New Introductory Courses in History (200-0-24)

Topic

Global Cities

Instructors

Peter Carroll
847/491-2753
Harris Hall - Room 216

Meeting Info

University Hall 101: Mon, Wed 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

Global Cities

Politicians, business elites, architects, and common people have hailed cities as engines of modernist progress since the mid-19th century. This course focuses on cities of the Global South to demonstrate how key modernist ideas, many of which had foreign origins, were appropriated under colonial, newly independent states, and contemporary national regimes. At the same time, the class will show that modern urbanist practices and ideas from the Global South have, in turn, influenced city planning in the Global North. This N-S exchange prompts us to consider what constitutes a "Global City", whether conceptually, historically, or in the present and future
The class begins by considering the reconstruction of Paris by Baron Haussmann as a case study in how urban modernization served the forces of capital, nationalism, political leaders, and the common people. We then consider how these ideas and processes were appropriated and applied to varied effect; we proceed chronologically and thematically to consider how cities such as Jakarta, Sao Paolo, Magnitogorsk, Fordlandia, and Shenzhen have represented attempts to promote urban life as models of economic development, societal enlightenment, and national advancement. Key themes include cities as conduits and creations of flows of people, capital, and natural resources; poverty and the inequities of urban development and politics; attempts to promote urbanist planning to create cities as symbolic, political, and economic sites that represent both the national past and aspirations for the nation's future. We conclude by considering how the challenges of climate change and the desire to overcome both past history and the limitations of existing urban environments are inspiring attempts to the build cities ex nihilo, such as Nusantara, slated to replace Jakarta as the capital of Indonesia.
The class will draw on classic social science and urbanist writings to consider how metropolitan life might reshape consciousness, transform society, and promote national and civilizational progress. We will consider how theoretical approaches to "urban space," "the problem of the city," and city planning can complement and transform our thinking of "urban history".

Learning Objectives

1. This course will enable students to consider comparative arguments about modernity and the role of cities as sites for the creation of new modes of distinctly urban and greater national economic, political, social, and cultural life. 2. The course provides opportunities for students to improve their capacity to discuss and analyze key events and course themes in speech and writing. What techniques can make writing more rhetorically powerful? What constitutes a good thesis/argument/point, and how might it be improved? 3. Students will practice working with historical evidence, primary and secondary, to craft arguments, while also considering the evaluation and deployment of sources. 4. Students will consider the global flow and appropriation of ideas, many of foreign origin, as part of a shared transnational and sited local colloquy on ideas of urban life and modern progress. The class will provide a comparative, global perspective on attempts by states and elites in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia to plan and marshal urban communities to transform society. We will pay particular attention to the workings and contestation of power as urban denizens have variously adopted and transformed urban visions, which rarely turn out as foreseen by elite politicians, planners, and intellectuals. 5. Students will consider spatial and urbanist analytical thinking and consider how attention to "urban space," "the problem of the city," and city planning can complement and transform our thinking of "urban history".

Evaluation Method

Essay, final exam, discussion board, class participation

Class Notes

History Major Concentration(s): Global, Americas, European, Asia/Middle East
History Minor Concentration(s): Europe, Latin America

Class Attributes

Historical Studies Foundational Discipline
Historical Studies Distro Area

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Registration is restricted to History Majors and Minors only until the end of pre-registration, after which time enrollment will be open to everyone who has taken the prerequisites (if any)

Associated Classes

DIS - Harris Hall L06: Fri 1:00PM - 1:50PM

DIS - Kresge Centennial Hall 2-335: Fri 2:00PM - 2:50PM

DIS - Harris Hall L04: Fri 4:00PM - 4:50PM