Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • S2 - Smith - The Social Construction of Ancient Cities

    Uploaded by

    Luis Vazquez
    28 views20 pages

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Report this Document

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    28 views20 pages

    S2 - Smith - The Social Construction of Ancient Cities

    Uploaded by

    Luis Vazquez

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 20
    SID JusDuy / NOLLONULSNOD TVIDOS ris Se SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION a Ancient Cities EDITED BY MON LCA ol SM PRA Introduction | monica: sma ial Construction of Ancient Cities ancient and modern cites, the vat majority of urban dwellers are not ‘members of ordinary households. Their production and consumption the basis of the city's economy; their participation in ceremonies cffectiveness of an organizing authority; their labor permits the mani- ‘an urban ethos as constructed through both fanciful monuments and Infrastructure, This volume explores the role of cities for those inhabi- provides archaeological case studies of the complexities of urban for- od urban continuities in both the Old and New Worlds. As the meeting populations from the immediate hinterlands as well as from ies, a city represents a new social order, in which numerous differ ‘must coexist. The resultant social networks, economic activites, and po- litical opportunities are concentrated in a locus of relatively dense population, where the process of daily life takes place as part of the physical landscape that forms and is formed by the negotiated consensus between groups. In the past three decades, the archaeological study of the city has focused mainly ‘on cities’ hinterlands and territories, emphasizing settlement patterns, catchment analysis, and long-distance exchange. Since the early 1990s, there has been a re~ turn to the heart of cities, and to the integration ofthe city and its hinterland. New data on households, neighborhoods, markets, nd other domestic venues indicate that ancient cites were not merely the result of leaders’ directives, and that the city ‘was constructed by all those who lived inthe urban core as well a ts hinterlands. As the authors of the following chapter illustrate, the form and function of cities ate brought about by a variety of groups (leaders, migrants tual specialists, eco- nomic specialists, neighborhood associations, and other types of socal configu- tations) that crosscut the space of the city. ‘Urban centers may come into existence for a variety of reasons, such as trade, cere- ‘mony, strategic placement, or administrative demands. Cites can also be legislated into existence, although they cannot be sustaired through coercion; especially at the incipient stages of sociopolitical complexity any attempt to compel urban resi- dence would have outstripped finite central resources and lft political systems vul- nerable to competition. Even at state level of sociopolitical organization, planning alone is not sufficient to make cities thrive, as Jie (1998) has observed in his study ‘of ancient West Asian disembedded capitals. These cities were founded by charis- mati elites but many failed to retain a central role afterward, and some disappeared altogether. Simiary, ‘planned capitals" and developments in the modern world are often not as successful as other cites (Peiser and Chang 1999; Potter 1985). Given the lack of resources to compel residence in a center of concentrated Population and the potential disadvantages of city life, the key to the success of ‘ities mist ie in their social aspects and the way in which they ae configured by different, often competing groups. Rather than seeing cities as Fundamentally ‘hanged by the advent of the Industrial Revolution and the global connections of ‘the modem world, new anthropological reseatch suggests that both ancient and modern cities are the result of a limited rang: of configurations that structure ‘human action in concentrated populations, MonicsL. Smith MODERN URDANISM: AL DIFERENCE? seek to understand and explain the development and growth and their assessment of the effet that cites have upon their ‘illae from pessimistic to exuberant: A negative view ‘by early theorists suchas Louis Wirth (1938:12), who ar- ces where the individual is daconnected from Former tes ae “impersonal, superficial, transitory, and segmented” vei, critiques based on Marxist analyses of cas struggle saw Jocus of alternating rejections of, and acquiescence to, cap- 1977; Gottdiener 1983; Lefebvre 1979). With the in- ‘of the 19608 and 1970, cites in addition came to be ous impact on the envionment and on human health, Ties ‘utanism iotoned that cites were “doomed” “dying,” and “dys- city life was inherently damaging, inefficient, and wasteful tdertandingof cities as disastrous places olive, ban to grow and have become the dominant residential mode ‘world. Anthropologists and sociologists have had to recon- understanding of the autocratic ole of leadership and the rot- life with observations showing that residents atively view cites and opportunity (Jacobs 1961 Khalat and Kongstad 1975 1997); In urban environments, kinship ties are reafirmed ther than destroyed; social contacts are diversified; and neigh the principal geographic anchor of social interaction (Dike 1979; 197: Schoeizer etal, 1998). More recently, analysts have alo ity form as a potentially efficient nexus of envitonmental man- eible of opportunity and positive change (eg, Inoguchi et Krumhotz 1999; O'Meara 1999). appreciation of individual agency andthe reality of a complex | ton, these new anthropological and sociological approaches are finerelted changes that occur in acty and beyond its boundaries f view of the individual and household. While analysts of mod- the configurations that they see as indicators thatthe Industral i irreversible and substantial changes to the phenomenon of achaeological evidence indicates that these same types ‘The Social Consrasion of Ancient Cis 3 ‘of transformations are visible inthe premodern world, and that the components of ities in the past and present are similar (Potter 1985). These similarities are not limited merely to physical configurations, sch asthe juxtaposition of public and private space, or the architectural identifiers of hierarchy. They also include the fundamental transformations in human relations as exclusively kin-based social net _works become supplemented or supplanted by other types of social networks, and the way in which a perception of improved opportunities draws individuals and households into urban locales ‘Consider a straightforward problem shared by studies of both modem and pre- ‘modeen urbanism: the delineation of the city’s boundaries. Inthe view of con- temporary urban analysts, the concepts of sprawl, spread, and endless suburbia are 4 tremendous liability of the modern city (Gottdiener 1985; Vagale 1973; Williams 1985; Wirth 1938). Mark Gotdiener(1985:4) uses the term “deconcentration” to describe the regional dispersal of people, commerce, and industry into a giant polynuclested sprawl, which he contrasts with “the compact city form which once represented ahistorical process yeas in the making.” The modem city’s spread is often blamed on wasteful transportation policies, and while urban sociologists em- phasize that there isa socal as well as technological component to these devel- ‘opments, they till ee the physical configuration of the postIndustral Revolution city s radically different from its predecessors. However, archaeological investigation suggest tha there has pethaps never been 4 cleat distinction between the urban edge and its hinterland, and that cities are interdigitated with thei surrounding communities even when physical walls and embankments suggest clear-cut perimeter. As the authors in this volume observe, the distinction between the exterior edge of the city and its hinterlands is nota salient one for ancient cites The effective boundaries of a city may be quite dif ferent depending on the criterion in use, with economic boundaries (eg. the t ritory representing the source of most comestibles) differing from social bound aries (eg, the catchment area of ethnic groups drawn into the city) Since they are linked to identity, chese social boundaries fluctuate because a va~ riety of criteria are applied by inhabitants as well as by outsiders (Davidson 1972; Karten 1999; Penvenne 1997; Rubertone and Thorbahn 1985; see also Yaeger, this volume). The concept of firm ‘rural-urban’ divide is also problematic when the same individuals move back and forth from one setting to another, a phenome non especially apparent at the inception of large urban centers (e-g,, Andersson +2004; Dike 1979; Khalat and Kongstad 197). Even when cities are well established, ‘Movie Sib ed economic interdependence with their hinterlands means that seasonally uited manual Iabor can be brought into the city from the countryside or can drawn from an urban labor pool (Grieco 1995) By contrast, formal, recognized boundaries are likely to result from specific re- ements imposed by political entities forthe sake of internal managemeint such evenue-collection, of as the result of disputes with a rival political entity; in her case, they can shift in response to changed internal or external circumstances, tate oficial boundaries and definitions all-encompassing even when they are place and become part of the textual record. As Penvenne (1997) observed in study of migrant Mozambican women, cultural perceptions ahout appropri- -work for women meant that official documents seldom acknowledged their ny urban-based sources of income. In urban Padang, official documents about prescribed and prohibited focations of marketplaces were often the opposite economic activities as they were actually practiced (Colombija 1994). The cy and its distant hinterland present another important point of compari: | between modern and ancient exemplars. Unlike towns, whose hinterlands are tively limited in scope, cities have economic hinterlands as faraway as the most tantly traded good in the marketplace. In modern times, this has resulted inthe orld city,” with its global economic ties (Knox 1995; see also Gottdiener 1985; bvre 1979). Paul Knox (1995:13) sees these global cities as socially constructed ins in which the inhabitants “define themselves through globally oriented, list value systems and through possession of high-end consumer goods” The mplerites of modern manufacturing, including uetuating costs and availability aw materials and labor, mean that these display items may have origins in mul- locales. he use of exotic goods in large quantities as social markers is also evident in | emodern cities, as we can see from the presence of nonlocal stone in pre- | imbian Mesoamerican cities (Healan 1993); ostrich feathers tea, and diamonds | medieval Paris (Kurin 1997); and jade in the Chinese cities of the T'ang era thafer 1963:225~226) Cites of the late Roman period had changing relation- ps with thir farthest hinterlands since urban bishops controlled economic re- ees hundreds of kilometers away (Heath 1999). Long-distance trade relation- Ps could also be sustained through permanent enclaves of traders from distant , good examples of which can be found in chalcolithic Anatolia (Stein et | 1996) as well a in precontact Mesoamerica (summarized in Marcus 1998). The habitants of ancient cities certainly made use of economically scarce resources ‘Te Social Consracion of Acie Cts from distant regions through a variety of economic and social ties. Modern means of transportation and communication have accelerated, but not fundamentally al- tered, the city's ability to pullin a vast economic hinterland. “Another point to consider isthe attraction of city life for individuals in both modern and ancient cities. A description of London in the nineteenth century pro- ‘vides a vivid picture of why people migrated into the seething, sometimes dan- ‘gerous world of the Victorian city: "London grew by sucking in provincial migrants because jobs were either better paid there or thought to be so; it also offered a more liberal aray of charities, richer rewards for crime, a more persuasive legend of op~ portunity than could be found anywhere in the country” (Dyos and Reeder 1973362). Other studies of modem cites show that for those who are economi- cally disadvantaged in the countryside, the diversified and specialized economy of the city promises more niches in which even casual laborers and the disenfian- chised may be able to make a living (eg, Christopher 1979; El-Bushra 19895 El- Shakhs 1979; Penvenne 1997; Vagale 1973) [Although textual evidence for marginal gotups in antiquity i limited, ancient peoples’ motives for migration to the city appear to have been similar In ancient Rome, city distribution agents provided basic subsistence goods such as grain to appease the disenfranchised (Garnsey 1983), a move that probably added to the city’s appeal in the minds of immigrants Juvena, the Roman satirist, complained that the wealth of the city drew in beggars and thieves, and that the grain dole brought in a torrent of partakers (Satire Il). The Perumpanatrupadai, a Tamil South Indian poem of the early centuries A.n, similarly describes the city of Kanchipu- ram as a place with “gates not shut against poor mendicants / Who need no pa~ ‘on else” (Chelliah 1985:129). In this book, it is argued that the similarities between modern and ancient cities are not limited to these comparative Formal properties of economic opportunity, fluid rural-urban boundaries, and the consumption of luxury goods as social mark- ‘ers, More fundamentally, i appears that the capacities for human interaction in con- centrated locations are exercised within a limited se of parameters, an observation that may make us distinctly uncomfortable given our tendency to view modern Homo sapien as highly inventive and innovative. People developed cities in many parts of the world independently, yet the resulting urban form exhibits similarities in the organization of space (broad avenues and open plazas), the placement of symbolic architecture in prominent locations, and the development of neighbor- hhoods around occupational specialties. Even more striking, cities in the Old World ‘Moniz. Sith the New World, without contact between them, developed into the most com- ‘and densely occupied type of human population center, with remarkably simi- configurations. In the view of this volume’s authors, the physical similar above are only a manifestati of underlying principles that prove funda- to the organization of concentrated populations. These include the ma- ‘of perceived short-term and long-term benefits, investnent inthe physi- ims of portable objects and space to signify social action, and the use of rks to increase information transfer ive Formula n of urban centers provides numerous occasions for cts that enable individuals and households to engage in more complex so- behavior. Although the speed of transportation and communication has city’s social role, as conceived by modern analysts, fits ancient cities as ‘as modern ones: er signifcance lies in their ole as centres of authority as places that are able to ate and disseminate discourses and collective belief, that are able to develop, and tack innovations, and chat offer “sociable” settings forthe gathering of level information (economic, politcal, cultural) and for establishing coalitions monitoring implicit coniracts (Knox 1998-9) ese “implicit contracts" crosscut the socal space of the city, with the result socal relations are built across the political and class spectrum, series of links -n with social distinctions. A cohesive force ofthese relations is the way ich information and decisions about shared long-term goals are managed. As bijn (1994) notes, information management among these groups is achieved igh shared fong,term goals. While simple commands may be expedient, they the most politicaly expensive form of decision making; by contrast, “the least ve decision isconsensua, bu attaining such a consensus isa long process” mbijn 1994-18). Where theorists such as Lefebvre, Gottdener, and Castells trate on power relations that exclude the vast majority of urban inhabitants, ijn believes that the successor failure of a city is transcribed in the thou- ‘of daily houschold-level negotiations for food, shelter, and access to land. achieve the ultimately more costeffective consensual mode of decision mak- requires significant investment of time and a shared belief that those who invested in the system (either as individuals or through corporate groups such Ahouscholds and nonkin associations) will in the long un, be better off than if had not participated. The Social Cunsracsion of Ancien Cities Ina city, the long-term investment in consensus is manifested at all levels of the physical environment: in the monuments designed by leaders and built by fol- Towers; in the juxtaposition and accommodation reached within neighborhoods; and within the domestic sphere in the architecture of houses, courtyards, and bur- ial places. For both elites and nonelites, the physical environment includes not only what is fixed but also what is portable: omaments, clothing, utensils, and other manufactured and traded items. The authors in this volume show that through ar- chaeologically documentable aspects such as portable goods (Attarian chapter 8), space (Moore chapter 4), food preferences (Zeder chapter 7), and the production of labor-intensive products such as metals (Shen chapter 12), we can document so- cial changes in premodern urban sets und the transformation of social groups to an urban configuration. These transformations, signaling the development of new identity that is expressed in material rerms, further suggest other types of ideo- logical and sociological changes that we cannot document archaeologically but that we know must also have taken place in the transition to urbanism (Houston cet al. chapter 9) DEFINING THE “crTY” “The threshold at which a population center becomes truly “urban” is more difficult to determine than it might appear, even for modern cities (Adedeji and Rowland 1973; Potter 1985; Smith 19725 Trigger 1972: Zeder 1992). In the contemporary “world, the threshold of “urbanism” isthe basis upon which further elassifications and social components are intertwined, such as the census and proposals for eco- nomic development. To those studying ancient cities the conferral of “urban” sta- ‘tus upon a site establishes an implicit judgment of size and importance inthe land- scape. For both modern and ancient cities, minimal definitions based on any single quantitative criterion (such as physical size or number of inhabitants) are bound 10 fail because they nearly always exclude one or more sites that appear to have an urban ethos (Weber 1958:65; R. Melntosh and S. McIntosh, this volume). Static definitions also conceal the dynamic nature of urban activities and urban forma~ tions the sometimes explosive growth of population centers from villages to towns to cities, and the changes undergone by even well-established cities from one era to another. Urban centers are social formations manifest in a physical surround- ing that is always changing, while definitions serve archaeologists best when ap- plied to entities that are fixed or are found within relatively fixed parameters. Morice LS jowever, the lick of a definition s equally problematic since without one, re- rely on their qualitative judgment about any particular site under the as- ption that while we cannot define cities, we intuitively “know one when we fone” Some recent work on the origins of urbanism, in filing to define what is has produced nothing more than gazetters of sites whose comparability kened by a lack of formal criteria (se Shaffer 1996). Definitions based on le characteristics, rather than asingle static criterion such as population size ‘extent, appear more likey to resolve this difficulty. Since V. G. Childe's 50) list of 10 criteria has, implicitly or explicitly, served as the Bisis for evali- premodern urbanism, itis wortk revising this list Regardless of the specific nants of urbanism, it is clear that citics are the most complex for of Population aggregation, but a -eexamination of Childe’ urban criteria pro- threshold for discussion and a set of parameters within which comparisons be made. at signified the “culmination of a progressive change in the economic structure social organisation of communities that caused, or was accompanied by, a dra- increase in the population affected,” He wrestled with the awkward fact that appeared in both the New and Old Worlds though with vastly lifferent ech- jogs and apparatus; many characteristics such as the wheel and draft animals might have been identified as ercal and integral components of Od World ‘vere not present among the cts of the New Word, Chile saw the mini definition of a city as “impoverished” by having to include groups such as Maya, yet this dilemma prompted the acknowledgment that social, rather than infrastructure isthe key o identifying the city (Adams 1966), Chile's 10 ae all thus rather elastic and stress relative degrees of population density, mic specialization, taxation/tribate toa central authority, monumental build- co symbolize the concentration ofthe socal surplus” social stratification, and -kecping, In sum, Childe didnot provide an analytic framework, but a de- ie one serving as an index to identifying the components of the most com- form of aggregated populations. His criteria are not fundamentally diferent those used to describe cities today, as Robert Potter has observed (1985:30) in this descriptive framework, ll of the components ae interrelated; how- some components, such as the economy, provide a highly accessible way to Hey and mocitor the seale of these relationshipa Tas elydedivHlusls and holds become interdependent inan economy thats complex, integrated, and ‘The Socal Construction of Anion Cte ar) (1950:3) saw cities as both aresult and a symbol of an “urban revolution” @ large in scale (Zeder 1991-192) Population centers the size of cis are beyond the capacity of the household to efficiently manage a numberof tasks simultane- cous they mut speialize inorder to take advantage of economies of scale in pro- diction as well aso obtain a lager vatiety of goods and services At the house- hold level, tis usually means that its members speci and economic tasks, As Zedr (chapter 7) further observes, the specialization ofthe turban economy occurs at diferent rates and applies to diferent rypes of goods. “The Factors hat affect the developmen vary with the commodity being produced sometimes changes in politcal structure affect the organization of production, a8 Shen (chapter 12) shows for the production of metal goods in the Zhou-period cities of Ching; sometmes changes were made beemise of the physial nature of the commodity, as Zeder discusses with reference tothe different fodder and pa- ture needs of catle, sheep goats, and pigs “Another way t define the cit is in oppositional tems, making use of appareit dishalance between an urban zone and its hinterland, When cites bring people together ito a locus of dense habitation and specialized economy, the surround- ing countryside also experiences restructuring, as seen in examples ffom cities ofboth the premodern (Yffe 199s) and modem periods (de Oliveira and Roberts 1996) City fashions and the demand for certain types of products, including food- sts and building materia, as wells a demand for labor, have an effect upon eco- nomic and socal configurations in the sortounding countryside. This dependence 3c city fashions are also emulated by those in the hinter- lands who desire to signal their urban tes through material goods and architec- tural ayes ce Yaeger chapter 6. These gods and styles may consist of a variety of previously existing elements inthe surrounding area, which cty-dvellestrans- ize in certain social, civic, form to new patterns and structures, Anthropological understanding of the close association of human actions and ‘material goods lets us evaluate archaeological sites in places where social changes are visible in artifacts. At the early modern West Aftican city of Elmina in Ghana, urban residents distinguished themselves both fiom interior peoples and from for- eigners, often using goods that came from those outside sources (DeCorse 2001) jonal practice of graves under houses was retained, but the burials began to include European ceramics, Architectural forms in the city un- dderwent change as local Aftican inhabitants learned European building techniques in stone. Foodways remained largely unchanged in terms of preferred forms of co- _mestibles such as stews, but food began to be served in imported bowls with new In Elmina, the tra Monies. Smith (of decoration, Christopher Atarian’s discussion inthis volume (chapter 8) ines the process of urbanization in pre-Columbian Peru, making use of the tof ethnogenesis as the manner by which an urban population marks adis- jon from both hinterlands and surrounding traders. Similarly, Jason Yaeger et 6) examines the way in which rural households emulated urban models in re and portable objects cf domestic use and ornamentation among the ‘Maya. sum, the definition of cities in both the modern and premodern world is sub- {a variety of criteria whose applicability depends on the particular ques- asked of the dataset. Quantied indies such as population size, density, or [extent provide what may appear to be usefll measures, but hese data are dif 1ously obtain for ancient cities. The difficulties of establishing a ‘numerical threshold for “urban” status even in the modern world i likewise icator that qualitative criteria must also be utilized; these include the per- difference between urban and hinterland activities. ORIGIN oF crmiEs to identify an exact catalyst for city formation poses not only an intractable sm of “firsts” but also obscures a more interesting question of sustainability ‘of the scholarly tradition of looking forthe “ist city is linked tothe study ancient Near Eas s the distant ancestor of European cultute. Sites such as and Catal Héyiik have been the focus of such investigations (see Ember- chapter 10). This seatch for frts presupposes clear criteria for defining a city, the implicit establishment of a checklist and then the application of that to the archaeological site in question. In this way, the question of how a city and how to determine its origins ar intimately inked, But jut as terion definitions are inadequate, so too are monocausal explanations of 'No single factor of opportunity or compulsion appeats to explain volun- relocation to urban areas, and a variety of ‘push’ as wel as “pull” factors seem the pace of relocation: the development of employment economies of € in the city, drought or flooding in the countryside, warfaee and civil unrest, ‘opportunity to use the city asa base of transit to other regions, and cultural resulting in selective disenfranchisement from rural family ot land ties. All of| factors may be present inthe initial development of a city although the spe- historical circumstances of a given locale may be a combination of political, ‘The Social Construction of Ancient Cities demographic, social, and environmental citcumstances that may not be exactly replicated elsewhere. Cities, as the focal point of concentrated populations sek- ing improved opportunities for communication, social tes, and economic gain, ap- pear instead tobe generated bya combination of uncerinty mingled with op- portunity, what Herzog (1997:13) has called the “constellation of circumstances that bring a city into being ‘The relationship between urban form and politcal authority is also complex, since cities can be found within a variety of political parameters as entities com- prising ueban functions in an otherwise politically underorganized landscape, as units that integrate withthe countryside to form a small state, and asa primate city ‘of as one among many cities within the expansive territory ofa single state. The presence of cities can serve political agents asthe nodes in a costfective linked chain of hierarchies, but iis important to recognize that cites do not require a state level of political authority to exist and thrive. This assessment marks a sharp (of members acting on shared criteria such as religion, occupation, eth Such associations allow a restructuring or re-creation of power relations a city, whether created as a guild, cooperative, neighborhood association, 8 group, or other voluntary society. The opportunity for nonelites to par- {in alternative sources of authority-making structures draws a large num- People into these groups, whether they seek to be selected for office or seck “the authority that derives from the ability to define” who their asso- will be (Coutin 1994:297; Walker-Ramisch 1996). Once formed, an associa- 38 Wield more influence than individual members, allowing itto act on be- ‘of members who seek to maintain or expand their ability to appropriate (Colombijn 1994:16). sp investments in authority have an impact on the physical layout ofthe city as on members’ social identity and economic success. Attracted by city life, individuals may participate in the construction of city monuments, sand other types of sponsored projects. Examples can be drawn from the ‘world, in which building programs were commemorated through inscrip- is As Di Segni’ (1995) study of monuments in Byzantine cities shows, an in- sal’ civil status could affect the way that donations were credited in a build- inscriptions, Municipal ofcials would record their occupational status if they donating to civil buildings, but not i they were donating to religious build- such as churches where they presented themselves as private citizens. In other the profession of the person was mentioned (such as lawyer or doctor) even ‘The Social Consucion of Ace Cher. 0 3) a ‘when the construction project did not involve them in their professional capacity but merely 2s a donor (Di Segni 199s). Ths illustrates that people in cities could ‘compartmentalize their civic activites as members of a professional group, as pri- vate individuals, as appointed or elected officials, and as members of a particular religious afiliation. While the recognition achieved in one sphere undoubtedly in- fluenced the individual’ standing in other spheres, there were multiple groups into hich those with elite ambitions could place themselves. For those without ambitions of improving their social status, the city still rep- resented gains. There were opportunities for diferent kinds of jobs, beter em-| ployment, or the possibility of escaping penury oF family troubles inthe country- ‘side, Those in the low-paying jobs of the city also risked the most in that if they failed there might not be lands to fall back upon, but the diversity of employ- ‘ment and economic niches provided more choices than the distant hinterlands, “Those who had the fewest economis options of all could also find a place in the city as beggars, thieves, and prosttues, all occupations more easily practiced in areas of concentrated populations. Thus, while the aggregate of network connec- tions and the perception of long-term gains built a momentum for continuity in city life, short-term gains were also anticipated by those moving into the urban zone. @ The ability to address short-term necds as well x collectively manage long-term investments is another reason why associations become valued as the individual and household strive to Function in he urban setting. On the immediate level, as- sociation can provide information about basic services, assist newcomers with em- ployment, and assuage feelings of disorientation and loneliness. On the cognitive level, these associations may serve as repositories of collective memory. As Cox et al. (999:370) have recently observed, memory isan important aspect of the evolu- ‘tion of cooperative behavior; in their simulations, they note that “a simple memory for past encounters is sufficient to allow stable cooperation to evolve even when the number (or frequency) of interactions i relatively lov.” In urban zones char- acterized by feequent relocation and migration (eg, as individuals go back and forth tothe hinterlands), associations and groups can serve asa repository of mem- bers’ memories for the benefit of any individual who requires such inform: “The benefit of greater information flow works to the mutual advantage of dif- ferent socal clases, including those balanced within hierarchical relations For ex- ample, from the point of view of an employer, dealing with well-established groups is more efficient than dealing with individuals seeking work. As observed ina va- riety of modem socal settings hiring institutions actively seek the presence of ha- ‘oF regular contracts with groups (even if individual workers change). This enon i associated with lage institutions and habitual work contracts that ved as efcient brea of ther consistent social content (Granovettet 1985). an-based need for consistent workforces may well miro simile preex- Work relationships inthe countryside. For example, the desired consistency ial interaction can be seen in work parties among the agricultural Kofyar ‘of Nigeria, in which laborers who are neighbors ate preferred to unknown hands (Netting 1993-72-80). The Kofjar present a particularly interesting ause they occupy regions of high-quality land at densities up to 200 pet kilometer. Although population is unevenly distributed between these Productive rural areas, factors of reliability ae still more important in ar- work contracts than the mere presence of able-bodied workers. In grow-| */ ities as well, the need for an adequate work force i eritical (or support ser- a5 well 2s for manufacturing activites), but hiring institutions and workers Seek to maneuver the terms of work to their advantage /within cities ranges from private to public in design and use and is config- by inhabitants at numerous levels (Carr etal. 1992; Colombijn 1994). Public, space is shaped in a variety of ways, often connected with the symbolic ma- jon of access by crowds of people. This space may be constrained through ‘of partitions and inner courtyards that direct the flow of trafic within and buildings, as shown by Keith (chapter 3) and Moore (chapter 4). Space constrained vertically as well as horizontally, as Yaeger (chapter 6) shows discussion ofthe diminishing platform sizes of pyramids setin central urban s, While this suggests thatthe configurations of public space are largely by elites, the response to the provision of public space ean be manipulated altered by residents if they fal to use the space for its intended purpose, for ex- by shunning elaborately planned plaza and marketplaces, or by converting nd into informal gathering places (eg, Colombijn 1994; Stricker 1997). larly, private and semipublic space ina city is shaped by regular social and ic transactions. Patterns of communication and interaction as measured in culture can be discerned through 2 variety of activities that produce ar- gical data sets investigation of production sites to determine the scale and ion of manufacturing, excavations of waste deposits to sce what i di carded and at what periodicity, and examination of households to determine pat- teins of lived material culture. The advantage of using households as an archaco- logical unit of investigation is that a whole physical household is more likely 10 bbe excavated in deal than an entire neighborhood; households ae also ted to the ‘economic life of the city and their transformations can signal the city’ general economic health (Smith 1987). These economic changes are matched by house- hold adjustments, including the reconfiguration of space. An example is provided by the modem city of Cairo, where rural-stye kitchens ae redesigned to conform to the restricted space of urban dwellings, and semipublic open space such as rooftops and courtyards are eventually covered over and converted to private tse {Abu-Lughod 1969; ElShakhs 1979). {similar process canbe seen in archacologically documented cities. The ex-y medieval city of Koumbi Saleh (Mauretania) shows signs of the development of domestic architectural forms and decorations that replicate a well-defined urban todel from one dvelling to the next (Berthier 1997:43). This includes the con- tinued subdivision of rooms into smaller and smaller spaces andthe covering of 1s, as though the domestic spaces of the city were being reconfigured to

    You might also like