HUM 242 People Watching: Understanding European Cities
The city has been one of the central topics and concerns of literature. In this course we will study the development of some European cities to understand the historical influences that have shaped them. We will try to answer questions such as: How have historical and political events influenced the foundation and expansion of these cities? Why are they organized the way they are? What are the effects of industrialization, colonialism and migrations in urban transformation? Is space a social construct? How do protests, riots or terrorist attacks redefine urban meaning? What and who is a flâneur/flâneuse? Some of the (tentative) studied cities include Paris, Barcelona, Lisbon, London, Rome and Strasbourg.