Why Urban Cultural Studies? Why Henri Lefebvre?

Abstract

From the outset it is necessary to point out that any definition of “urban cultural studies” is likely to be as polemical as those of its two constituent parts—“cultural studies” and “urban studies.” The meanings and significance of these terms themselves have been and continue to be hotly and widely debated within and across a number of increasingly interdisciplinary fields. And yet, taking a moment to sketch out the nature of the debates—even if briefly and in general terms—is necessary if we are to understand the current need for an urban cultural studies method, a method that might bridge both humanities and social science scholarship on the culture(s) of cities. The starting point for Toward an Urban Cultural Studies is, thus, to formulate a provisional definition of urban cultural studies. This requires, first, identifying a generalized, but also representative and relevant, thesis of cultural studies method and, second, subsequently applying this thesis to interdisciplinary research on the city in broad terms.