I am responding to Nadia’s week 2 blog post on the car and
Venice Beach trip.
Having so much diversity really does show a urban setting
when different people are doing different things. When you mentioned there are
so many shops, performers, poor, rich, etc, I think about organic solidarity,
which is that different people who do different things work and complement each
other so that they are able to build a successful society. This also brings me
back to Darwinism and how ecology and resources are able to sustain itself
because different species need different things. No one competes for one
resource so resources do not get used up.
This can be applied to Venice beach because of its diversity. For instance, the shoppers are helping the shop keepers by buying from them and the shop keepers are helping the shoppers by giving them pretty souvenirs or a jacket when it’s cold, or a hat when it’s too sunny. Same with the performers there, they perform to get money and the tourist watch and give the performers money for their entertainment. Here, organic solidarity really makes Venice Beach work and keep it from being boring. Because everyone is different, they must have social differences. For example, the shop keepers probably do not have as much money as the shoppers, who can afford the luxury of taking a walk on Tuesday or affording products such as souvenirs that are not necessities. In fact, it is our culture to travel and buy souvenirs for family and friends, thus, this idea of traveling for fun and buying nonfunctional things, things just to have as a memory, and gifting, gives a clear sign that one who buys souvenirs can afford to spend their money on luxuries. In Venice social differences such as the shopper and shop keeper help to build an amazing place such as this beach.
(Updated: 12.8.2012) After finishing this class, and learning about the nature and social difference lecture and topic, I wonder, would Venice Beach act as a counter example for showing social difference with nature. I say this because beaches are generally for the higher class because Americans have a culture to enjoy playing or tanning at the beach and beaches and oceans are natural landscapes that the rich or white are attracted to. However, there are many homeless people and the performers on the beach do not seem to be considered of higher class or wealthy, so wouldn't this mean that nature is not only accessible to the rich but here, it is accessible to everyone? From the two pictures of the same beach, one can see there are two perspectives to the beach. One picture looks much more like the beach is for the wealthier class because it really does look like a calming landscape of nature, while the other seems to show many campers with can food and tents.
This can be applied to Venice beach because of its diversity. For instance, the shoppers are helping the shop keepers by buying from them and the shop keepers are helping the shoppers by giving them pretty souvenirs or a jacket when it’s cold, or a hat when it’s too sunny. Same with the performers there, they perform to get money and the tourist watch and give the performers money for their entertainment. Here, organic solidarity really makes Venice Beach work and keep it from being boring. Because everyone is different, they must have social differences. For example, the shop keepers probably do not have as much money as the shoppers, who can afford the luxury of taking a walk on Tuesday or affording products such as souvenirs that are not necessities. In fact, it is our culture to travel and buy souvenirs for family and friends, thus, this idea of traveling for fun and buying nonfunctional things, things just to have as a memory, and gifting, gives a clear sign that one who buys souvenirs can afford to spend their money on luxuries. In Venice social differences such as the shopper and shop keeper help to build an amazing place such as this beach.
(Updated: 12.8.2012) After finishing this class, and learning about the nature and social difference lecture and topic, I wonder, would Venice Beach act as a counter example for showing social difference with nature. I say this because beaches are generally for the higher class because Americans have a culture to enjoy playing or tanning at the beach and beaches and oceans are natural landscapes that the rich or white are attracted to. However, there are many homeless people and the performers on the beach do not seem to be considered of higher class or wealthy, so wouldn't this mean that nature is not only accessible to the rich but here, it is accessible to everyone? From the two pictures of the same beach, one can see there are two perspectives to the beach. One picture looks much more like the beach is for the wealthier class because it really does look like a calming landscape of nature, while the other seems to show many campers with can food and tents.
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| This photo makes the beach look like its more natural and a nice place compared to the picture on the bottom. |
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