Work, Life and LeisureCities in the

Contemporary World

Main Topics

I. General Aspects about the Cities

Social Condition of Calcutta city based on the novel written by Durgacharan Ray

Historical period- Development of the cities

Characteristics of the CitiesMetropolis

II. London City in 18th centuryEarliest Industrial cities in EnglandFormation of CityPopulation structure of London cityGareth Stedman Jones’s opinion about

LondonFive different types of IndustriesMarginal groupsAccommodation facilityCleaning of London CityTransportation in London CitySocial Life in the London CityPolitical Life in the London City

III. Bombay CityFormation of Bombay CityBombay- the prime cityWork in the Bombay cityAccommodation facility in Bombay

CityExpansion of Bombay City

IV. Cities and the Challenges of the Environment

Social condition of Calcutta city in 19th century based on Durgacharan Ray Novel “Debganer Martye Aagaman

In 1880, he wrote a novel “Debganer Martye Aagaman (The God visit Earth)

Through his novel he had tried to depict the social condition of the Calcutta city in 19th century.

During that time Calcutta was the center of Education, Job opportunities, trade and commerce.

Positive Aspects Negative Aspects

Train and ShipsFactories and

BridgesMonumentsShops with wide

range of commodities

Centre of trade and commerce

Centre of Job opportunities and Education

Cheats and Thieves

Grinding PovertyPoor quality

housingDiscriminations

based on Caste, Gender and Religion

Historical process caused for the formation of Modern Cities

Modern Cities were developed before 200 years back.

Different historical periods had shaped the Modern cities like

1. Industrial Capitalism2. Colonialism3. Democratic Ideas

Characteristics of the Cities

Most of the ancient cities were developed on the bank of the river valleys (Ur, Nippur and Mohenjodaro

Cities were often the centres of Political power, administrative network, trade and industry, religious institution and intellectual activity.

Cities are very greatly in size and complexity.

Metropolis are the centres of political and economic function for an entire region and very large population.

Metropolis & Urbanization

A large, densely populated city of a country or state, often the capital of the region

Development of a city or town

Earliest Industrial cities in England

The Leeds and Manchester were the earliest Industrial cities in England.

It attracted large number of migrants to the textile mills set up in the 18th century

In 1851- more than three- quarters of adults were lived in the Manchester city.

Gareth Stedman Jones and his opinion about London city

He was a great historian he had stated that the 19th century London city was

1. The city of clerks and shopkeepers2. Small masters and skilled artisans3. Semi skilled and sweated

outworkers4. Soldiers and servants5. Casual labourers and street sellers6. The city of Beggers

Five industries developed in London City in 19th century

1. Clothing and Footwear2. Wood and Furniture3. Metals and Engineering4. Printing and Stationary5. Precision products like surgical

instruments, watches and objects of precious metals

(During the First World War London had produced motor cars and electrical goods)

Marginal Groups in London

1. Criminals: As London grew, crimes flourished. In 1870- 20,000 criminals were lived in London The police were worried about the Law and order Philanthropist were worried about public morality Industrialist wanted a hard working and orderly

labour force So population of criminals was counted, their

activities were watched and ways of life were investigated.

In an attempt to discipline the population, the authorities imposed high penalties for crimes and offered work to those who were considered the deserving poor.

2. Woman:As a result of the technological

development the women gradually lost their industrial jobs and were forced to work within household.

Large number of women used their homes to increase their family income by taking in lodgers or through such activities as tailoring, washing and matchbox making

3. Child LabourLarge number of children were

pushed into low paid work often by their parents.

Andrew Mearns, a clergyman wrote “The Bitter Cry Outcast London in 1880 showed why crime was more profitable than low wages work.

The Compulsory Elementary Education Act in 1870 and Factory Act in 1902, that children were kept out of industrial work

What was the reason the Industrialist started to provide the accommodation

for the Migrants

Initially the Factory or Workshop owners did not provided the house to the migrants.

The individual land owners put up cheap, unsafe tenements were provided for the new arrivals.

In 1887, Charles Booth conducted the first social survey and he pointed out that needed 400,000 rooms for to provide the accommodation for the poor citizens.

After a period of time the industrialists starts to provide the accommodation because of certain reasons

1. One room houses seen as serious threat to public health because it was overcrowded, badly ventilated and lacked sanitation)

2. Worried about fire hazards3. Fear of social disorder, especially

after the Russian revolution in 1917.

Which are the major steps had initiated for the Cleaning of

London cityCreated decongest localities, open

green spaces, reduced pollution and sustained the landscape of the city.

Large blocks Apartments were made.Green Belt around the London City.Ebenezer Howard an architect and

planner developed the principle of Garden City

A pleasant space full of plants and trees, where people would both live and work

He believed that it would help for to produce the better quality citizens

Raymond Unwin and Barry Parker designed the garden city of New Earswick with common garden space, beautiful views.

Between the two world war period millions of houses were constructed in London, most of them were single family cottage

Transportation faculty in London city

The first section of the Underground in the World opened on 10 January 1863 between Paddington to Farrington.

At first the people were afraid to travel under ground railway because of the fear of suffocation.

The under ground railway caused the massive displacement of the poor people.

Charles Dickens wrote in his novel Dombey and Son about the massive displacements.

For the construction of two miles, 900 houses were destroyed

Gradually, the underground railway became huge success and most of the metropolis like New York, Tokyo and Chicago

Temperance Movement

A largely middle class led social reform movement which emerged in Britain and America from the 19th century onwards. It identified the alcoholism as the cause of the ruin of families and society, and aimed at reducing the consumption of alcoholic drinks particularly among the working class.