David Fleming’s Ideal Public Space
This phenomenon, a tension between a collective identity and heterogeneity, is demonstrated through David Fleming’s article “The Space of Argumentation: Urban Design, Civic Discourse and the Dream of the Good City”. In the paper, Fleming argues that good public discourse is dependent on a good public space. In this context, discourse refers to frequent social contact with other people, especially with those who have different perspectives and arguments but nonetheless share the responsibilities of managing a common community.
The means of creating good public discourse is through building a good public space. Fleming argues that an ideal urban space is based on six main characteristics: size, density, security, publicity, heterogeneity and identity. Size refers to the range of a community. As Fleming argues, larger community spaces promote a greater range of opportunities for practicing public discourse. Density refers to population density of a space- the denser a space, the greater chance for dynamic social encounters. Third is security, a means for privacy and protection within a space. The fourth characteristic is publicity and it is dependent on an open, shared and critical space. Fleming expresses that a good public space must allow people to see one another in order to promote a feeling of social responsibility and action. Finally, the last and most important two characteristics are heterogeneity and identity. Heterogeneity refers to a diverse group of individuals separated by age, race, class, culture or ideology and is important because it encourages people to consider perspectives other than their own. A collective identity, on the other hand, breeds a sense of belonging and community.