In the early years of the development of sociology (late 19th century to early 20th century),Due to the unclear status of the subject,The corresponding discipline norms and research methods are also being explored,Sociological research during this period showed a mainly miscellaneous appearance。The "miscellaneous" mentioned here has multiple meanings。The first is to get involved in the miscellaneous subjects,Philosophy、Economy、Population、app bet365 download Policy、Politics、Psychology、Scholars in many disciplines or fields such as biology are involved in sociological research to varying degrees;Second, the research purpose is very complex,Different scholars due to their own professional or career influence,Have widely varying research orientations;Third, the research methods are very complicated,Because sociology at this time was basically an experimental subject,Various research methods or techniques may be tried。Urban sociology is certainly no exception,The research of Charles Booth is a good example。
Life experience forges app bet365 download research desire
Although Booth will be called a sociologist in later generations,But Booth’s own origin has nothing to do with scholars。This Englishman, born in Liverpool in 1840, is a businessman,In 1866, together with his brother Alfred, he started a shipping business from England to Brazil,Served as chairman of Booth Steamship Company in 1901,In 1904, he was also appointed as a member app bet365 download Royal Privy Council,Right to meet and advise the King privately。
Booth’s second identity is as a app bet365 download reformer。This has a lot to do with his life experience。In his early years, Booth was not only engaged in business,Also actively participate in local politics,Also ran as a Liberal MP in 1865。He was shocked by the squalor and poverty in the slums during the canvassing process,This caused him to gradually give up his religious beliefs,and develop a strong sense of responsibility for improving poverty and app bet365 download conditions。After living in London,Booth meets his wife Mary’s cousin、Beatrice Weber, a member of the Fabian Society, a app bet365 download reformist group,Octavia Hill, member of the Association of Charitable Organizations、Cannon Barnett et al,And often talk to them about app bet365 download issues。This prompted Booth to devote himself to app bet365 download reform。
app bet365 download researcher is the third identity brought about by Booth’s profession and values。While doing business,Booth is accustomed to making business decisions based on a large amount of market research data and information,And his focus on app bet365 download issues also added a clear sense of reform to his app bet365 download investigations。1885,Reformist politician Henry Hyndman (Britain's first Marxist) published the results of the app bet365 download Democratic Federation's survey on poverty。The survey results show,Up to 25% of London’s population live in extreme poverty。Booth visited Heidemann for this purpose,Think the report is a bit exaggerated,Decided to do a survey on the conditions of workers in London。
The app bet365 download method presents the researcher’s value judgment
Booth’s investigation is inseparable from the app bet365 download conditions of Britain in the 1880s。After two industrial revolutions,Although Britain in the late Victorian era was unique in productivity,But the capitalist exploitation and oppression that Marx and Engels observed decades ago has accumulated into overt app bet365 download unrest。Autumn 1883,A pamphlet "The Bitter Wails of Exiled London" written by an anonymous missionary appears in a London bookstore,has had a huge impact。Almost overnight,British people are aware of the grim facts of urban slums,Aroused app bet365 download indignation and sympathy。Booth’s investigation comes at the right time。
The entire survey consists of poverty、Composed of three parts: industrial and religious influence,Covering family poverty level、Housing、Occupation type、Population movement、Salary level、Working conditions、Prison、Poverty relief、Religious charity、Extensive content such as local security。The Booth survey team worked for a long time from 1886 to 1902,Produced a great result in the history of app bet365 download survey: the seventeen-volume "Life and Labor of the People in London"。The book provides a panoramic view of the poverty in London at that time,Aroused widespread app bet365 download attention at that time,Eventually led to the establishment of a pension system by the British Parliament in 1908。This large-scale app bet365 download survey conducted by an individual also achieved Booth's status in the history of app bet365 download science,He received the Medal of the Royal Statistical Society in 1892,And served as president of the association from 1892 to 1894。Afterwards,He also served as the Royal Commission on the Aged and Poor (1893-1895)、Member of the Tariff Commission (1904) and the Royal Commission for Law and Relief of the Poor (1905),Member of the Royal Society,owns Oxford University、Honorary degrees awarded by the University of Cambridge and the University of Liverpool。
The most distinctive result of "The Life and Labor of London People" is the 12 carefully drawn maps Descriptive of London Poverty,These maps cover from Hammersmith in the west to Greenwich in the east、London city district from Hampstead in the north to Clapham in the south。The scale app bet365 download map is 1:10560,Based on the street segment between each two intersections,Each unit is marked with a different color,Reflecting different levels of poverty and wealth,Even if the poverty level is different on both sides of a street segment,will also be marked separately。The darker the area, the more serious the poverty,For example, black represents "lowest class/quasi-criminal status"、Dark blue means "very poor"、Red means “middle class”、Yellow means "rich"。Except red and yellow,Other colors represent poverty,And correspond to eight levels of poverty status。
Booth's map shown,app bet365 download areas can be found throughout London,And Booth found out after statistics,I originally thought that the 25% app bet365 download rate in London in the Hyndman report was an exaggeration,The reality is even more serious,33% of Londoners live in extreme app bet365 download。When he submitted his report to the Royal Statistical Society in May 1887,Received extensive coverage in newspapers,Because he reported on "Darkest London"。
Technology applications can cross app bet365 download boundaries
Using maps to display app bet365 download conditions is a pioneering work in the history of app bet365 download science research。In 1858,Abraham Hume, a clergyman in Liverpool, once mapped the census results of the local religious population,But its scale is small。Booth’s survey is based on statistics,And the scale of the investigation is huge、Long duration,Has strong scientific nature。The maps were produced and exhibited at two locations in London,Invite the public to visit and make corrections,The maps were also shown to the academic community,And claims that graphically representing the human condition is the easiest way to understand and test it。
Booth graphically demonstrated to people and politicians the true nature and extent of poverty in London,Different from previous descriptive articles on poverty,His investigation not only described the plight app bet365 download poor,It also gave people the concept of gathering poor people,Seeing the relationship between slums and the surrounding environment。This also highlights the spatial nature app bet365 download poverty problem from a theoretical perspective。Can be seen on the map,How often poverty-stricken streets appear,In many places,The middle and upper classes occupy the main streets app bet365 download city,The secondary roads and alleys on both sides app bet365 download main road are where the poor gather,The streets app bet365 download upper-middle class and the streets app bet365 download poor are often only one block apart。This is a good illustration app bet365 download spatial relationship between the “front stage” and “back stage” app bet365 download city,Also highlights the spatial complexity of urban poverty problem,The middle and upper classes cannot be alone on this issue。
The next ten years,While Booth and his investigative team continue their investigation,The map is also constantly revised,And covered a larger area than the 1889 survey。1897 to 1900,Investigation team walks these areas accompanied by police,Vivid record of slum clearance and street reconstruction,Reflects ten years of demolition、Reconstruction and demographic changes。Further analysis of map changes shows,The slum clearance program between 1889 and 1899 improved the physical environment around cleared areas,But the poor app bet365 download area have to find cheap housing app bet365 download surrounding areas,Resulting in a decline in surrounding economic conditions,Indicates that improvements in spatial organization will not have much impact on the lowest strata。
Map is a spatial technology,Originally limited to the application of geography,But today it also plays a broad role in the app bet365 download sciences。Charles Booth’s London Survey pioneered the use of spatial technology in urban studies,Provides a visual method for studying urban phenomena and urban problems。Actually,Plotting survey data into the interpretation that a map can provide,It will be more powerful than simply using mathematical models and words to explain the data。Booth’s London Poverty Map not only provides a basis for solving poverty problems,Hypotheses were also made on the potential causes of these problems。For example,He found that the building density in poor streets was too high,All available space is used to build houses,Hosted with the poorest families,There are narrow alleys between the houses,The air and light are extremely poor。These findings have put forward new requirements for building footprints and construction specifications,Several subsequent building acts established minimum street widths、Building height and the ratio between the two,Specifies the distance a building is set back from the street、Keep open space behind the block,Urban construction regulations prohibiting infill housing construction forms。Booth also advocated,Simply transforming existing blocks is not enough to solve the problem,Coping with overcrowding,Expanding to the suburbs is the only way。This foresees the suburbanization trend in European and American cities in the following decades。
Cities are typical man-made space products,It contains countless spatial issues,So it is inevitable to use spatial technology in urban research。Booth’s research results highlight the value of maps as a spatial technology for app bet365 download research,Today,Map remains one of the core technologies in spatial sociology research。It tells people,app bet365 download phenomena are not just abstract numbers and papers,Also a specific visual picture。
(Author’s affiliation: Department of app bet365 download, School of Public Administration, South China Agricultural University)