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- Thu Jun 09, 2016 4:27 pm
#26334
Passage Discussion
The passage describes the phenomenon of urban sprawl—the development of expansive communities on the outskirts of larger cities. The New Urbanists view this as contributing to a decline in community life. They contend that without a central hub for community life (like a town square), people cease to behave like members of a community and instead become disconnected and antisocial. To counter this effect, the New Urbanists recommend walkable residential developments with mixed housing that value diversity and interaction.
Paragraph One:
This paragraph introduces the notion of urban sprawl and the viewpoint of the New Urbanists (Duany et al.). Their main view is that suburban sprawl contributes to the decline of civic life (lines 8-9). We are told that the separation of homes, stores, businesses, and schools is due to automobile traffic and the zoning laws related to it.
Paragraph Two:
In the second paragraph, the author describes the typical subdivision, where diversity of housing appearance and price is largely absent, and where residents spend much of their time communing rather than interacting with one another. As a remedy, the New Urbanists recommend that residential development include diverse housing (in both style and price), and facilitate greater social interaction.
Paragraph Three:
In the last paragraph, we are introduced to the opponent’s viewpoint, stating that suburban residents live as they do as a matter of personal preference, and value the freedom of driving. However, the author clearly sides with the New Urbanists and their counterargument that community life and its social impact should take precedence over wealth and consumption.
VIEWSTAMP Analysis:
Two Viewpoints are presented in addition to the author’s own views: the New Urbanists (lines 4-45 and 50-59) and the opponents of New Urbanism (lines 46-50). The author’s views are alluded to in the last paragraph of the passage.
The Structure of the passage is as follows:
The main Argument is that suburban sprawl is damaging to civic life, a view supported by a series of observations in the first and second paragraphs. The counterargument, which the author rejects, is that sprawling suburbs are an expression of people’s desire to live autonomously and enjoy the freedom of driving.
The Main Point of the passage is to describe the New Urbanists’ critique of suburban sprawl and defend an alternative type of residential development.
The passage describes the phenomenon of urban sprawl—the development of expansive communities on the outskirts of larger cities. The New Urbanists view this as contributing to a decline in community life. They contend that without a central hub for community life (like a town square), people cease to behave like members of a community and instead become disconnected and antisocial. To counter this effect, the New Urbanists recommend walkable residential developments with mixed housing that value diversity and interaction.
Paragraph One:
This paragraph introduces the notion of urban sprawl and the viewpoint of the New Urbanists (Duany et al.). Their main view is that suburban sprawl contributes to the decline of civic life (lines 8-9). We are told that the separation of homes, stores, businesses, and schools is due to automobile traffic and the zoning laws related to it.
Paragraph Two:
In the second paragraph, the author describes the typical subdivision, where diversity of housing appearance and price is largely absent, and where residents spend much of their time communing rather than interacting with one another. As a remedy, the New Urbanists recommend that residential development include diverse housing (in both style and price), and facilitate greater social interaction.
Paragraph Three:
In the last paragraph, we are introduced to the opponent’s viewpoint, stating that suburban residents live as they do as a matter of personal preference, and value the freedom of driving. However, the author clearly sides with the New Urbanists and their counterargument that community life and its social impact should take precedence over wealth and consumption.
VIEWSTAMP Analysis:
Two Viewpoints are presented in addition to the author’s own views: the New Urbanists (lines 4-45 and 50-59) and the opponents of New Urbanism (lines 46-50). The author’s views are alluded to in the last paragraph of the passage.
The Structure of the passage is as follows:
- Paragraph 1: Introduce the New Urbanists and their critique of suburban sprawl.
Paragraph 2: Describe the downsides of a typical subdivision and propose an alternative type of development (smaller urban neighborhoods).
Paragraph 3: Outline a counterargument and defend the New Urbanists against it.
The main Argument is that suburban sprawl is damaging to civic life, a view supported by a series of observations in the first and second paragraphs. The counterargument, which the author rejects, is that sprawling suburbs are an expression of people’s desire to live autonomously and enjoy the freedom of driving.
The Main Point of the passage is to describe the New Urbanists’ critique of suburban sprawl and defend an alternative type of residential development.