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| A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON THE PHILOSOPHY OF RADIANT CITY AND BROADACRE CITY |
| XIANG Lan-lin, LU Bin |
| College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100871, China |
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Abstract Cities and villages experienced great changes in the 20th century. Almost all present cities' forms can be traced back to two famous architects' urban Utopia. One is the Radiant City and the other is Broadacre City. Both were criticized by historians, sociologists and urban planners. From a more humanistic perspective, this paper interprets the contexts and texts of the two different Utopias that Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier proposed in 1930s with the analysis of the relationship between the architects' world views and the urban forms and structures of the two Cities. The Radiant City, based on the background of philosophy revolution, reflects the dialectical thoughts of Le Corbusier from three perspectives including giving space the order that draws from the mathematic geometry and inner abstract metaphor, maintaining the equilibrium between efficiency and Basic Pleasures (sun, sky, trees, water etc), and coordinating the collective and the individual. Le Corbusier wanted to make cities the creation of harmony. The Broadacre City, based on the background of American liberalism and individualism and Spencer's social Darwin, is the organic integrity of Wright's thoughts. all reflect Wright's American Democracy, a great entity in everything including the Broadacre City. From the philosophically critical view, this paper discloses the paradox which lies in ontology and epistemology of urban citizens and their relationships. The two Urban Utopias reflect the former urban planners' thoughts about the city. They considered that the physical arrangement of the space was the essence of Urban planning and the solution to the present crisis, and the people in the two cities are abstract, but not the real existing ones. They also misunderstood the relationship between the space and the people. They considered that the physical spaces planning could be the effective method of the social revolution, yet that is superficial space, not the real existed social spaces. Their misunderstanding is based on Modernism whose core is the aesthetics since Nietzsche. Though their Utopia's might have defects, it should encourage the present people to pursue more pleasure and hopes in the future.
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Received: 02 September 2009
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2010, Vol. 25 
