City Life

Undoubtedly, the city created a new culture. Walkowitz’s “Urban Spectatorship” reminds me of Engels’ “The Great Towns.” Both accredit the establishment of cities to the evolution of new cultures; however, Walkowitz’s anecdote of Henry James at the beginning of the text introduces the city in the eyes of a scholar. James refers to the London as a “dreadfully delightful city.” This captures the beauty of the city under the lens of a scholar. This is striking because the beauty of the city is not visible to the naked eye. It takes an educated, cultured eye to appreciate its beauty. Although Engels describes London, Manchester, and other English cities as filthy and decadent, he accredits the development in the countryside and agriculture to the knowledge cultivated in cities. 

            Walkowitz examines the linear time that exists in cities through the monuments, and landmarks that promote nationalism and cultural identity in the city. However, I strongly believe that appreciating these features in a city and evolving national identity is mostly bourgeoisie experience. As Engels describes, most city-dwellers work from sunrise to sunset, so they either cross these symbols of nationalism under the veil of darkness or fatigue after a hard day’s work. The city is described as a labyrinth, not only because of its tall buildings, and twisting streets, but also due to the propensity in losing one’s identity amidst the turmoil of city life. The segregated or geographic separations that divide the rich from the poor are the compass of the city. The neighborhood in which one resides determines one’s social class. These features are strongly cemented in large cities and create many anxieties that were nonexistent before the creation of cities.

Walkowitz also describes the “consumer culture” developed in cities. The consumer culture reminds me of the creation of Crystal Palace in the early 1850s. The Crystal Palace was one of the first malls in England strictly for the bourgeoisie.  This ignited the creation, in my opinion, of the “defamiliarized world of the consumer culture.” This “consumer culture” is part of Engels’ description of the United Kingdom’s cities. This helps cement the poor as a “race apart.” The material culture is the root of the social forces that create the anxieties found in many city-dwellers.

The prostitute is a unique feature to urban life. The prostitute is unique to the “poor side” of town. It is the geography of the city that distances the rich from the poor. This is used to conceal male desire of the bourgeoisie husbands from their wives. The city harbors the vices that are taboo in the countryside. This makes the city decadent, but also the perfect setting to ignite social progress. Henry James’ appreciation of the city is restricted to the eyes of the educated. Only the cultured and educated can view the decadence of the city as a breeding ground for social progress. The city may be decadent, but the decadence hides fruitful characteristics that may only be used by those who possess the training to transform the decadence into social progress.