HSTS 354 - Study Guide 1: Defining the City and the Urban/Rural Divide

Overview

• The concept of cities is complex and difficult to define.
• Definitions can be
  • Fixed: e.g., the Canadian government’s definition of urban.
  • Flexible: Scalable and variable, accommodating change over time and place.

Key Elements Used in Defining the City

• Cities can be analyzed through several key elements:
  • Population:
  • Density and concentration are emphasized over an absolute number.
  • Economics:
  • Cities have mixed economic functions and varied means of making a living.
  • Agglomeration results in greater economic efficiency, which increases with scale.
  • Cities generate positives (growth, innovation) and negatives (pollution, crowding).
  • Housing functions as an economic resource, separating home, work, and social functions, potentially lowering costs for employers.
  • Society:
  • Urban society is defined by complexity, heterogeneity, and inequality.
  • Urbanism as a way of life encompasses anonymity, freedom, diversity, change, community, and segregation.
  • Freedom can lead to both positive (more artists and thinkers) and negative (increased crime and social decay) outcomes.
  • Cities facilitate primary and secondary ties and provide a broader range of life choices compared to rural settings.
  • Government:
  • Cities serve as administrative centers for the state, coordinating decisions and storing expertise.
  • Government involves both ruling beyond city limits and addressing unique urban problems (congestion, garbage disposal) while worsening issues like crime and poverty.
  • Public Space:
  • Public spaces are characterized by human monuments as opposed to natural one, fostering shared experiences within the built environment.
  • Networks:
  • Urban networks involve cultural influence and urban imperialism (historically illustrated by trade routes such as the Silk Road and the influence of Venice).

Flexible Definition (Nightingale)

• Nightingale defines urban as a "space that allow[s] us to bend time."
• The urban experience is characterized by continuity, change, and contingency, with cities serving as places where people gather to undertake significant collective activities, driven by energized crowds.

The Rural Counterpoint

• Human history has predominantly been rural, defined by the absence of urban characteristics.
• Rural activities include farming, fishing, hunting, and leisure.
• Rural society is characterized by strong personal ties, leading to a social environment distinct from urban life, which often fosters weaker ties.
• An important question remains regarding whether the term "urban" is solely a geographic setting or intertwined with concepts like capitalism or statism.

Lecture 1-2: The Origins of Cities and the Neolithic Transition

Early Settlements

• The earliest known permanent human settlements include Jericho and Çatalhöyük, dating back approximately 13,000 to 9,000 years ago, with another significant site Abu Hureya dating back 12,000–10,000 years ago.
• These settlements housed between 2,000 and 8,000 residents and often emerged in wetlands, which supported a rich variety of foraging opportunities across seasons (e.g., fish, fowl, game).

Foraging vs. Farming

• Foraging (existed for at least 35,000 years):
  • Benefits: Dispersion reduces disease, promoting dietary diversity and mobility in response to weather changes.
  • Dangers: Overcrowding can lead to disease, monotony in labor causes nutrient-poor diets, and there are climate/harvest risks.
  • Characterized by small groups (20–100 people) with semi-permanent residences.
  • Archaeological records suggest that early farmers were generally smaller, sicker, had more injuries, and died younger than their foraging counterparts.

Lecture 3: The Urban Revolution and Early City-States (Mesopotamia)

V. Gordon Childe’s “Urban Revolution” (4000 BCE–2500 BCE)

• The “Urban Revolution” describes how cities like Uruk represented a shift in human organization. Key markers of this era include:
  • Division of labor and specialization increased efficiency.
  • Surplus production allowed for storage (taxes).
  • Monumental architecture became symbolic of this surplus.
  • Establishment of a ruling class made up of priests and nobility.
  • Invention of writing.
  • Development of long-distance trade networks.
  • Political identity began to be based on residence within urban centers.

Pre-Uruk Mesopotamia (6000 BCE–3500 BCE)

• The Halaf Culture thrived in regions with more rainfall, with evidence of communal buildings and little differentiation evident in burials or residences, indicating sociocultural egalitarianism.
• The Ubaid Culture (located in the Tigris and Euphrates floodplain) required social organization for irrigation and featured mass storage and large public halls, though lacked evidence of monumental architecture, differentiated grave goods, or empires.

Uruk and Sumeria (3500–2900 BCE)

• Uruk, an enhanced Ubaid city, had a population of approximately 50,000–80,000 and covered 600 hectares.
• Way of Life: Centered on grain and livestock supported by surplus taxation and slavery (the product of warfare).
• State Demands: Labor-intensive processes needed for planting, logging, manufacturing, and irrigation management.
• Importance of Grains: Crucial for taxation, long-term storage, and required management of cultivable land.
  • Grains were preferable due to their single harvest season and high measure reliability.
• The Epic of Gilgamesh (from Uruk, around 2700 BCE) describes significant architecture and societal challenges, including tyranny and forced labor, while illustrating the distinction made between the civilized (e.g., Enkidu's assimilation into city life) and the wild (e.g., the killing of the forest guardian Humbaba).
• This period marked a dynamic “multispecies re-settlement camp” that domesticated not just crops and animals but human behaviors, leading to societal malaises (e.g., disease, economic burdens).

The Fragility of Early States

• Early states represented diminutive systems compared to the nomadic groups.
• Civilizations experienced dark periods marked by warfare, plagues, climate challenges, and internal destruction, with notable collapses in Sumer (2000–1600 BCE) and Greece (1100–700 BCE).
• Critical considerations include whether state authority arose through coercion or voluntary compliance and whether it was a source of oppression or enlightenment.

Lecture 4: Cities and Ancient Empires

The Concept of Empire

• An empire signifies a political formation where power is centralized through a ruler, administrative body, and enforcers.
• The imperial economy is sustained through agriculture (taxation/storage), commerce, and militaristic endeavors (colonial expansion).
• Power is represented through monuments, maps, and defensive walls, establishing core regions (capital) while projecting influence into peripheral areas.

The City/Empire Relationship

• Why Agricultural Cities Created Empires: This impetus is driven by a relentless demand for surplus, which mandates taxes and coercive tactics.
• Why Empires Required Cities: Cities are vital for administrative purposes (bureaucracy headquarters, food storage, knowledge accumulation) and facilitate the exertion of authority (nodes of networks involving trade, migration, military operations).

Case Study: Ancient Greece (800s–200s BCE)

• Ancient Greek city-states depended heavily on long-distance trade, exporting items such as wine, oil, and pottery while importing essential resources like grain and meat.
• The relationship between the city (e.g., Athens) and its hinterland (Attica) meant that the city could dominate surrounding areas.
• Public displays of power—e.g., large-scale animal sacrifice during festivals—were significant cultural practices, with Delphi noted for an annual slaughter of 1,700 cattle.
• Grazing land, a limited resource, often spurred conflicts, as illustrated by the First Sacred War (595–585 BCE) over contested grazing territories.

Lecture 5: Ancient South Asia and Alternative Urban Models

The Indus Civilization (Harappan, 2600–1500 BCE)

• The Indus Civilization comprised over 1,000 sites, with colossal cities (Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro) housing around 40,000 people.
• Common Features: Agriculture (wheat and barley), irrigation systems, trade connections (Persian Gulf and Mesopotamia), monumental structures, and fortified walls were notable.
• Distinct Features: Harappan urban centers were marked by minimal monumental (e.g., temples) architecture; evidence of dynasties or centralized leadership was sparse.
• Evidence of a heterarchal structure, where authority derived from multiple overlapping orders, instead of a strict hierarchy.

The Ganges Second Urbanization (600–500 BCE)

• This urbanization followed the pastoral Vedic lifestyle established around 1500 BCE.
• Emergence of Mahajanapadas: By around 600 BCE, 16 larger states arose based on agricultural production and tax systems, exhibiting more substantial fortifications and societal stratifications between urban and rural areas.

Buddhism and the Urban Context

• Siddhattha Gotama (Buddha, 490–410 BCE) resided in urban areas like Savatthi, where he preached and taught.
• City as Danger: Urban existence was viewed as troublesome due to factors like street congestion and unpredictable hazards (e.g., runaway animals), which could disturb one’s mindfulness practice.
• City as Metaphor:
  • Enlightenment as a City: The path to awakening is compared to finding an ancient city, symbolizing a quest for spiritual discovery.
  • Dharma as a City: Buddhism constructs a "city of Dharma", where virtue forms the walls, knowledge is the gateway, and restraint functions as the gatekeeper.
  • Body as a City: The mind is likened to a fortified city against distractions.

The Mauryan Empire

• The Mauryan Empire (342–187 BCE) unified northern India, with its capital Pataliputra, hosting a population exceeding 270,000.
• Post-Mauryan decline saw significant urban diminishment, along with the incursion of Brahminist influences into Buddhism.

Specifics

Foraging Age

• Catalhoyuk (Eastern Anatolia):

  • Dated 13,000 to 9,000 years ago, considered one of the earliest known cities with a population of approximately 5,000 to 7,000.
  • Keypoints:
  • Egalitarian Society: There is evidence suggesting equal treatment among inhabitants.
  • Lack of typical urban structure: absent roads, temples, or fortifications indicates a non-hierarchical society.
  • Reliance on foraging over agriculture, with backup food sources; extensive gathering activities included berries, nuts, river fishing, animal gathering, and hunting.
  • Suggests alternatives to traditional definitions of urban environments, expanding the imagination of city characteristics.

• Jericho (Jordan):

  • Also dated around 13,000 to 9,000 years ago, another early permanent settlement with a population between 2,000 and 8,000.
  • Keypoints:
  • Built in marshlands, benefiting from naturally abundant food sources.
  • Evidence of a more complex society, albeit less grand than later civilizations.

Agricultural Age: Mesopotamia Era (6000–3500 BCE)

• Established small shattered city centers in the Middle East.

  • Keypoints:
  • Development of urban societies with complex interactions.
  • Progress was gradual, over millennia, resulting in numerous small societal centers.
  • Varied cultural zones with diverse architectural styles and pottery designs, signifying regional trade and communication.

• Halaf Culture (6000 BCE):

  • Acknowledged for egalitarian structures, with indicative communal architecture but limited personal residing.
  • A blend of foraging and farming with relocation practices indicative of limited sedentism.

• Uruk (Sumeria, 3500 BCE):

  • Regarded as a large Sumerian urban center with a population of 50,000 to 80,000 and a footprint of around 600 hectares.
  • Keypoints:
  • Predominantly grain economy managed through taxation and state control.
  • Characterized by extraordinary social hierarchies and significant labor through slavery.
  • The Epic of Gilgamesh outlines Uruk's societal fabric and architectural prowess while depicting the duality of civilization versus the wild.
  • Fragility of urban control exposes vulnerabilities tied to environmental and resource management issues.

• Ancient Athens (800s–200s BCE):

  • Prominent Greek city-state marked by intricate social structures including citizens, aristocrats, and slaves.
  • Economic reliance on long-distance trade, with agriculture constrained within city walls leading to territorial disputes.

• Delphi (Ancient Greece):

  • A sacred site pivotal for ritualistic practices and social prestige, with extensive animal sacrifices signifying societal power dynamics.

Mohenjo-Daro (Indus Civilization, 2600–1500 BCE)

• Another prominent city with a population approximating 40,000 and notable for advanced architecture without traditional temple structures or explicit political hierarchies.
• The city was laid out in a grid, with retaining walls elemental to flood protection, signifying organized urbanism in contrast to western models.

Siddhattha Gotama (Buddha, 490–410 BCE)

• His formative years in urbanizing states informed his teachings on suffering and detachment.
• Fundamental doctrines included concepts of cyclical time, karma, and the necessity for societal patrons to endorse philosophical establishments.
• Emphasized the metaphor of enlightened living paralleling urban design and defense against distractions.

The Mauryan Empire (342–187 BCE)

• Significant urban expansion, exemplified by Pataliputra.
• Buddhism thrived, becoming influential more in eastern Asia than its Indian roots after the decline of Mauryan authority.

Roman Empire and Han Dynasty

• The Roman and Han Empires emerged as powerful agricultural entities with structured urban networks facilitating administrative coherence over expansive territories.
• Both empires prioritized fortifications and urban design, influencing modern city planning through their sophisticated grid systems and zoning regulations.

Timgad (Roman North Africa)

• A city rooted in military origins, developed with incentives for veterans aimed at promoting agricultural advancements to consolidate Roman influence.

Rome (Ancient Rome)

• At its peak, Rome is estimated to have housed about 1 million residents under a societal structure reflecting significant stratification in wealth and power.
• Roman urban architecture served to fortify state power, with prominent temples and public structures reinforcing central authority, while social dynamics fostered dissent through taverns and public gatherings, creating spaces for critique and social interaction.