Social reproduction of space and soundscapes

Abstract

The aim of this study is to present a basic discussion of whether sound can be a factor in the process of the reproduction of social space. In order to examine this ubiquitous phenomenon, sound needs to be traced back to its source, the physical environment to which it is attached. In this context, the role of sound in urban areas requires urban morphological and demographical knowledge and this knowledge establishes the physical features of a sonic environment which was radically transformed after the industrial and the electricity revolutions. It is therefore necessary to examine the phenomenon through its historical roots which correspond to the 'modern' era, which has been practised by several thinkers from a variety of geographies. The common ground of these first studies was rapid urbanization. On the other hand, 'the experience of urban' was also becoming the question asked by modern intellectuals. Some of them, for instance, preferred to walk through the modern city and to narrate the modern way of life critically, for the first time, from the perspective of the individual, unlike the previous model-based analyses of urban sociologists and planners. In particular, Simmel, Benjamin, Lefebvre, de Certeau and Debord all structured theories and pioneering discussions of everyday life and the experience of space within this perspective. Adopting an interpretive approach for this current study, I began by re-evaluating Lefebvre's 'rhythmanalysis' and Debord's 'psychogeography' for my research area, the sonic environment of Karaköy, in order to question the use of experience-based practices in the field of soundscape studies. In addition to these pioneers, a relatively new concept, the 'threshold spaces' of Stavros Stavrides, has also been used here as a basis for understanding soundscapes. In this research, the continuums of sound, environment and individual experiences are discussed in the physical, perceptual, social and cultural contexts. It has been concluded that it is necessary to evaluate soundscape as a social sphere within the process of the social reproduction of space. This conclusion led me to study the soundscape of Karaköy as a threshold space where the everyday flows of people, goods and services are considerably dynamic and diverse. In order to portray the sound environment of the area, the urban transformation of the Galata region is studied both morphologically and demographically. Some of the well-known soundscape research methods such as soundwalking and sound mapping were adopted for Karaköy's urban analysis. The recorded soundwalks help to identify the background and foreground sounds of the sonic environment. In addition to the soundwalks, a public survey was conducted to explore daily users' sound experiences. The findings show that sound has a critical role in everyday life for people who experience the space in a social context. As a final remark, it is concluded that sound must be also seen as one of the significant dimensions of urban analysis for scholars who seek to understand the urban strata multi- and/or omni-directionally in which sound has carried the historical roots of urban experiences for hundreds of years, and this long-lived sonic process also constitutes the process of the social reproduction of space. © INTER-NOISE 2019 MADRID - 48th International Congress and Exhibition on Noise Control Engineering. All Rights Reserved.