History 191LNDN - Analyzing Global city: London

Cities around the world are striving to be `global?. This course focuses on the development of one of the greatest of these global cities, London, from the nineteenth through to the twenty-first century and investigates the nature and implications of its `globality? for its built environment and social geography. We will examine how the city has been transformed by the forces of industrialization, imperialism and globalization and consider the ways in which London and its inhabitants have been shaped by their relationships with the rest of the world. Students will gain insight into London?s changing identity as a world city, with a particular emphasis on analysis of the city?s imperial, postcolonial and transatlantic connections; the ways in which past and present, local, and global intertwine in the capital, and comparative study of urban change worldwide. The course is organized chronologically: themes include the Victorian metropolis; London as an imperial space; representations of the city in media,film and popular culture; multicultural London; London as a commercial center of global capitalism; the impact of the Olympics and other urban `mega-events?; future scenarios of urban change.

This section is reserved for students in the Global Launch Program - London