Compromises Of American Cities Essay

Cities, since the beginnings of civilization, are the embodiment of human compliance. That is, in terms of human geography, cities are the result of compromises that rest somewhere in the spectrum between the needs and wants of people, and the constraints of the natural environment, otherwise known as probabilism. This creates the cultural ecology of a given city and consequently influences how a city is shaped over time. However, it is impossible to capture the needs and wants of each person in a given society, which is why societies create governing bodies. These bodies are created to represent the collection of people which it governs and thus create and carry out some form of compromise. Although at times it may seem as if compromises formed by these entities favor certain

By definition, spontaneous order is the result of individuals making decisions based on his or her needs. This so called invisible hand is the guiding (really not so guiding) force that is central to capitalism. The built environment however, must also rely on a sense of collectivism. Robert Park describes the city as a sort of mechanism, viewing the city as an institution and noting how American cities are on one hand a “vast organization which has arisen in response to the needs of its inhabitants.” Park further explains that although these institutions set certain limitations and bounds, where they do not, human nature (free market forces) takes control. He cites personal taste, economic interest, and convenience as characteristics of human nature and that these attributes tend to segregate and classify populations, noting that this processes is neither controlled nor designed. This by-product of the free market (in terms of being a component of America’s mixed economy) can be seen in cities across the country in the form of neighborhoods, which Park later points