"Modern" Shanghai In The Perspective Of Space

Opening port was the beginning of the modernity of Shanghai. It was after opening port that vegetable market, racecourse, park as so on were input into Shanghai. Meanwhile, shantytowns were appearing generally. In fact, the production of all kinds of new space after opening port represented the production of all the new social relation.With the tangible vegetable markets established in the settlement and Chinese territory one by one, the intangible western modern ideas such as standard, order, market, contract, hygiene, humanity, rule of law, public interest were drove to infiltrate into citizens'daily life imperceptibly, and played a role of discipline and cultivation. At the same time, the course of Chinese people accepted markets was just the course of they accepted the discipline of modern urban life.The original intention of the west opening the space of racecourse was to meet the need of physical exercise and recreation of themselves. However, the racecourse became a display window of the west showing the achievement of modern sports to China and a hotbed of propagating modern sportsmanship. In the fact that, the course of Chinese people rounded up to the Shanghai Race Club and sought after the races during spring and autumn was the process they accepted the nurture of west modern competitive sportsmanship and identified with the embedding of west achieved culture.However, Shanghai Race Club was not only a stadium for strengthening the body, but also a place of the west to show off their power, the political whirlpool of wrestle between Chinese and the west, and downright Vanity Fair.With the western style parks completed one by one and been open to the west and a small potion of high class Chinese, such as Public Park, Hongkou Garden, Parc de koukaza, Zhaofeng Park, Shanghai citizen's public consciousness awoke and their modern spirit of democracy broke out in unspectacular ways. The appearance of commercial private parks which were semi-public and semi-private at the same time and were represented by Shun Park, Chang Park, Yu Park, Hsu Park, semi-Sung Park, signalized that the traditional gardens in Shanghai were transforming from closed private gardens to open commercial private parks and meant that they were changing from belonging to the private to being shared by the public. As the top figure of commercial private parks, Chang Park played a role of park, playground, exhibition centre, Vanity Fair, demimonde and vortex of political fight. Every aspect of Shanghai society during the late Ching Dynasty to the early Republic of China was fully in display on Chang Park.After opening pier, Shanghai attracted a large number of the underclass from North Jiangsu to make a living. It was the insulted and injured pariah from North Jiangsu and the abandoned only Kok that were the most common figures of people from North Jiangsu and their settlement which is Zhabei District. The regional discrimination towards people from North Jiangsu and Zhabei District has existed in Shanghai for a long time. However, it was neglected and avoided. In fact, people from North Jiangsu ceaselessly self-improve and are not unlearned rednecks. However, not until the completion of Life Hub @ Daning in 2006, did transformation to the negative images of Zhabei District which was looked down upon as wilderness and of industrial workers from North Jiangsu was looked down upon as barbarians take effects. On the one hand, the built up of Life Hub @ Daning in Zhabei District betters the negative image of Zhabei District as a slum and the only Kok in the opinion of people in Shanghai, on the other hand, it breeds and encourages the consciousness of Middle Class in this workers area where labour is always regarded as beauty. Appearance of the new urban culture which is concept of Middle Class rises in Zhabei District means that Shanghai is tranferring from a traditional productive society to consumer and leisure one little by little.Obviously, there is a clear main line in the course on generation and evolution of the urban culture of Shanghai after opening port. The principal line is about the modernity which is Shanghai is transforming from tradition to modernity and transferring from the rural to fashion. However, this kind of transformation and transition absolutely cannot happen overnight and is more than all-or-nothing. On the contrary, it is inclusive and comprehensive. Throughout the famous space in Shanghai such as San Jiao Di Vegetable Market, Shanghai Race Club, Chang Park, Pumpkin Alleys and Life Hub @ Daning, various as their attribute is, their appearance or production commonly reflect Shanghai's unique city form or local knowledge after opening port, which is Chinese and western culture combining, the new and the old interweaving, beauty and ugliness coexisting, the positive and the negative cooperating. For an instance, the appearance of vegetable market presented strong secularity, bright commercial colour and distinct political stamp. Not only a stadium for strengthening the body, but also an androphagous gold cave the Shanghai Race Club was. Moreover, it was the political whirlpool of struggle between Chinese and the west and a flaunting Vanity Fair. As the focus of all Chinese people, Chang Park was in multitasking just like Shanghai Race Club and it appeared the private and the public combining and neither fish nor fowl. As for Pumpkin Alleys and Life Hub @ Daning, they are more meaningful. Just in Shanghai, there were a large number of shantytowns no end in sight and a great number of miserable people from North Jiangsu struggling. Meanwhile, neither Nanjing Road nor Huaihai Road nor other bed of roses does Life Hub @ Daning which is splendid and for leisure lie in. On the contrary, it was built in Zhabei District which was the notorious slum and settlement of people from North Jiangsu in Shanghai. Impartially, on the east, Shanghai Workers Community which is the model residential area of industrial workers in Shanghai locates. One is the paradise of middle class; the other is the home of labourers. One is characteristic of leisure and recreation; the other is marked as"labour is glorious"and labour is sacred".No matter which space, no one is not contradictory and not full of tension. It is under the collision and joint action of multiple force that Shanghai keeps advancing despite twists and turns and appears an unique development tendency which is Chinese and western culture combining, the new and the old interweaving, beauty and ugliness coexisting, the positive and the negative cooperating.In spite of the development path with Shanghai's characteristics is so tortuous, its main line is still very clear. With the production of all manners of space in Shanghai, a variety of western advanced concepts such as order, hygiene, contract, public consciousness, freedom of speech, sportsmanship and leisure were implanting and blooming and were changing Shanghaiese's daily life unknowingly. As a result, more than the material life, the citizens'thinking and city atmosphere in Shanghai are more and more modern. All roads lead to Rome. The productive processes of these four kinds of different space present that Shanghai is transforming from tradition to modernity and transferring from the rural to fashion after opening port.One hundred years of Shanghai, and one hundred years in China.