Urban Challenges Depicted in Virgin Suicide and Detroit an American Autopsy - Essay Example

Urban Challenges Introduction Suburbanization is the growth and development of regions around the cities. In most of the cases, the residents of the metropolitan areas who works at the urban centers prefer to live in suburbs while commuting on a daily basis to their respective fields of work. The reason for this is that in the central business district, there are mainly offices with little spaces left for residential. In addition, the few residential areas within the central business district are majorly expensive restaurants, which are uneconomical to most of the people (Spencer 215). There are very many challenges facing the modern urban centers that are compelling the residents to consider relocating to the suburban areas. However, most of these challenges are avoidable because they are caused by the negligence of both the urban authorities as well as the residents. Therefore, it is imperative to decide the best action plan to remedy this phenomenon. The two choices available are either fleeing the urban centers or finding relevant solutions to the challenges facing the urban centers. This essay is about the main underlining challenges that are causing the development of the suburbanization and its effects. It also covers the economic impacts such as the influence on the cost of estate development, fiscal impact, and impact on the infrastructures. Furthermore, the essay also addresses the effects of suburbanization as far as urban diversity is concerned. However, it makes reference to two main books mainly the Virgin Suicide and Detroit an American Autopsy. Development of suburbanization Numerous factors can lead to the occurrence of suburbanization, which are categorized into push and pull factors. From the book Detroit, an American Autopsy, it is evident that the following push factors can prompt the development of suburbanization. Examples are pollution by industries, high population density in the city, perception of poor life quality, and traffic congestions resulting in traffic jams making movement difficult (Spencer 216). These factors are called push because they drive away people from the city centers to the areas around the towns. In addition, Detroit is also marred by insecurities of all kinds. Furthermore, an analysis explaining the relocation of the Lisbon family to Michigan in the book Virgin Suicides is also a testimony to the push factors. There are different degrees of immorality that are characterized by urban centers. A good example is the sexual immorality among the youths that is evident where the Lisbon daughters committed sexual immorality with different local boys resulting in their deaths (Eugenides & Marc 64). Among the very many urban challenges that can lead to the development of the suburbanization is the disillusionment. In the book Virgin Suicides, the relocation of the Mr. and Mrs. Lisbon to Michigan is because of the dissolution that they experienced following the death of all of their five daughters. Moreover, another aspect of dissolution is also evident in the book Detroit an American Autopsy where the Detroit city is marred by all sorts of evils and mismanagement. As a result, the citizens have despaired to the point that they do not care what the leaders are doing. In most of the modern town centers, most of the inhabitants experience all kinds of problems to the point of dissolution. Problems experienced by nearly all the urban centers are poor housing conditions, lack of nature, traffic congestions, unemployment, corruption, and weak leadership by the leaders. Consequently, the town inhabitants become dissolution with life in the urban centers leading to migration to the suburban areas to escape from all of the tribulations of the urban centers (Spencer 218). On the other hand, pull factors include the availability of open spaces and lower prices of houses in the suburb areas. Additionally, the notion of availability of nature away from city centers, cheaper prices of essential commodities in the suburban areas as compared to city centers. Moreover, other pull factors include the availability of job opportunities in the suburbs and improvement of infrastructures and social amenities in the suburban areas. Infrastructures such as roads and railway encourage people to settle in the suburban areas and commute to their respective fields of work (Spencer 216). This is also true in both books Detroit, an American Autopsy and the Virgin Suicides. The Detroit inhabitants are of the opinion that the suburban are better placed than their Detroit state. In addition, the Lisbon family together with the other inhabitants were of the view that suburban had better infrastructures and housing conditions than the city centers. Impacts of suburbanization Psychological health Initially, people believed that by moving to the suburb areas, they were able to escape from urban related problems such as traffic jams, insecurity, disillusionments, and congestions. However, upon moving, they realized that the psychological satisfactions they were seeking for was not forthcoming because they faced similar problems. They realized that they were still socially isolated as well as socially disorganized just like the way they were while in the town centers. Consequently, most of them suffered from psychological related health issues that resulted from disappointments from high expectations them had. Such is evident in the book Virgin suicides by the deaths of the Lisbon girls who were dissolution by the life in the Grosse Pointe, Michigan suburb (Eugenides & Marc 246). Furthermore, impact of suburbanization on psychological health is also evident in the book Detroit, an American Autopsy. The author hoped for a better Detroit while vacating Los Angeles. However, upon arrival he was perplexed to find his beloved state on the verge of collapsing. Everything was in a sorry state right from the infrastructures to the mode of leadership. The city buildings were dilapidated, and the rate of unemployment was alarmingly high. Consequently, the author became physiologically disturbed upon realizing the fragile state of his beloved state. Economic impacts Suburbanization began during 1950s and ever since, the economies of these regions have developed remarkably. Specifically, the infrastructures of these regions have improved, and several industries have been set up. In addition, real estates have been prepared that have improved the housing conditions in the suburb areas thereby improving the living standards. Moreover, the government has increased their revenue by levying taxes on business activities that operates in these fields. The revenue collected is used in redeveloping these areas. However, the author of the novel Detroit an American Autopsy reveals the opposite because the state is suffering economically (LeDuff) because of the corrupt and evil nature of the Detroit leaders. Impact on infrastructures Even though suburbanization has significantly contributed towards building of the infrastructures, it has also burdened most of the countries financially towards building and maintaining such infrastructures. In America, for example, Detroit suburbanization has cost the taxpayers dearly because they have been levied an extra cost for installation of water lines, roads, and sewers. However, as the writer points out, no much work has been done as far as installation and maintenance of these infrastructures (LeDuff). Unfortunately, suburbanization is responsible for the weak states of infrastructures in areas bordering the urban. Ideally, budgetary allocations for maintenance of these infrastructures are always diverted to cover other areas. Notably, most of the distributions in most cases are used in covering for the new necessities in such areas. Therefore, infrastructures are suffering a great deal. If there will be no intervention soon, then the writer have the opinion that it will force the governments to spend heavily towards rebuilding of these infrastructures (Spencer 217). Influence on the cost of development of the real estate Suburbanization has resulted in a reduction in the home prices, thanks to residential properties. As such, people can look for the most convenient places away from the city centers where they can buy a home affordably. The expansions of infrastructures to these areas have made living even more enjoyable. However, since buying of homes in these areas are affordable, most of the people who resided formally at the urban have relocated to the suburb. The urban to suburb migration has resulted to congestion at the suburbs causing limitation of the houses. Such means that the demand of the real estate has exceeded the supply (Spencer 217). This phenomenon is evident in the book Virgin Suicide. The couple from Boston despite all the evil that have befallen Lisbon family in that house immediately occupied the Lisbon’s former house. Fiscal impact Suburbanization has resulted in the growth of the budget deficit, which is contributed by the fact that these areas are sparsely populated. Therefore, there is a small payment of the property taxes. Furthermore, a scrutiny of the pattern of how houses are spread in the novel Virgin Suicides revealed lack of varieties of houses (Eugenides & Marc 123). Additionally, there were greater distances from one home to another. As a result, the cost of development of real estate as well as the cost of public service had increased. In general, the effect involves an increase in the government’s upper levels deficit. Impact on the diversity of the urban Earlier suburbanization resulted in the whites leaving the city centers to suburbs. As a result, the minority groups like the black Americans, Indo-Americans, and Asian Americans invaded the city centers. The departure of the whites from the city centers led to a sharp decline in the prices of housing at the city center. Therefore, the minority groups found it affordable to own houses at the city centers that promoted the diversity at the town centers. This phenomenon was evident in older and denser cities like Detroit. However, the majority of these minority groups were the black Americans that constituted to over seventy-five percent of the Detroit’s urban population (LeDuff 12). In fact, the author is among the very few white inhabits of the Detroit state. Conclusion Before the beginning of the 1950s, suburbanization was not possible because most of the people were against the culture of suburban. Majority of the people were arguing from the cosmopolitan point of view. They thought that life without urban facilities such as museums and ethnic districts was impossible. As result, they preferred to live in the town centers. Most critics argued that suburbs were places where middle-class individuals who cannot afford homes at city centers reside. In addition, others argued that suburbs are far from the best places to live. However, they argued that they are only suitable for touring purposes, especially when an individual would wish to escape from the busy nature of the city. However, as seen in these two books Detroit an American Autopsy and Virgin Suicides, urban centers are becoming inhabitable. Consequently, migration to the suburban became inevitable. There are very many challenges facing the urban centers like the ones discussed above. Therefore, they are no longer arguing the cosmopolitan point of view because currently, most of the urban inhabitants have a different perspective on the suburb life. They see it as an avenue for escaping the insecurity that is characterizing the urban centers. Furthermore, they have realized that acquiring a home at the suburban is less expensive as compared to urban areas. Government is also benefiting from the suburbanization because they are viewing it as a way of decongesting the cities. Therefore, the government are providing incentives for improving infrastructures and social amenities to encourage people to settle in the suburban areas (LeDuff). Unfortunately, the excitement of living in the suburban was short lived because the few individuals who migrated experienced similar problems as to those in urban areas. Examples of such problems are limited housing, overpopulation leading to pressure in the infrastructures and the insecurity. Furthermore, the ever-rising numbers of industries in the suburbs have polluted the environment. Therefore, the earlier comfort that was one of the characteristics of the suburbs is long gone. Nonetheless, it is important to ask ourselves one big question, which is to blame for the challenges facing our city centers? Additionally, now it is evident that fleeing urban centers to suburban to bring about suburbanization is not the remedy of solving urban challenges. Instead, the best action is to address these challenges with the objective of making living in towns more comfortable. Works cited Eugenides, Jeffrey, and Marc Cholodenko. Virgin Suicides. Paris: J’ai Lu, 2009. Print. LeDuff, Charlie. Detroit an American Autopsy. New York: Penguin, 2013. Print. Spencer, James, “The Suburbanization of Multiracial Housing.” Urban Studies (1989): 215-218: Read More