Exploration of Social Ties, Neighboring and Community in City Dissertation

Introduction

At the beginning of the 21 century, urban lifestyle is influenced greatly by such processes as cultural diversity and social differences which erode a sense of community and unity. Many critics admit a death of traditional landscape and emergence of suburbanized settings. Landscape designers contribute to beautiful spaces, each planned entirely on its own merit. They also designed temporary structures in the parks to serve as news and ice cream stands, cafés, etc. Buildings in parks are features that easily become out of date and therefore are regularly replaced; in order to pre-empt this they were light temporary structures, and the temporary nature is emphasized by the materials and by the fact that they were demountable. A similar approach was adhered to in the design of lighting in parks and gardens. In many places, a sense community disappears because of new structure and simplification of landscapes. Consumerism and mass culture affect all elements of landscape architecture. The aim of the literature review is to evaluate current literature on the topic of social ties, neighboring and community in city, and give a detailed analysis of each source.

Literature Review

In the book Economic Revitalization (2002) Fitzgerald & Leigh explain that much of contemporary architecture appears brittle in its ideas of ‘accommodation’ and use of materials. For instance, garden furniture was a standard inclusion in garden design in the early twentieth century, with both architects and landscape architects supplying models for wooden chairs and benches. It is determined by value judgments, removed from the physical qualities of landscape and the material’s inherent qualities and workmanship. Modern suburbs are in crisis trying to combine ideas of sustainability and technological innovations involving automobiles and highways, new environmentally friendly materials and mass culture. Modern community needs to search for a wider basis for thinking about making architecture.

In Heart for the Community (2009), Fuder & Castellanos single out trends and policies used by modern architectures and city planners. In city planning, a crucial role is played by social equity and sustainability, trade off and local economic developments. The authors underline that social ties are stronger among rural dwellers and in ghettos but weaker in “white” regions. This book is written in a scientific style for city planners and architectures interesting in modern trends and changes. This, it can be interested fro a general reader and social science student. The author underlines hat using our intuition, people can take experience of building and begin to make judgments about the overtness of the architectural enclosure. A sense of community is influenced by environmental sustainability issues involving parks and green areas.

Frug (2001) in City Making: Building Communities without Building Walls states that the sense of community is explained through the concepts of ageing and weathering, through the aspects of time in relation to the cycles of erosion and deposition, African-Americans cultural identity and local approaches primarily directed against environmental degradation. The purpose of this study is to compare and contrast post-colonial theory of landscape with modern attitudes of African-American towards nature and suburbs. These processes become strategic tools for determining the spatial arrangement of enclosure and the displacement of light. The genre of this study is scientific directed to architects and landscape professionals interested in history and modern trends in landscapes science.

Such authors as Gross (2003), Gerhardt (2002) and Zeldin (2002) highlight the main factors of social change and community ties which influence a sense of community: division of labor and new gender roles, lifestyle changes and new dietary patterns of suburb dwellers. The suburbia community now measures itself against the wider community. A sense of community is affected by consumerism and mass culture, lack of knowledge about environmental degradation and community life. A sense of community is shaped by ”unnatural, unrealistic, unhealthy” behavior patterns. This article is oriented to wide audience interested in community affairs and changes. Also, it can be useful for social workers and sociologists.

Sies (2003) states that consumerism and technological innovations have changed cultural traditions of suburbs and have a negative impact on dwellers and their sense of community. Together, such components and standard house plans challenge the community to find a new vocabulary for living in such a place. A special attention is given to parks and commentaries as a reflection of a sense of community. Also, the authors evaluate and analyze impact of consumerism and mass culture on Puerto-Rican and Asian –American areas. This study persuades readers to preserve natural beauty and uniqueness of suburbs and understand their sense of belonging and unity. This book is written in journalistic genre. The main audience is sociologists and architectures, and those people who are interested in landscape changes and community studies.

Similar to other researchers, Orr (2007), in Transforming the City, highlights that recent changes in landscape geography have a positive impact on a modern citizen and his sense of community. The author states that a sense of community is created by proliferation of social and cultural ideas into architecture. In this study, a special attention is given to car culture and consumerism. This is a historical work based on memories and historical analysis. The main audiences are those people who study social sciences and landscape architecture. A sense of community is created by parks and cafés, etc. the main problem is that buildings in parks are features that easily become out of date and therefore are regularly replaced; in order to pre-empt this they are light temporary structures, and the temporary nature is emphasized by the materials and by the fact that they were demountable. Modern suburbs are in crisis trying to combine ideas of sustainability and technological innovations involving automobiles and highways, new environmentally friendly materials and mass culture.

James & Lahti (2004) portray emergence of new landscape designs and patterns atypical for traditional American cities. The main problems are erosion of city of automobiles, slumming, self destruction of diversity and border vacuums. A sense of community is created by such factors as spaces, weathering light and water. The main causes of modern changes are consumer culture and a strong sense of Self which ruin traditional sense of community and unity. This book is scientific in nature based on literature analysis and review. The main audience is students and architectures working in suburbs. The author underlines that suburbia lifestyle is influenced greatly by such processes as cultural diversity and social differences which erode a sense of community and unity. The author admits a death of traditional landscape and emergence of suburbanized settings will have a negative impact on community lifestyle Consumerism and mass culture affects all elements of landscape architecture.

Jacobs (1992), Howard Kunstler (1994) and Hemenway (2004) find that deliberately understated, suburbs are nonetheless carefully structured, controlling the daily movement of people from one part of town to another. In order to improve a sense of community, local provision should be made for a variety of activities and sports ensuring the engagement of both young and old in city life and local planning. The author underlines “The most pernicious cultural representations of urban subcultures and built environments concern “underclass” residents of “slums” or inner city “ghettos” in the United States”. The article belongs to a scientific style unveiling and analyzing the main trends in landscape architecture. The main target audience of this research is students and sociologists.

Havden et al (2000) analyses importance of community and a sense of belonging for teens. A sense of community is eroded by automobiles and consumer culture, lack of planning initiatives and sustainability policies. New social values and culture can preserve a sense of community and improve perception of landscape and architecture by modern dwellers. Modern adolescents do not value natural beauty influenced by a strong sense of consumerism and false ideals of wealth. The main strategies to improve a sense of community are better neighborhood development and preservation of the countryside.

The essay, City and rural life, helps researchers to explain social processes and interaction patterns in society and between individuals. While these qualities make the law-abiding man more social and desirable, they make the social man situated in certain community. The area of social interaction is well measured off on sociological maps. In reality there are invisible transitions, sections where no arrests are made. Only when the massive concentration begins and social appearances are reduced, people focus on interaction and interpersonal relations which affect their life and environment. Impressively squeezed into a narrow space, exchanging stimulating attraction for camouflage, these components of the theory are focuses. In reality, it is difficult to evaluate and assess the depth of penetration and intimacy. In some cases, it is really difficult to separate self-disclosure and openness in relations. In this case, the theory is simplistic paying attention to communication aspects of human interaction but neglecting deep psychological and personal characteristics. In terms of ontology, it can be difficult to determine the level of determinism and free will aspects. Thus, this theory reflects free will relations based on theoretical ideas and concepts of psychology and cognitive structures. Social life presupposes interaction. The contact should therefore be not totally ephemeral or one-sided.

Conclusion

Literature review shows that different researchers share similar ideas concerning social ties and the role of gender in city. Social life and structure are subject to other forces which do not stand still. They are deeply affected by technological innovations, the machine age, Through the medium of nascent and dying units all these basic factors of human development and reversion bear on behavior. Theory meets this standard and allows researchers to determine values and driven forces of the communication and its consequences. In general, social groups require some continuity, intimacy, and emotional content. Such units, of course, by necessity live on compromises, confidential nonaggression pacts, and methods of cooperation. Still, people may have a bearing on both partners’ social behavior. The literature review will help me acknowledge values and unmask the ideology behind different messages.

References

Author unknown. 2007. City and rural life. Web.

Fitzgerald, J., Leigh, N. 2002. Economic Revitalization: Cases and Strategies for City and Suburb. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Frug, G.E. 2001. City Making: Building Communities without Building Walls. Princeton University Press.

Fuder J. & Castellanos N. A 2009. Heart for the Community: New Models for Urban and Suburban Ministry. Moody Publishers; 1 edition.

Gerhardt, Ch. 2002. The Greening of African-American Landscapes: Where Ecocriticism Meets Post-Colonial Theory. The Mississippi Quarterly, 55 (1); 515.

Gross, R. M. 2003. Some Reflections about Community and Survival. Buddhist- Christian Studies, 23 (1): 3-5.

Havden, D., Alanen, A.R., Melnick, R.Z. 2000. Preserving Cultural Landscapes in America. The Johns Hopkins University Press.

Hemenway, Toby. 2004a. Urban vs. Rural Sustainability. Web.

Hemenway, Toby2004b. Designing Beyond Disaster. Permaculture Activist #54. Web.

Howard Kunstler, J. 1994. The Geography of Nowhere: The Rise and Decline of America’s Man-Made Landscape. Free Press.

Jacobs, J. 1992. The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Vintage.

James, S., Lahti, T. 2004, The Natural Step for Communities: How Cities and Towns can Change to Sustainable Practices. New Society Publishers.

Orr, M. 2007. Transforming the City: Community Organizing the Challenge of Political Change (Studies in Government and Public Policy). University Press of Kansas.

Sies, M. C. 2003. North American Urban History: The Everyday Politics and Spatial Logics of Metropolitan Life. Urban History Review, 32 (2): 28-30.

Zeldin, S. 2002. Sense of Community and Positive Adult Beliefs toward Adolescents and Youth Policy in Urban Neighborhoods and Small Cities. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 31 (1); 331.