spreading out from the center. It uses ideas like "invasion" and "succession" to describe how different groups move outward as they integrate into urban life. Importance In The Reading 1. Davis, Kingsley: This reading shows how cities are growing quickly and how that affects society and resources, which is important for future planning. 2. Mike Davis: This reading highlights the rise of slums and poverty in cities, raising awareness of inequality and poor living conditions. 3. UN-HABITAT: This reading discusses how urban areas are changing due to globalization and technology while still facing problems like poverty and slums. 4. Saskia Sassen: This reading explains how globalization and technology are changing major cities and concentrating economic power, which affects their roles in the world. 5. Childe, V. Gordon: This reading helps us understand how cities developed over time as societies evolved, showing the historical context of urbanization. 6. Burgess, Ernest W.: This reading highlights the growth of cities and their unique social problems, helping us grasp how urban environments shape people's lives. 7. Dear, Michael: This reading traces the ideas of the Chicago School about city growth and social structures, which is important for understanding urban studies' intellectual history.