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| Semester | fall semester 2018 |
| Course frequency | Every 2nd fall sem. |
| Lecturers | Kenny R. Cupers (kenny.cupers@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | During the twentieth century, the world’s population increased more than in any other period in history, from about 1.6 billion in 1900 to over 6 billion in 2000. Where did all those people come to live—how did they house themselves, or come to be housed? Our world is rapidly urbanizing, with an increasing share of the population living in metropolitan regions and the growth of mega-cities, especially in the global South. Large-scale migration has prompted unparalleled challenges in the realm of housing production and maintenance, and problems of urban livability more generally. This introductory-level lecture course explores the realities and the dreams of housing from the late nineteenth century until the present. During this period of unprecedented urbanization, globalization, and technological development, but also of world war, humanitarian crisis, and deep poverty, housing was often a central problem, prompting a growing range of solutions. From war-damaged Europe to suburban California and from apartheid Johannesburg to high-rise Singapore, the course surveys the major types of housing that have accommodated the world’s unprecedented population growth and in doing so, have shaped the vast expansion of our urbanized world in the past century. We will explore not only the radical dreams of architects and planners and the money-making schemes of developers, but also the complex involvement of governments, experts, home-buyers, and those simply needing a place to live. |
| Learning objectives | Students will be familiarized with architectural concepts such as form, style, type, function, and program, and learn to visually analyze built environments. At the same time, the course trains students to understand housing as the product of particular historical forces— such as the transformation of capitalism or the projects of state socialism. By looking at how new kinds of housing and new ways of dwelling emerge and transform as they travel across the globe, the course problematizes oppositions between modern and traditional, between North and South, and between canonical architecture and vernacular building. |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Course auditors welcome |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Modul Fachkompetenz Globaler Wandel (Master's degree subject: Geography) Modul Profil: Geschichte Afrikas (Master's degree program: European History (Start of studies before 01.08.2018)) Modul: Europäisierung und Globalisierung (Master's Studies: European Global Studies) Modul: Fields: Environment and Development (Master's degree program: African Studies) Modul: Fields: Governance and Politics (Master's degree program: African Studies) Modul: Kulturtechnische Dimensionen (Master's degree program: Cultural Techniques) Modul: Transfer: Europa interdisziplinär (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Module: Projects and Processes of Urbanization (Master's degree program: Critical Urbanisms) |
| Assessment format | record of achievement |
| Assessment details | Students will be assessed for this course in a final exam during the last class (18 December). Those unable to make the exam should not take this course. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | one repetition, repetition counts |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | as often as necessary |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Urban Studies |