Use Value and Urban Space: The City as a Hub of Political, Cultural and Symbolic Shaping of Societies

This article outlines a theoretical proposal intended to understand the concept of use value applied to the study of the city and the urban space, in their origins and development. Based on Henri Lefebvre’s views, the main argument of this work is that the city initially arises as use value. Accordi...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Márquez Pulido, Ulises Bernardino
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2015
País:México
Institución:UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL AUTÓNOMA DE MÉXICO
Repositorio:Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Políticas y Sociales
Idioma:español
OAI Identifier:oai:ojs.pkp.sfu.ca:article/47729
Acceso en línea:https://www.revistas.unam.mx/index.php/rmcpys/article/view/47729
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:use value
urban space
city
sign
symbol
valor de uso
espacio urbano
ciudad
signo
símbolo
Descripción
Sumario:This article outlines a theoretical proposal intended to understand the concept of use value applied to the study of the city and the urban space, in their origins and development. Based on Henri Lefebvre’s views, the main argument of this work is that the city initially arises as use value. According to Bolívar Echeverría and Gilbert Durand approaches, the article claims that use value not only is material, signic and semiotic, but also symbolic. It is argued that the symbolic plays a crucial role in the construction of cities, just as important as economy and politics. A case study is carried out with the aim of suggesting a concurrence of theoretical interpretations ranging from historical materialism to symbolic hermeneutics. The author concludes that the city and the ordering of its urban space are major hubs around which societies are organized.