Analysis Of City Of God - Essay Example

Analysis Of Of God Introduction In the movie of God', Fernando Meirelles who is its director, gives a factual of the Brazilian capital, Rio de Janeiro in the 1960s which largely shows the widespread levels of poverty and urban crime in the city. The movie portrays the effects of poor urban planning and organization. These are some of the aspects considered in urban planning and can have the great effect in the development of an urban area. There are other additional factors such as social networking, public housing, global city and availability of educational opportunities which are also influential in the proper urban planning capacity. This paper will discuss the factors outlined above as they are depicted in ‘The City of God'. An interference in the social system in any community can lead to social challenges and changes. In the film, Rio experiences changes in its social system and, as a result, leading diversion from its original traditional structure. It is common to amongst the drug gangs in the city to develop deviant behaviors in what can be described as an anarchic society. The society in Rio is characterized by conflicts, burglary, murders, drug, and substance abuse. There are high levels of poverty and lawlessness which encourage the advancement of these social vices. For example, Lil Z has assumed the role of commanding the "City of God." He, therefore, intimidates the people and other vulnerable gang members in conducting his role as a leader. The huge gaps in social classes in the society are some of the primary causes of poor urban planning and development since they lead to poverty. In ‘The City of God’, Rio de Janeiro is portrayed as a very populous city which is continually growing due to high rural to urban migration that is taking place. Therefore, the demand for housing has shot up and the existing Government (public) housing cannot serve the increasing numbers. However, the government strives to put up with the bulging population pressure by establishing a housing project in the outskirts of Rio. Nevertheless, the demand is so high and with housing being considered a luxury by a section of the citizenry, slums start to develop in the city. Global cities are defined as cities with huge impacts and influence on the development of the global economy. Rio de Janeiro is one of the global cities as depicted in the film ‘The City of God'. During the 1960s, Rio was experiencing rapid economic progress and had numerous economic activities. This was largely attributed to the city's beauty, cultural diversity, attractive beaches and the globally renowned landmarks. Therefore, the city attracted a huge number of tourists leading to increased business and expansion. However, Rio, like all other global cities experienced varying challenges which ranged from insecurity, huge gaps between the affluent and the underprivileged in society among other problems. Resultantly, this is one of the reasons why urban planning in global cities is a difficult activity. Education is a crucial tool for personal development and intellectual growth. A nation that invests wisely in education easily manages to move ahead in most aspects of its development such as the economy. In the ‘City of God', people are quite ignorant and skeptical of embracing education despite being accessible to them. For some, however, they are eager and cooperative in trying to attain formal education. A good example is Rocket, who is one of the main protagonists in the film. Although he does not manage to get the formal education, he places a lot of effort to learning about photography using his camera in an attempt to become a professional journalist. Conversely, L'il Zee has little regard for formal education and instead, he opts to engage into a life of crime. The film emphasizes much on the level of ignorance among the various characters that lack basic education. It is evident that most children prefer engaging in crime to seeking education. This certainly has a negative effect towards the achievement of urban planning (Brooks 243). ‘The City of God' is filmed in a Rio slum referred to as Cidade de Deus (City of God). This is a miniature picture of what characterizes most urban cities in the majority of the developing countries- slums and informal settlements. However, in some cases, poor settlements and slums are as a result of poor planning by the governments and inadequate housing facilities. These slums and informal settlement areas are characterized by poor sanitation while people living in the areas leading very unhealthy lifestyles. It is not uncommon to find areas that totally lack proper facilities for health and sanitation and where there are, the facilities are insufficient. ‘The City of God' is one such area that gives a vivid picture of the dreadful conditions found in slums globally. These settlements are the major source of urban congestion that leads to the poor spreading of social resources and amenities. According to ‘The City of God' organized gang and criminal activities, are prevalent in most cities across the world. People living in this city areas opt to engage in criminal activities since this might be the only way to survive the harsh living conditions. In the film, Rocket lives in an area where the criminals and gangs walk without fearing arrests or any form of punishment. Dwellers of this areas protect these gangs and in return, they are provided with security. This, therefore, means that criminal activities are quite difficult to eradicate thus causing a persistent problem of insecurity within the city. The continued high levels of insecurity end up leading to very low levels of investment and deprived planning in this areas(Brooks 242). As seen in the film, ‘The City of God’ societies which depict hostility and disorganization result in recording very dismal rates of social and economic mobility. This means that these struggle to progress towards attaining any form of development. With challenges of lack of proper facilities, crime, and insecurity, the poor have very little chance of gaining any development in such conditions. However, for some like Rocket, they are able to rise above all these challenges and get their way out of the inherent chain of poverty. Conclusion In conclusion, the film “City of God” is an evidence of what most cities especially those in the developing world experience in their quest to achieve proper planning. Most of the challenges highlighted above are similar in nearly all parts of the globe although the prevalence may vary according to the level of economy of the setting. Governments and all relevant authorities should, therefore, ensure that before embarking on any form of urban planning, these are the issues they should solve first. The use of the film to expound on the issues is a better way of passing the information. Therefore, the film can act as an important planning resource which can also be used to ascertain the difficulties and issues involved in the development process. Works cited Brooks, Nancy. The Oxford Handbook of Urban Economics and Planning. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print. Read More