The problems of urbanizm as an object of scientific reflection

Abstract

Cities are the subject of extensive research by historians, sociologists, economists, philosophers, political scientists, lawyers, cultural scientists, etc. The theoretical foundations of the study of cities and problems of urbanism in general as objects of scientific reflection have a long tradition and are based on the classic works of well-known foreign specialists ( E. Berdges, F. Brodel, M. Veber, L. Virt, R. Mc Kensi, R. Park, M. Tihomirov). The cross-curricular nature of the content of the concept of «city» in the field of sociopolitical relations has been analyzed. The achievements of urban scientists have been investigated in order to identify the content and orientation of the processes of socio-economic, socio-political and cultural development of human communities in separate periods of their history. The evolution of cities, their daily life depended upon the territorial-administrative device of the state, its political and legal system. The nature of governance in cities was determined by the level of the social and economic development of the city, its geographical position, social and ethnic composition of the population. The role of cities in the formation of Western civilization and democracy has been shown. It has been proved that the character of urban settlements in Ukraine, their spatial and demographic characteristics are to a large extent derived from Soviet totalitarian and authoritarian regimes with their inherent planned economy and institute of residence. The city is also considered as a phenomenon in the semiotic aspect, as a kind of sign system, which is determined by a certain ideology. Urban space explicitly or implicitly incorporates a dominant ideology that is manifested in street names, slogans, monuments, architectural structures and more. P. Bourdieu's views on the content of the spatial characteristics of the city, reflecting social differentiation and hierarchy and, accordingly, have socio-political orientation, have been revealed. A relatively new area of political studies of cities in Ukraine – political urbanism – has been characterized.