1. BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) IN ARCHITECTURE
THEORIES OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM
(ARC61303)
SYNOPSIS: REACTION PAPER (AUGUST 2018)
Name: TAN YANG ID No.: 0328025
Lecturer: MR PRINCE Tutorial Time:
Reader/Text Title: GLOBAL SENSE OF PLACE Synopsis No:1A
Author: DOREEN MASSEY
As a geographer and social scientist, Doreen Massey’s ‘Global Sense of Place’ are discussing the
interrelationship among time-space compression, social relations and sense of place. In this article, the reader
may find there are questions asked by the author. How can we rethink our views of place so that they are
progressive and outward looking? Does openness destroy identity?
First, the author described how time space compression affect the world, how globalization makes the world
speeding up, spreading out and become much more connected in various manner. For example, internet allows
people nowadays communicate through social media or communication tools despite the limits of location and
time, Plane allows us travel to anywhere in one day. Second, she explains the social aspect in terms of power
relationship, which is her concerns on politics of mobility, people with higher power able to weaken the mobility
of others. The juxtaposition of education and social mobility is based on the proposition that education plays an
important role in mobility. For example, students from high income background have more power to access a
better education whereas the weak background student must rely on the scholarships or sponsor which is
always with T&C applied. (2) After that, the author starts moving into the central point, an argument whether
places should either be more open or defensive. She argues that a identity of a place could be multiplied when it
is connected with others. At another side, the place itself can remain its own originality while separate from the
connections.
Overall, the author did manage to explain her ideas in a clear and convincing manner, each point is critically
discussed in the texts, but there is also an example that doesn’t support the author’s idea of being openness. In
Jln Panggung located in Kuala Lumpur, there are existing shophouses with unique architectural features with a
living local community. Unfortunately, the land will be soon acquired for “modern development” and the old
buildings will be demolished, which is an significant impact to the culture and society, the action might potentially
eradicate the history and identity of the society, it shows the necessity of being openness are not always good, it
still in a contradicting state whereas being defensive ensure the authenticity in that place. Although is a fast-
changing world, how can we move forward without the loss of identity?
Word Count: 393 Mark Grade
Assessed by: Date Page No.
