A kaleidoscope of New York City in terms of gender is created through an elaborate scholarly investigation as contemporary popular forms are considered across various media. By analysis of spatial categories, it explores the post 9/11 imagination of the metropolis in light of an inherent logic of consumer culture with a focus on women's views. Shaping an awareness of female voices as arguably characteristic of the postmodern cityscape, the essay aims to serve as an impulse in support of new ideas in feminist urban art politics.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: New York City Topographies in Contemporary Pop Culture
2. City as Text: From Baudrillard’s Graffiti Essay to current Trends in Urban Theory
3. City as Theme: From Babylon to New York City - Cultural History of the Metropolis
4. Money, Power, Respect: New Inscriptions of Femininity into the Urban Landscape in Candace Bushnell’s Lipstick Jungle and One Fifth Avenue
5. The Dark Side of the City: Psychology of the Female Mind and changing Topographies in Neil Jordan’s The Brave One
6. From the Streets of the Bronx to Mainstream Music: Short History of Rap
6.1. New York State of Mind: Topographic Narratives in Contemporary Hip Hop music
7. City of Dreams: Old Visions and New Perspectives of the City in the Visual Arts
8. Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This research examines how contemporary New York City topographies are represented across different media, focusing specifically on how these spaces are gendered and negotiated through the lenses of ethnicity, power, and consumer culture. The central research question explores how women's experiences and new patterns of femininity are inscribed into the metropolitan landscape, moving beyond traditional male-dominated perspectives.
- The interplay between urban space, gender, and social status in literature.
- Psychological and topographical shifts in post-9/11 metropolitan narratives.
- The evolution of Hip Hop culture as a response to socioeconomic conditions in NYC.
- The role of visual arts and photography in shaping the myth of the "Global City."
- The connection between culture, commodity, and the myth of New York as the ultimate metropolis.
Excerpt from the Book
Myrna Jameson was a buyer for Marshall’s Field’s, the famous Chicago department store, and her office was located in a cavernous building on Seventh Avenue and Thirty- Seventh Street. The Garment District was like an Arabian bazaar. The streets were lined up with mom-and-pop shops containing fabrics and notions and buttons and zippers and ladies undergarments; Idling trucks belched exhaust into the air while workers wheeled racks of clothing and furs through the throng of humanity. Purse snatchers, street people, and hustlers lurked near the entrances to the buildings, and Victory clutched the bag containing her six-piece collection tightly to her chest, imagining the irony of having worked so hard only to have it snatched away.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: New York City Topographies in Contemporary Pop Culture: Sets the theoretical framework by positioning NYC as the ultimate urban center, introducing the concept of the city as text and establishing the focus on African-American production and gendered spatial negotiation.
2. City as Text: From Baudrillard’s Graffiti Essay to current Trends in Urban Theory: Explores historical social theories regarding urban development, emphasizing Baudrillard’s view of the city as a structural-linguistic system and the shift toward the "spatial turn" in cultural studies.
3. City as Theme: From Babylon to New York City - Cultural History of the Metropolis: Analyzes the city as a complex literary theme, tracing the historical ambivalence toward urban environments from ancient Babylon to contemporary depictions of ruin and moral decay.
4. Money, Power, Respect: New Inscriptions of Femininity into the Urban Landscape in Candace Bushnell’s Lipstick Jungle and One Fifth Avenue: Investigates how Candace Bushnell utilizes NYC topographies to navigate status, power relations, and the struggles of professional women within the elite social scene.
5. The Dark Side of the City: Psychology of the Female Mind and changing Topographies in Neil Jordan’s The Brave One: Examines the cinematic representation of trauma and vigilantism, where the city acts as a malleable character reflecting the psychological disintegration of the protagonist.
6. From the Streets of the Bronx to Mainstream Music: Short History of Rap: Provides a historical overview of Hip Hop's transition from a sub-cultural, Bronx-based phenomenon into a dominant mainstream force shaped by socioeconomic deprivation.
6.1. New York State of Mind: Topographic Narratives in Contemporary Hip Hop music: Explores how artists like Jay-Z and Digable Planets use lyrics to construct a dual persona, reflecting both the struggle for material success and the "back to the roots" consciousness.
7. City of Dreams: Old Visions and New Perspectives of the City in the Visual Arts: Analyzes various visual artworks, including photography and collage, to demonstrate how NYC landmarks are used to promote commercial and capitalist narratives.
8. Conclusion: Synthesizes the findings, confirming the emergence of a gendered postmodern landscape and the persistent influence of consumer capitalism in shaping the collective imagination of New York City.
Keywords
New York City, Topographies, Gender, Urban Theory, Hip Hop, Postmodernism, Spatial Turn, Consumer Culture, Literature, Film, Visual Arts, Power Relations, Metropolis, Babylon, Identity.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The work investigates the cultural representations of New York City topographies across various media, specifically focusing on how these spaces are gendered, negotiated, and influenced by consumer capitalism.
What are the primary thematic fields covered?
The study spans literature (Candace Bushnell), film (Neil Jordan), music (Hip Hop lyrics), and visual arts, linking them through the common theme of urban space and individual consciousness.
What is the primary research goal?
To determine how women's experiences are negotiated through urban space and to identify new patterns of femininity that challenge traditional male-filtered perspectives in the modern era.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author uses a comparative method, considering topographies across different media, and an associative manner of interpretation rooted in cultural studies and urban theory.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body examines historical and contemporary views of the city, analyzes specific novels, movies, and songs for their topographical symbolism, and explores the intersection of art and commercial identity.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
The most important keywords include New York City, Topographies, Gender, Urban Theory, Hip Hop, Postmodernism, Consumer Culture, and Power Relations.
How does the author define the "spatial turn" in the context of this book?
The author describes it as the late-eighties recognition of space as a crucial element in cultural studies, specifically applying this to the city as a social product and a readable text.
What significance does the author attribute to the 9/11 attacks regarding the city's image?
The author suggests that the city remains an ultimate center for social mayhem and cultural production, but that post-9/11 trauma has intensified the need for commercial culture to reinforce myths of invincibility and power.
- Quote paper
- Irene Fowlkes (Author), 2010, Gender and the City: Politics of Space in Contemporary New York Pop Culture, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/165160
