reading reflections of the lettered city even though i’m confused + a cute anecdote
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In the North American context, we often think of cities as areas that grew organically from a starting point that was often based around a resource, trade route, or some kind of economic activity that initially spurred their development. It is hard to image that as described in César Pacheco Vélez described in their writings […]
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The Transformation of Lima after 1895 by José Gálvez A Commentary For this commentary, I’d like to mention that my knowledge of the events in Lima leading to the 1895 ‘transformation’ is extremely bare. My opinions are mostly based on my first impressions of reading the text rather than any historical background knowledge. In this […]
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After reading The Lettered City, an aspect that I’ve been mulling over in my head is the discussion of Neoplatonism specifically, and how this philosophy could be (and was) applied to the design of colonial cities. While I’m certainly no philosopher, I am a big Plato fan, so I did have an understanding of what Neoplatonism means. Still, I had never before made the connection or even considered it as a basis for urban design, but it makes sense. I find it fascinating in the role it played in shaping…read more
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If you’re going to respond to one of my blog posts, please don’t let it be this one thanks. This one is a mess. I’ve been thinking about the idea of maps as ideological frameworks, and of the interplay between reality and representation. “Thus, a sign contains two ideas – one of the thing represented, […]
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Rama Angle, The Lettered City (1984)
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Well here we are, in Peru! Melville had his finger on something, Lima is gray. Flying-in over the northern part of the city, you can understand where the inspiration of “frantic seas” and “tossed pack of cards” come from. One being such a natural, un-changeable description while the other being the result of the imposed […]
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I have to say that I preferred the Lima Reader to The Lettered City. I found The Letter City at the beginning a bit confusing and the writing was an academic fancy writing that says a lot while not really saying anything. But as I read more of it I got the hang of understanding […]
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On page 5, the author mentions that many cities of Renaissance thinking had circular city plans that could convey social order by having the palace in the centre, and having the buildings decrease in social standing towards the outskirts. However, the reading also focuses on the social stratification that the Spaniards wanted to implement in Lima and other colonial centres, so I’m left wondering why the circular plan wasn’t used. Because a circular plan would very easily visually demonstrate the desired social hierarchy over the grid system when there was an obvious emphasis on the visual. He discusses both plans as a means of order, but it leaves questions.
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