City & Decay

Space and Power: Politics, War, and Architecture by Paul Hirst

Chapter 2

“The largest cities in the world, the true megafauna of modern urbanism, are anti-cities – if we consider the city as above all an effective political institution. Sao Paulo, Cairo and Lagos are in one sense the future of modern urbanism: sprawling chaotic cities full of shanty dwellers. Their very growth, driven by uncontrolled rural migration, renders them ungovernable. They represent a Third World version of exurbanism: they are also decentred and post-public. When we consider the future of the city, we have to bear in mind that most urban dwellers on the planet will no live in stable civic environments. Architects and planners are prone to taking particular cities, such as Las Angeles or Las Vegas, as models of the future of urbanism. Perhaps we should see Cairo as more typical of the future, in the sense that such cities will be the largest and fastest growing on the planet.” P.25

city |ˈsitē|

“Cities are not just large towns. The city can only be fully understood as a political institution. It is defined by its role in governance. As an institution it has a substantial degree of political autonomy and a salient role in political and social life.” P.9

“The city is identifies with freedom. As Aristotle says, the citizens govern and are governed in turn.” P.9

“Cities have always had hinterlands. The concept of the ‘city’ has never been exclusively urban, but involved a specific relation between town and country.” P.11

• a large town

• a political institution married with the state

decay |diˈkā|

verb

• (of organic matter) rot or decompose through the action of bacteria and fungi

• (of a building or area) fall into disrepair; deteriorate

• decline in quality, power, or vigor

• Physics (of a radioactive substance, particle, etc.) undergo change to a different form by emitting radiation

• technical (of a physical quantity) undergo a gradual decrease