When reading Retrofitting Suburbia, I feel I am only at the beginning stage to understand American suburbia. Maybe the reasons are obvious for Americans but not for me. For me, centralization and urbanization are the "natural tendency" of human inhabitation. I suspect there should be a series of social and cultural reasons contributing to the suburban tendency. Firstly, lands are privately owned, and so people can get larger portions of land at lower prices in suburban. Second, affluent middle-class white people want to have more spacious living conditions, though it is at the cost of higher commuting time and living expenses. Third, sensitive businessmen quickly grasped the above mindset and built large numbers of cheap houses attracting people to suburban areas. Fourth, some economic and technological developments, like silicon valley described by Margaret, moved people further to suburban areas. I also feel several questions remain: did governmental policy contribute to suburbanization? What is the difference between American suburbanization and Europeans romantic returning to nature in the face of urban conditions aggregated by industrialization? Hope to get feedback from the folks for these personal speculations ...
I don't have answers, but a speculation of my own. Automobile dependency and its prominence in American society should be taken into consideration as a significant contributor which separates American suburbanization from similar movements towards decentralization seen in Europe and elsewhere. From the mid 20th century onward I would say that owning a car has become intrinsically linked to the identity of what it means to be American. You can see this constantly in pop culture as it surfaces in ways which romanticize car ownership through concepts like the "road trip," going for a drive, and activities like "tail gating," and so on. It's an interesting discussion of which came first--the suburbs or the affinity towards car usage. However, being able to understand how highly regarded the car is by most of American society helps realize how entrenched this culture is in suburban culture, and how within this structure, car ownership enables individuals to feel a level of independence and freedom to roam at their discretion, which is distinctly American. Generally speaking, knowing that car travel is essentially a core value for many Americans because it enables a sense of independence, it begins to make more sense that so many urban spaces were designed around the car rather than the pedestrian. I would speculate that as suburbanization began in the U.S., the cultural significance of car ownership gained popularity until it became fully autonomous, at which point the option for car-based lifestyles became preferential for reasons which you have listed above, but also because of the ability to use the car itself. It was not something society needed, but rather something that was wanted.
ReplyDeleteWow, owning a cool car is so important for Americans. Thanks for the good point. I hope Americans won't discriminate bikers like me then. lol...
DeleteThis is a very detailed, authentic, and convincing explaination I appreciated it very much!
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