City/Urbanism Flashcards
(30 cards)
What are the two main ways of defining ‘urban’?
As a physical entity (population size, economic base, administrative criteria) and as a qualitative phenomenon (meanings, lifestyles, and social experiences in cities).
How did Louis Wirth define the city in 1938?
As a ‘relatively large, dense, and permanent settlement of socially heterogeneous individuals.’
What historical factors contributed to the rise of modern urbanization?
The Industrial Revolution, rapid population growth, and the transformation of cities like London and Manchester.
How did Friedrich Engels describe Manchester in 1844?
As ‘the first manufacturing city of the world’ but also one of ‘filth and ruin.’
What was Ferdinand Tönnies’ distinction between rural and urban life?
Rural life = Gemeinschaft (community), urban life = Gesellschaft (association/society).
What is Georg Simmel’s ‘blasé attitude’?
A psychological coping mechanism where urban dwellers become indifferent to the overwhelming stimuli of city life.
What is the core idea of the Chicago School’s approach to cities?
Cities are like organisms composed of different ecological zones, shaped by competition and human behaviour.
What are the three key urban models from the Chicago School and its legacy?
Burgess’ Concentric Zone Model (1925), Hoyt’s Sector Model (1939), and Harris & Ullman’s Multiple Nuclei Model (1945).
What did spatial science add to urban geography?
Quantitative methods, gravity models, rank-size rules, and theories based on economic rationality and utility maximization.
Why was spatial science criticized?
It focused on identifying patterns but ignored underlying causes of inequality, limiting its usefulness for social change.
How did Marxist geographers reinterpret the city?
As a space shaped by capitalist accumulation, with issues like redevelopment, gentrification, and inequality central to its evolution.
What is the ‘spatial fix’ in Marxist urban theory?
A way to avoid capitalist crisis by temporarily investing capital in the built environment, as discussed by David Harvey.
What did Castells argue in The Urban Question (1977)?
That the city is a site of both production and social reproduction through collective consumption (e.g. housing, services).
What did David Harvey emphasize in The Limits to Capital (1982)?
That the built environment is a key site for capital transformation—between ‘liquid’ (money) and ‘fixed’ (infrastructure) forms.
What defines postmodern urbanism according to the LA School?
Fragmented, centreless cities shaped by consumer culture, identity politics, and new industries like entertainment and tech.
What are ‘edge cities’?
New suburban developments outside traditional city centres, often associated with post-industrial and knowledge-based economies.
How did Edward Soja describe LA’s urban landscape?
As a patchwork of redeveloped zones, cultural enclaves, homelessness, and fortified corporate districts—reflecting chaos and complexity.
What does ‘carceral architecture’ refer to in postmodern cities?
Defensive, segregated urban design that controls access and reinforces social divisions.
What are global cities, according to Saskia Sassen?
Cities like New York, London, and Tokyo that function as command centres of the global economy.
What does the GaWC (Globalization and World Cities) network study?
Inter-city relations and the connectivity of cities based on business services like finance, law, and marketing.
What is the NYLON connection?
The highly integrated business and cultural link between New York and London.
How has neoliberalism reshaped cities since the 1980s?
By promoting deregulation, privatization, and central city redevelopment while dismantling welfare provisions like public housing.
What is urban financialization?
The increasing role of financial markets in shaping housing and city development, often leading to gentrification and displacement.
What did Desiree Fields highlight about financialization?
Its role in urban struggles, especially the loss of affordable housing and displacement of lower-income residents.
