Role of Architecture in the success of the city

 As David Harvey’s statement in the article “The Right to the City”, I can tell “architecture” is mentioned only as a general instrument for absorbing the surplus produced by capitalism.The meaningful portion of architecture is consuming materials, providing job opportunities, etc. I would say there is an invisible discipline governing urbanization. It is like a trigger which causes a series of actions and reactions, and it is more related to politics. Within this field of discussion, when it comes to the topic of architecture, design would never be discussed. From my understanding, people who have an architecture background and wish to be involved in politics, should treat architecture from a broader viewpoint, instead of zooming into architectural design.

On the other hand, part of the success of a city depends on urban design and architectural design. Jane Jacobs’s discussion of sidewalks’ safety outlines the principles, such as public space/enterprises along sidewalks, sufficient number of storekeepers, etc. Besides, Jane also concludes that the joint effect of unity of many components are essential to achieve the goal of city order, through mentioning her famous description of street ballet. These principles can be integrated into zoning ordinance for guiding the physical design of architecture. Criterias must be fulfilled in order to contribute to the success of city,