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Container and Magnet: A New Theory on the Concrete Function of Contemporary Cities

Received: 30 May 2022     Accepted: 22 June 2022     Published: 18 July 2022
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Abstract

Nowadays, cities have dominated human social life, whether it's Eastern society or Western society. This is why this issue is important. It is because urban life is not only related to the present of mankind, but also to the future of mankind. Recognizing the importance and diversity of urban functions can better guide human production and life. However, studies of the function of cities do not do a good job of explaining why this is the case. This article attempts to answer this question. This article adopts a historical perspective and comparative method, starts from the theory of traditional functionalism, and expounds the general functions of cities in the origin period, the functions of medieval European cities and ancient Chinese cities, the functions of cities after the Industrial Revolution, and the new functions of contemporary cities. On the basis of the traditional functionalism theory, urban typology and urban ecology explanations, two explanatory functions of the city are proposed - container and magnet. Statically, the city is a container of population, technology and institutions, enabling inclusion and integration; dynamically, the city is a magnet that continuously absorbs foreign populations. In a word, the function of the city is a complex of container and magnet.

Published in Urban and Regional Planning (Volume 7, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11
Page(s) 68-73
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

City, Function of City, Container, Magnet

References
[1] Brian Bailey: "Comparative Urbanization: Different Paths in the 20th Century", translated by Gu Chaolin et al., Beijing: Commercial Press, 2010 edition.
[2] Daniel Bell: The Coming of Post-Industrial Society, compiled by Peng Qiang, Beijing: Science Popularization Press, 1985 edition.
[3] Simmel: "Bridges and Doors: Simmel's Essays", translated by Ya Hong et al., Shanghai: Sanlian Publishing House, 1991 edition.
[4] Lewis Mumford: "City Culture", translated by Song Junling, Beijing: China Construction Industry Press, 2009 edition.
[5] Henri Lefevre: "Space and Politics (Second Edition)", translated by Li Chun, Shanghai: Shanghai People's Publishing House, 2015 edition.
[6] Emile Durkheim: The Social Division of Labor, translated by Zhang Peng, Changchun: Jilin Publishing Group Co., Ltd., 2017 edition.
[7] Engels: "The Condition of the British Working Class", translated by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin, Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1956 edition.
[8] Parker, Burgess, Mackenzie et al.: Urban Sociology, translated by Song Junling et al., Beijing: Huaxia Publishing House, 1987 edition.
[9] Zhao Gang: "The History of Chinese Urban Development", Beijing: Xinxing Publishing House, 2006 edition.
[10] Zenit Howard: "The Garden City of Tomorrow", translated by Jin Jingyuan, Beijing: Commercial Press, 2010 edition.
[11] Lewis • Mumford: "The History of Urban Development: Origin, Evolution and Prospect", translated by Song Junling, Beijing: China Construction Industry Press, 1989 edition.
[12] Doug Sanders: The City of Settlement: The Last Great Human Migration and Our Future, translated by Chen Xinhong, Shanghai: Shanghai Translation Publishing House, 2014 edition.
[13] Joel Kotkin, The history of Global Cities. Translated by Wang Xu etc. Beijing: The Social Science Literature Press. 2006 edition.
[14] Max Weber: "Illegitimate Domination: Urban Typology", translated by Kangle and Jian Huimei, Nanning: Guangxi Normal University Press, 2005 edition.
[15] Louis Wirth: Urbanism as a way of life, American Sociology, v. 44, 1938.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Zhang Hailun, Tan Shu. (2022). Container and Magnet: A New Theory on the Concrete Function of Contemporary Cities. Urban and Regional Planning, 7(3), 68-73. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11

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    ACS Style

    Zhang Hailun; Tan Shu. Container and Magnet: A New Theory on the Concrete Function of Contemporary Cities. Urban Reg. Plan. 2022, 7(3), 68-73. doi: 10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11

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    AMA Style

    Zhang Hailun, Tan Shu. Container and Magnet: A New Theory on the Concrete Function of Contemporary Cities. Urban Reg Plan. 2022;7(3):68-73. doi: 10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11,
      author = {Zhang Hailun and Tan Shu},
      title = {Container and Magnet: A New Theory on the Concrete Function of Contemporary Cities},
      journal = {Urban and Regional Planning},
      volume = {7},
      number = {3},
      pages = {68-73},
      doi = {10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.urp.20220703.11},
      abstract = {Nowadays, cities have dominated human social life, whether it's Eastern society or Western society. This is why this issue is important. It is because urban life is not only related to the present of mankind, but also to the future of mankind. Recognizing the importance and diversity of urban functions can better guide human production and life. However, studies of the function of cities do not do a good job of explaining why this is the case. This article attempts to answer this question. This article adopts a historical perspective and comparative method, starts from the theory of traditional functionalism, and expounds the general functions of cities in the origin period, the functions of medieval European cities and ancient Chinese cities, the functions of cities after the Industrial Revolution, and the new functions of contemporary cities. On the basis of the traditional functionalism theory, urban typology and urban ecology explanations, two explanatory functions of the city are proposed - container and magnet. Statically, the city is a container of population, technology and institutions, enabling inclusion and integration; dynamically, the city is a magnet that continuously absorbs foreign populations. In a word, the function of the city is a complex of container and magnet.},
     year = {2022}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Container and Magnet: A New Theory on the Concrete Function of Contemporary Cities
    AU  - Zhang Hailun
    AU  - Tan Shu
    Y1  - 2022/07/18
    PY  - 2022
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11
    DO  - 10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11
    T2  - Urban and Regional Planning
    JF  - Urban and Regional Planning
    JO  - Urban and Regional Planning
    SP  - 68
    EP  - 73
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2575-1697
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20220703.11
    AB  - Nowadays, cities have dominated human social life, whether it's Eastern society or Western society. This is why this issue is important. It is because urban life is not only related to the present of mankind, but also to the future of mankind. Recognizing the importance and diversity of urban functions can better guide human production and life. However, studies of the function of cities do not do a good job of explaining why this is the case. This article attempts to answer this question. This article adopts a historical perspective and comparative method, starts from the theory of traditional functionalism, and expounds the general functions of cities in the origin period, the functions of medieval European cities and ancient Chinese cities, the functions of cities after the Industrial Revolution, and the new functions of contemporary cities. On the basis of the traditional functionalism theory, urban typology and urban ecology explanations, two explanatory functions of the city are proposed - container and magnet. Statically, the city is a container of population, technology and institutions, enabling inclusion and integration; dynamically, the city is a magnet that continuously absorbs foreign populations. In a word, the function of the city is a complex of container and magnet.
    VL  - 7
    IS  - 3
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of the Methods of Social Research, Nanfang Collage, Guangzhou, China

  • Department of Marxism, Nanfang Collage, Guangzhou, China

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