Explain the approaches of Simmel, Wirth, and Gans to city life

Question

Please provide the best answer for the statement

Answer 1

1. Simmel argued that in contrast to rural areas, which are calmer and slower-paced, cities are
fast-paced and characterized by an overstimulation of sights, sounds, and smells, which
causes individuals to respond to one another in detached, more reserved ways, often not
getting involved in situations or with people. Individuals become apathetic, indifferent,
and distrustful, in an effort to protect their psychological health from being overridden by
the stimulation of the city. Their relationships become more informal, calculating, and
rational and are dominated by market purchases in which people do not know one another.
2. Wirth argued that city dwellers lose the sense of participation that comes from living in an
integrated society. In comparison to rural areas, the larger size of city populations, coupled
with higher population densities and the diversity of individual backgrounds, makes
forging individual connections hard to do. The family declines in significance, social
relations become transitory, superficial, and anonymous. People also segregate themselves
according to race, ethnicity, social class, tastes, and preferences, making quality
interactions between people of different backgrounds rare. There also fails to be agreement
about what norms should be followed, resulting in more crime and deviance.
3. Gans argued that not all city dwellers have the same experience. He outlined five kinds of
city dwellers: (1) The cosmopolites, who live in cities for cultural and social reasons; (2)
singles and childless couples, who live in cities to be closer to their jobs and nightlife; (3)
ethnic villagers, who are recent immigrants who live close to one another because they
have shared identities and bonds around race, class, ethnicity, and/or culture; (4) the
deprived, who are people with little education and few resources; and (5) the trapped, who
are people who want to leave their neighborhoods but cannot for reasons such as poverty
or addiction to drugs or alcohol.