中西文化charper9 the grid.pptVIP

building culture into the landscape chapter 9 People usually look at language , customs , history , values , and behaviors to find the influence of culture in their lives. This remind us of one of the most widely accepted definitions of culture Culture is the total accumulation of beliefs , customs ,values , behaviors , institutions and communication patterns that are shared ,learned and passed down through the generations in an identifiable group of people . Now we turn our attention to another characteristic of culture and that is the patterns. Human beings build not only to provide shelter but also to provide structures for ordering relationships and activities. our culture are built into the layout of cities, villages and farmland,and in the design of buildings. The grid Most of the cities and towns of the united states are arranged in a grid pattern of right-angled streets. The naming and numbering system varies from city to city ,but the basic grid pattern is the same . some small towns name their streets after trees and name them in alphabetical. with a pattern like this it is difficult to get lost,because the address of any building locatea it in a specific place on the grid. The same pattern can be seen in the interstate highway system that covers the country with a grid of regularly numbered highways . The large farms of the Midwest are arranged in a similar way . this pattern encouraged settlers to move west,because the grid provided a path for them to follow. it ordered and civilized the wilderness. Farmers live on their individual farms rather than in towns and villages . In grid cultures there is no fixed center Any point on the grid can become important depending on what is located there . New cities grow up at the intersections of the interstate highway systems while the centers of older towns die from neglect. any corner can become a center. thank you ! * * new york city subway manhattan alphabetical:字母的;照字母次序的 *