Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2017

The Western World as Utopia? Thames Town, Songjiang and the New Chinese Residential Habits

Résumé

Since the beginning of the century, a new fashion that changed the forms and images of Chinese cities has spread. The Chinese middle and upper classes are moving in new neighborhoods of which the architecture, the names and the atmosphere are inspired by Western patterns, therefore conveying the image of an exotic way of life. Because of their imitation feature, these constructions have raised numerous criticisms from Chinese observers as well as Western ones. “Fake copies”, “urban fictions”, “theme parks”, “gated communities” or “ghost towns” are the words generally used to characterize these “neoliberal utopias ” of the newly wealthy Chinese families. Yet, far from being just an outcome of China’s integration to the World system, a detailed study of the families living habits in the neighborhoods of Thames Town in Shanghai, enable us to get an insight of the complex social transformations the Chinese individuals are going under. Though living in a neighborhood copying different British architectural styles, located in the new city of Songjiang in Shanghai Municipality, the residents are not experiencing a mere acculturation process, nor trying to imitate a Western way of life. On the contrary, the Chinese habits encountering new social and modern features generate new social logics of managing their home and new social relations and hierarchies inside the family. Thus, through a detailed ethnographic research of the spatialized private and residential practices in Thames Town, this study aims at analyzing two important dimensions in the field of contemporary urban transformations in China. First, to understand the new social logics and aspirations of the Chinese middle and upper classes. And second, by analyzing the discourses of heterotopia, inspired by Foucault and tinted with “Occidentalism ”, that have labelled Thames Town and others Chinese neighborhoods, to establish a genealogy of Western postmodern contemporary thoughts on utopia.

Fichier non déposé

Dates et versions

hal-04937148 , version 1 (09-02-2025)

Identifiants

  • HAL Id : hal-04937148 , version 1

Citer

Martin Minost. The Western World as Utopia? Thames Town, Songjiang and the New Chinese Residential Habits. City and Society: The Care of the Self, IIAS - TU Delft; Leiden University, May 2017, Leiden, Netherlands. ⟨hal-04937148⟩
75 Consultations
0 Téléchargements

Partager

  • More