Sociology 206: Urban Sociology
Fall 2002. MWF 12:00-12:50PM
2 Newcomb Hall
Instructor: Kevin Fox Gotham
Office: 220 Newcomb Hall Room
Office Hours: 2:30-3:30, MWF.
Phone: 862-3004
Email: kgotham@tulane.edu
Course Description
Sociology 206 is an introductory course to the central problems, perspectives, and concepts in
urban sociology. We will examine how cities develop, how they are organized, how they change,
how they affect people, and what they might look like in the future. In general, our focus is on
U.S. cities and metropolitan areas. We will investigate the effects of industrialization,
suburbanization, immigration, racial population migration, globalization, federal programs and
revitalization drives, and a host of other large-scale factors. While this course is about "urban"
sociology, it is not about the central city alone. We take a comparative and global perspective to
understand the entire metropolitan region, considering both city and suburban life. Through
assigned readings and discussions, you will learn to think critically about cities, urban life, and
metropolitan development.
The first third of the course introduces a number of traditional and contemporary perspectives in
urban sociology. We will discuss the pioneering work of Europeans such as Karl Marx and
Friedrich Engels, Max Weber, and Georg Simmel. We will also focus on the classic
contributions of American urbanists such as Robert Park, Ernest Burgess, Louis Wirth, and
others who founded the Chicago School of Sociology, the center of urban sociology in the United
States through the 1930s. The work of these and other urban scholars provide the basis for our
study of the rise of the industrial city in the late nineteenth century and the beginnings of
suburbanization in the first few decades of the twentieth century. Next, we will consider
metropolitan changes in the second half of the twentieth century focusing on the powerful forces
of deindustrialization and globalization, push and pull factors in suburbanization, and the shift of
people and industry to the Sunbelt.
In the second part of the course we will explore the various theories of urban life, local and
metropolitan politics, and metropolitan inequalities and problems such as poverty, crime, racism,
and urban deterioration and obsolescence. We will examine the impact of immigration on U.S.
cities, the problems of racial residential segregation and school segregation, and fiscal austerity.
Jonathan Kozol's Savage Inequalities provides a close-up and intimate view of inner city life that
illustrates the extremes of wealth and poverty in U.S. school systems and their damaging effect
on poor children, especially those in central cities. Here we will explore the interlocking
dimensions of race and class and the role these "savage inequalities" play in shaping differential
access to quality education for city and suburban school children, reinforcing fiscal disparities
between cities and suburbs, and exacerbating urban disinvestment.
In the third part of the course we examine how urban revitalization initiatives, changing modes of
transportation, and urban planning efforts have both helped and hurt U.S. cities and metropolitan
areas over the last hundred years or so. In the last weeks of the course we turn our attention to
metropolitan planning and consider alternative forms of urban design and policy to understand
why urban programs fail, what ideologies govern metropolitan growth and uneven development,
and how we can improve metropolitan life.
Course Objectives:
By the end of this course you should be able to:
● Compare and contrast traditional and contemporary perspectives on urbanization and urban life.
● Identify the core theoretical assumptions of the Socio-Spatial Perspective and explain its utility for understanding cities and urban change.
● Identify the key actors, powerful groups, and social processes responsible for metropolitan development in the United States.
● Explain how urban revitalization initiatives, urban programs (e.g., transportation and housing), and urban planning efforts have both helped and hurt U.S. cities and metropolitan areas in the twentieth century.
● Criticize faulty explanations of urban and metropolitan problems and critically evaluate suggested planning and policy solutions.
Required Readings:
Books:
Gottdiener, Mark and Ray Hutchison. 2000. The New Urban Sociology. Second Edition.
McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
LeGates, Richard T., and Frederic Stout (Editors). The City Reader. Second Edition. Routledge.
Jonathan Kozol. 1991. Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools. Crown Publishers.
Papers:
Gotham, Kevin Fox. 2000. "Urban Space, Restrictive Covenants, and the Origin of Racial
Residential Segregation in a U.S. City, 1900-1950." International Journal of Urban and
Regional Research. 24(3): 616-33. September 2000.
"Beyond Invasion and Succession: School Segregation, Real Estate Blockbusting, and the
Political Economy of Neighborhood Racial Transition." City and Community. 1(1): 83-111.
Winter 2002.
"Urban Redevelopment, Past and Present," in Critical Perspectives on Urban Redevelopment.
Volume Six of Research in Urban Sociology. Kevin Fox Gotham, Guest Editor. Elsevier Press.
2001.
Course Requirements: Your grade for this course will be determined by your performance on
three examinations, a final research paper consisting of either an urban research project or a
service learning requirement, and your participation in a series of group discussions held during
the last two weeks of class.
Examinations (60 percent of final grade). Each of the three examinations will be worth 50
points and include a combination of fill-in-blank, short-answer questions, multiple choice type
questions, and essay questions. We will hold a third examination on December 17 (Tuesday) at
1:00. Each of these three examinations is worth 20 percent, or together, 60 percent of your final
grade.
Urban Research Project and Paper (30 percent of final grade). (1) Urban Case Study, or (2)
Service Learning. 30 percent of your final grade will be based on a 10 page research paper. There
are two options to complete this project and paper -- you choose which to pursue.
Option #1: Urban Case Study (30 percent of final grade). For those of you that choose this
first urban research project topic, you will research a particular city and write a final paper on its
history and current status. You may choose any city in the world provided that it has a population
of at least 250,000. You will organize your final paper in the following manner and deal with the
issues and questions under each general heading listed below. You must apply the sociological
concepts and theories learned in the class to your urban research. Data collection for the paper
should be based on assigned course readings and the following library and documentary
resources: scholarly journals, newspapers, magazines, congressional testimony, archival material,
planning department documents, government reports and analyses, census bureau data, books,
and other written documents. I encourage you to include a map of the city and any other figures
and tables if necessary. When writing your paper, assume that the audience is composed of
people who know nothing of the material you read, the concepts you use, and data you have
collected.
History.
When was the city established/incorporated? Who was responsible for its settlement and why was the city formed? What are the major historical landmarks or tourist attractions in the city? Tell us about any interesting or peculiar circumstances surrounding the origin and development of the city.
Demographics and Population Characteristics.
What is the current population of the city? Has the population increased or decreased any over the last fifty years or so? If so, why? What is the racial and ethnic composition of the city population? Has this increased or decreased much and why? Tell us about the income and age distribution of the current population.
Economic Base and Land-Use.
Is the urban economy dominated by one or two major industries or is it a diversified economy? Has the economic base changed much in the last fifty years? What is the rate of unemployment? Is the housing availability and cost considered high or low? Are there any major land-uses that dominate the city? Tell us about the land use distribution (e.g., residential, commercial, and industrial land-uses).
Infrastructure and Government.
Tell us about the transportation and communication systems, the quality of education and health care for city residents, and the form of city government.
Social Problems.
What are the major social problems the city faces? What is the crime rate? What is the percentage of the population living below the federal poverty line?
Prospects for the Future.
What are the projections for future economic growth? What are the major economic revitalization projects being planned or implemented? What barriers does the city face in promoting growth? What problems does the city face that may impede future growth and development?
References.
You must include a References section that contains at least 13 references. You may only include three internet references. Do not rely too much on information from the world-wide web. The bulk of your research sources should come from material available from authoritative sources, especially libraries, government agencies, and other official (i.e., government) outlets.
Methodological Appendix
Provide a thorough description of how you gathered your information. You should identify the
types and sources of data collected. You should include data in tables, graphs, and/or figures if
you have large amounts of quantitative data. Put each table, graph, or figure on a separate page
with a descriptive title over it. In the text of the research paper, refer to the table or figure by
number and then explain it.
Your grade will be based on how complete your paper is (i.e., does it address all the above points
and issues), how organized it is and, most important, how well you connect the various themes,
concepts, readings from the course to explain your city. Your paper should reflect your
thoughtful engagement with the subject matter of urban sociology. Answer following question:
How does your urban research relate to your understanding of class readings, course concepts,
and different theories of cities and urban life? Finally, pick two (2) of the six factors of the
sociospatial approach as listed on pages 17-18 and discussed elsewhere in the book and explain
how they have influenced the development of the city that you are researching. The paper should
be clear, concise, and succinct. Grammar, organization, spelling, and clarity all count. I will not
accept any late papers, faxed papers, or papers contained in email attachments. You are to turn in
two copiesof your paper.
Option #2: Service Learning Project (30 percent of final grade). For students who choose this
option, you will be required to participate in a service learning project for a minimum of 20 hours
and write a final paper based upon your experience. You will spend 20 hours working at either
the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau, the New Orleans Tourism and
Marketing Corporation, or the Urban Conservancy. The primary goal of these service learning
projects is to link your community work and experience in the New Orleans community to the
course material. Service learning is also a way of illustrating the larger substantive elements to
which the course pertains.
There are three components to any service learning activity: service, personal insight, and
academic knowledge. The service component provides the context and content of the
volunteering experience as you enter into the community to donate time and skills. The personal
experience of volunteering often forces you to learn about yourself, to question your own beliefs,
values, prejudices, ways of viewing the world, and the like. Academic learning occurs as you
connect classroom learning with the real world, observing and participating in practitioners' daily
activities. The service learning work will help reinforce the theoretical concepts and ideas
introduced in the textbook and discussed in class through interactions with people in the New
Orleans community. You will discover on your own the congruencies and discrepancies between
theories and reality, and more important, learn to think sociologically.
In addition to participating in 20 hours of service learning work, you are required to attend at
least two in-class sessions where you will discuss your service learning experience with others.
We will hold these sessions during class time on the dates listed below in the course schedule.
Finally, you are required to write a ten page paper that links the course material - e.g., concepts,
theories, and related academic knowledge about cities and urban life - with your service learning
experience. This paper is due in class on the last day of school. Below are my expectations for
this paper.
Description
Very briefly describe your service learning site, including its official purpose, the clientele it
serves, the structure of the program, the training and use of personnel, and your role as a
volunteer. When you are writing about your site, keep in mind the significant differences
between comments that are descriptive (observations), comments that discuss your feelings about
what you are describing (reactions), and comments that detail conclusions about what you saw
(interpretations). You should not spend a lot of time describing mundane or ongoing operations
of the various small groups or their activities at the site, or what you did each time you visited the
site. Keep in mind that your description should provide preliminary information that will give the
necessary context for the more important components of the paper: your analysis and reflection.
Analysis
Provide a critical analysis of your service learning experience. Discuss how the concepts from the
readings are illustrated in your activities or in the group's operations or the community's
organization. Answer the following questions: What kinds of urban problems are being
addressed by the community organization(s) you are involved with? What impacts do you see the
organization or agencies making on the New Orleans community? Finally, and most important,
which concepts and theories addressed in the textbook and class help you to understand the group
you are involved with?
Reflection
Discuss what you learned from your service learning experience. This may include discussions of
emotional responses, contemplation of political implications, and reflections on your own
personal views of how the service learning experience has caused you to think differently about
cities and urban life. What impact is your service learning work having on you? How does your
service learning experience relate to your understanding of class readings, course concepts, and
different theories of cities and urban life? How has your service experience affected your views
of New Orleans?
Your paper should build upon your practical experiences at the service learning site and reflect
your thoughtful engagement with the subject matter of urban sociology. You should deliberately
apply the sociological concepts and theories learned in the class to your description, analysis, and
reflection. The three parts - description, analysis, and reflection - should not be kept artificially
separate, but should instead be interwoven as appropriate throughout your paper. Grammar,
organization, spelling, and clarity all count. Though everyone's experience is different, I think
you should be able to complete the paper in about ten typed doubled-spaced pages. No late
papers will be accepted.
Group Discussion and Outline (10 percent).
Finally, ten percent of your grade will be based upon my evaluation of your participation in class
and your participation in four group discussions held throughout the semester and during the last
two weeks of class. The class will be divided into ten groups composed of about six people. Each
group will read assigned readings and meet the following day in class to discuss the readings.
Each group will discuss the readings, asking questions about the texts, and identify the main
points. During these class meetings, you will consider yourselves a group of urban policy
analysts discharged with finding ways to remedy metropolitan problems and conflicts. You will
identify, discuss, and recommend policies, based on the insights you gather from the readings,
that urban and metropolitan leaders could implement to prevent further urban decline, stabilize
and revitalize cities, and create prosperous metropolitan areas. At the end of the discussion each
group will turn in a written outline that (1) critically evaluates the policy solutions proposed by
authors in the readings and, (2) provides a series of policy recommendations that your group
thinks could be implemented. I will have more to say about these group discussions in
September.
I require students to attend every class and will take roll at the beginning of each class period. Be
aware that just because I do not take attendance does not mean that I have overlooked absentee
students. Four or more unexcused absences will result in the lowering of your final grade by
one letter grade. An unexcused absence is missing class without the professor's permission or
without presenting a valid excuse within twenty four hours. All students are required to attend all
classes unless they are ill or prevented from attending by exceptional circumstances.
Preparedness, attendance and participation are expected and will have a bearing on final grades.
Everyone is encouraged to participate through open discussion and questions. Class participation
includes sharing thoughts and ideas, observations, assessments, and questions during class time.
Thoughtful participation means regularly attending class and being prepared to discuss the
assigned subject matter. Please do not be worried about asking "dumb questions." If you are
confused, chances are there are numerous other people who are also befuddled and will welcome
your efforts at clarification. Lastly, be on time to class and do not bring your cell phones.
Anybody who has ever spoken in front a group knows that it can be very confusing for a speaker
when people wander in and out or when phones ring. I always try to treat students with courtesy
and respect. It makes life easier for all of us when you reciprocate.
Grades:
First Examination (Friday, 9/27) = 20% of final grade
Second Examination (Friday, 10/25) = 20% of final grade
Third Examination (Tuesday, 12/17) = 20% of final grade
Group Discussions (10/25, 11/22, 12/2, 12/4) = 10% of final grade
Final Paper (due date: Friday, 12/6) = 30% of final grade
I will use the following scale to translate total scores into final course grades:
98-100 = A+ 88-89 = B+ 78-79 = C+ 68-69= D+
94-97 = A 82-87 = B 72-77 = C 62-67 = D
90-93 = A- 80-81 = B- 70-71 = C- 60-61 = D-
For students who fall within a borderline range, I will evaluate the trend of your individual
examination scores, the quality of your city presentation, and your class attendance and
participation. I do not give extra credit, extra assignments, nor other opportunities for improving
grades. Moreover, I do not negotiate about grades, except when you believe there is an explicit
error in the grading procedures. Lastly, no grades will be determined by a curve.
All students are required to abide by the Tulane University Honor Code. This means that "the presence of a student's name on any work submitted in completion of an academic assignment is considered to be an assurance that the work and ideas are the result of the student's own intellectual effort, stated in her or his own words, and produced independently, unless clear and explicit acknowledgment of the sources for the work and ideas is included. This principle applies to papers, tests, homework assignments, artistic productions, laboratory reports, computer programs, and other assignments" (Tulane Undergraduate Catalog 1999-2001, p. 15).
TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE
Part I
Week #1 : Introduction to Urban Sociology.
8/28 (Wednesday) - 8/30 (Friday).
- The New Urban Sociology. Gottdiener and Hutchison.
- Preface. Pp. xiii-xvii.
- Chapter 1. "The New Urban Sociology." Pp. 1-19.
- The City Reader.
- Kingsley Davis. 1965. "The Urbanization of the Human Population." Pp. 4-13.
- Lewis Mumford. 1937. "What Is a City?" Pp. 92-96.
Week #2: The Origins of Urbanization and the Characteristics of Cities
9/2 (Monday): LABOR DAY HOLIDAY. NO SCHOOL.
9/4 (Wednesday) - 9/6 (Friday).
- The New Urban Sociology. Gottdiener and Hutchison.
- Chapter 2. "The Origins of Urbanization and the Characteristics of Cities." Pp. 21-39.
- Chapter 3. "Urbanization in the United States." Pp. 41-58.
- The City Reader.
- V. Gordon Child. 1950 . "The Urban Revolution." Pp. 22-30.
- Friedrich Engels. 1845. "The Great Towns." Pp. 46-55.
Weeks #3: Suburbanization in the United States.
9/9 (Monday) - 9/13 (Friday).
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 4. "The Metropolitan Period in the United States: 1920-1960." Pp. 59-75.
- Chapter 5: "The Restructuring of Settlement Space: 1960-present." Pp. 77-102.
- The City Reader.
- Herbert J. Gans. 1967. "Levittown and America." Pp. 63-68.
- Sam Bass Warner, Jr. 1972. "The Megalopolis: 1920-" Pp. 69-76.
9/11 (Wednesday). Library Workshop for Students Choosing to do Option #1 of the Urban Research Project and Paper: Urban Case Study. We will meet in the library in Room 308. Presentation by Steven Fowlkes, Information Services Department. Service Learning Students are not required to attend.
9/13 (Friday). Video: "Understanding Urban Sprawl."
Weeks #4-5: Traditional and Contemporary Perspectives in Urban Sociology.
9/16 (Monday). NO CLASS. YOM KIPPUR
9/18 (Wednesday) - 9/20 (Friday).
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 6. "The Rise of Urban Sociology." Pp. 103-126.
- The City Reader.
- Lewis Wirth. 1938. "Urbanism as a Way of Life." Pp. 97-105.
- Ernest Burgess. 1925. "The Growth of the City: An Introduction to a Research Project." Pp. 153-62.
9/23 (Monday).
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 7. "Contemporary Urban Sociology: The Socio-Spatial Approach." Pp. 127-150.
9/25 (Wednesday). Review.
9/27 (Friday). EXAM #1.
Part II
Weeks #6: Social Class, Race and Ethnicity, and Gender.
9/30 (Monday) - 10/4 (Friday)
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 8. "People, Lifestyles, and the Metropolis." Pp. 151-81.
9/30 (Monday). Video: "People Like Us" (Part 1).
10/2 (Wednesday). Video: "People Like Us" (Part 2)
10/4 (Friday). Hand back and discuss exam #1.
Week #7: Neighborhoods and Theories of Urban Life.
10/7 (Monday) - 10/11 (Friday)
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 9. "Neighborhoods, the Public Environment, and Theories of Urban Life." Pp. 183-205.
- The City Reader.
- Jane Jacobs. 1961. "The Uses of Sidewalks: Safety." Pp. 106-111.
10/9 (Wednesday). Video: "Space Invaders."
10/11 (Friday). In-class rap session with service learning students.
Week #8: Metropolitan Problems: Racial Discrimination and Residential Segregation.
10/14 (Monday) - 10/18 (Friday).
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 10. "Metropolitan Problems: Poverty, Racism, Crime, Housing, and Fiscal Crisis." Pp. 207-37.
- The City Reader.
- W.E.B DuBois. 1899. "The Negro Problems of Philadelphia,: "The Question of Earning a Living" and "Color Prejudice." Pp. 56-62.
- William Julius Wilson. 1996. "From Institutional to Jobless Ghettos." Pp. 106-111.
- Gotham, Kevin Fox. 2000. "Urban Space, Restrictive Covenants, and the Origin of Racial Residential Segregation in a U.S. City, 1900-1950."International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. 24(3): 616-33. September 2000.
- "Beyond Invasion and Succession: School Segregation, Real Estate Blockbusting, and the
Political Economy of Neighborhood Racial Transition." City and Community. 1(1): 83-111.
Winter 2002.
Week #9-10: Metropolitan Problems: Poverty, Education Inequality, and Fiscal Crisis.
10/21 (Monday) - 10/25 (Friday).
- Video: "Children in America's Schools" with Bill Moyers.
- Kozol. Savage Inequalities.
10/25 (Friday). Group Discussion #1.
10/28 (Monday). Review for exam.
10/30 (Wednesday). EXAM #2.
Part III
Week #10-11: Local Politics and Urban Redevelopment.
11/1 (Friday) - 11/6 (Wednesday).
- The New Urban Sociology.
- Chapter 11. "Local Politics: City and Suburban Governments." Pp. 239-60.
- "Urban Redevelopment, Past and Present," in Critical Perspectives on Urban Redevelopment.
Volume Six of Research in Urban Sociology. Kevin Fox Gotham, Guest Editor. Elsevier Press.
2001.
Week #11-12: Urban/Metropolitan Planning,Policy, and the Future.
11/8 (Friday) - 11/13 (Wednesday).
- The New Urban Sociology. Chapter 14. "Environmental Issues and Metropolitan Planning." Pp. 307-34.
- The City Reader.
- Richard T. LeGates and Frederic Stout. 1998. "Modernism and Early Urban Planning 1870-1940." Pp. 299-313.
- Ebenezer Howard. 1898. "Author's Introduction" and "The Town-Country Magnet." Pp. 321-329.
- Le Corbusier. 1929. "A Contemporary City." Pp. 336- 343.
- Frank Lloyd Wright. 1935. "Broadacre City: A New Community Plan." Pp. 344-349.
- 11/8 (Friday). Video: "Taken for a Ride." By Jim Klein and Martha Olson.
11/11 (Monday). Hand back and discuss exam #2.
11/15 (Friday).
- The New Urban Sociology. Chapter 15. "Metropolitan Social Policy and the Future of Urban Sociology." Pp. 315-339.
- The City Reader.
- Mike Davis. 1990. "Fortress L.A." Pp. 193-98.
- David Harvey. 1992. "Social Justice, Postmodernism, and the City." Pp. 199-207.
- Sharon Zukin. "Whose Culture? Whose City?" Pp. 131-42.
Weeks #13-15: Group Discussions and Urban Research.
11/18 (Monday). In-class session with urban case study people to discuss final paper.
11/20 (Wednesday). In-class session with service learning students to discuss final paper.
11/22 (Friday). Group Discussion #2.
- The City Reader.
- Michael E. Porter. 1995. "The Competitive Advantage of the Inner City." Pp. 278-94.
- Allan Jacobs and Donald Appleyard. 1987. "Toward an Urban Design Manifesto." Pp. 491-502.
11/25 (Monday). No class.
11/27 (Wednesday) - 11/29 (Friday) THANKSGIVING BREAK. NO SCHOOL.
12/2 (Monday). Group Discussion #3.
- The City Reader.
- Alexander Garvin. 1996. "A Realistic Approach to City and Suburban Planning" and Ingredients of Success." Pp. 296-409.
- Anthony Downs. 1989. "The Need for a New Vision for the Development of U.S. Metropolitan Areas." Pp. 545-556.
12/4 (Wednesday). Group Discussion #4.
- The City Reader.
- Stephen Wheeler. 1998. "Planning Sustainable and Livable Cities." Pp. 434-45.
- David Clark. 1996. "The Future Urban World." Pp. 579-89.
12/6 (Friday). Last Day. Papers due. Review for third exam. Course Evaluations.
12/17 (Tuesday) EXAM #3.