The Urban Revolution By V. Gordon Childe

Urban history, as a tool, has drastically changed our understanding of cities over the centuries. ‘Urban histories possessed an explanatory power far above the intricate workings of one city; providing larger narratives centered on industrialization or other macro-economic developments’.

There are many reasons why there was a rise in the cities in the ancient world. One of the reasons there was a rise in the cities was because of security. In document 2, page 33, it states "City life offered considerably more permanence and security than village life." Cities had more security because not only were they bigger than villages, but city life was more civilized. In the quote that document

In Chapter 2 of the text “Slavery, Emancipation, and Class formation in colonial and Early National New York” explores the centrality of slave labor and race to the development of class relations in colonial and early national New York City. In the 1600’s slave labor was noted as the central point to New York’s colonial economy and to the survival of European culture. The North colonial economy relied more heavily on slavery for free laborer than Manhattan. As a result of the slave era African American males and females became to central force and the foundation of New Yorkers ‘slave economy. Between 1600 and 1738 the slave population

When it comes to the topic obesity, most of us readily agree that it is an extensive problem in America. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of the source of the cause. Tove Danovich, author of the book review, ‘Supersizing Urban America’: How U.S. Policies Encouraged Fast Food To Spend, writes about the perspective of Supersizing Urban America author, Chin Jou. Danovich is a graduate of NYU: Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, where she gained expertise in journalism and health. Danovich’s credentials allow her to compose the book review about Chin Jou’s book. Author, Chin Jou, is a professor at the University of Sydney, where she teaches American history (Danovich). Although Jou is an

The period from the late 19th century to the early 20th century is important in the urban development history of Canadian and American. Urbanization is a historical process that contains urban development. Urbanization is a process of population concentration as well as a process that advanced production modes substitute backward modes. At the same time, it is also the process to adapt to the mode of production and to innovate lifestyle. Hence, urbanization is a dynamic process that many aspects of economics, society and culture comprehensively transform caused by the revolution of social productive forces.

Chapter 3 of Mark Hutter “Experiencing cities” informs the reader about the industrial revolution including the rise of urban sociology. The beginning parts of the chapter discussed how if more crops are produced the larger a population could be supported by this. The same today is still true. Countrys like America and and places like europe thrive while places like africa who struggle to provide its citizens with basic food and water struggle to live. A section that really caught my eye provided details about the rise of europe during the industrial revolution. I’ve been to europe a few times and have always found it to be a peaceful place not much going on. I was truly shocked to read at the beginning of the section when Hutter said “There

Preindustrial cities are very different compared to industrial cities. Preindustrial cities were cities that only had a population of a few thousand people. These cities are said to have began in about 10,000 B.C. They had a very closed class system in which a person was put into

Urbanism was the spread of towns and cities, taking part in the revolution. London was the largest and had the largest population of over half a million. From 1700’s to the 1900’s the world population had grown from 679 million to 1.633 billion, many people living and working in the city. Cities would grow around coal fields, sea ports, and rail road crossings. New

We can say that there are some criteria which differ the first cities from any older ones. First of all, the first cities are more crowded than the old settlements and they need to have accommodated classes. In addition; every primary producer had to pay over surplus as tax or tithe to a king or a deity. Also, they made monumental public buildings and temples where workshops, magazines and granaries in. Moreover, priests, civil and military leaders absorbed the most of the surplus. On the other hand, the lower class were trying to guarantee peace and security and also relieved from intellectual tasks. This formed a ruling class. In addition; they invent the systems; science. While they are doing this, they also invent the writing system and this caused the invention of calendar and the predictive sciences. I guess, this process is like a “chain”; every step is connected to another. In addition; some specialists gave a new direction to “artistic expression” by the social surplus’s support. Also; other social surplus was used to pay for the raw materials which were not available in the area, thus the usage of the materials developed. When I look at all these criteria, I can say that the specialist’s importance and security on residence increased but the itinerancy’s importance and security on kinship

To follow the guise of English Philosopher Thomas Hobbes, the intention of a city could be understood as the preservation of life, and further “a more contented life thereby”. To follow his contemporary John Locke the role of the city could be understood in terms of the preservation of “life, liberty, and property”. Whilst these empirical notions arguably stood true during their inception in the 17th Centaury, also holding significance in the discussion of the contemporary city, the growth and support of the post industrial urban situation cannot be critically addressed in such a modest and simplistic manor. The complexity of the urban conglomeration has outstretched the simplistic and ideal definitions

In 1950, V. Gordon Childe had an article titled “The Urban Revolution” published in The Town Planning Review. In this article, Childe wrote about ten characteristics that he defined as central to the formation of a civilization. Later, these would later be separated into five primary and five secondary characteristics by Charles Redman of Arizona State University. These characteristics are considered by (Childe 1950:16) to have “exhaust(ed) the factors common to the oldest cities.” Simplified by (Price and Feinman 2013) they include, dense populations (cities), full-time specialized labor, organization of the state, social stratification, concentrations of surplus, monumental public works, long distance exchange or trade, writing systems,

Lefebvre’s believes that as a result of the shift from industrial society to urban society, the politics of resistance and freedom should no longer be placed in the industrial experience and it should be located within the urban experience. “The emergence of the global–urban makes possible, but does not guarantee, urbanism as a new kind of transformational politics.”

Following the Industrial Revolution, an increase in population and improved technology led to rapid urbanization. This urban growth in 19th century Western Europe was characterized by problems such as social division and appalling living conditions, which were later accompanied by opportunities like advancements in medical science, such as the increasing knowledge of airborne disease, and improved city planning. As Europe shifts from the Industrial Revolution to urbanization, we see how this later launches European countries towards the formation of modern cities.

Presiding over a city with 1.5 million residents, pollution, and a slowing economy is no easy task. But that’s the job of Geng Yanbo, the mayor at the helm of a massive project to reconstruct the walls of imperial China. Zhou Hao’s documentary The Chinese Mayor follows Geng’s busy life as a public official while simultaneously delving into the stories of residents impacted by Geng’s transformation of the city. The film doesn’t leave viewers with clear-cut answers, presenting both Geng’s personal life and the varying viewpoints of Datong citizens. My overall impression of Geng is that he is neither a “good” nor “bad” official; rather, he is a complicated figure motivated by a mixture of unclear personal motives and an idealistic passion for

Once people began living closer to and in cities, it began to create problems. These problems would create the idea of urban