To understand the most important characteristics of a society, one must study its major cities.Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In deve

Major cities are the most appealing parts of a society. However, they are just like cake toppings. They give people the first impression, but obviously they are not the most important part for a cake. Similarly, major cities, though fascinating, only reflect partially what a society really is.

I concede that this statement partially holds true, since major cities are the name cards of a society. As hubs of cultural, political and economic activities, major cities are crucial lens to investigate a society; moreover, they are highly diversified- people from different walks of life gather in major cities, making it a good site to observe various lifestyles in a society. As a result, major cities reflect some of the most important facets of a society- how it is functioned and how diversified it is.

However, to gain a more comprehensive understanding of most important characteristics of a society, merely studying major cities cannot yield to satisfying results. I am assured that, smaller cities as well as the rural areas are also important sites that one must not miss. Firstly, there is vast population in the countryside. If, for example, we hope to understand that why people in a society vote to a certain politician, excluding rural areas will miss a great majority of its people. Secondly, people in major cities may not necessarily embody the core values of a society. For example, due to the suburbanization of American, now white middle class are densely populated in small towns or the countryside. Generally speaking, they are who represent the mainstream values of American society, so instead of focusing solely on big cities on the west coast, it is better to look into how people in those small towns think and react. For example, in the 2016 presidential election, surveys reveal a sharp divide between urban cores and rural communities- the electoral maps attest that the blue (Democratic) clusters are in cities and the Republican support is strongest in the vast lands of rural America. Urban and rural America is increasing polarized, so if we merely study what had happened in major cities, we are sure to fail to figure out what most people in American society is thinking about.

Furthermore, many societies suffer from uneven development, bringing about drastic differences in urban and rural areas. Especially in developing countries, such as China or India, people’s life styles, mindsets, and values are greatly differed in urban and rural areas. For example, due to the dualism of household registration system in China, many people have to stay in under-developed rural areas. If we try to understand Chinese society by studying Beijing or Shanghai, we are very likely to conclude that Chinese society is highly developed and modernized. However, it is not the real picture- we will miss the sufferings, poverty, and miseries in its vast rural area. To sum up, in situations of uneven development, only studying major cities will led to a misleading picture of a society.

Additionally, even in societies that fortunately do not suffer from uneven development, merely studying major cities is not enough. A society, in fact, is an inter-related system connecting urban and rural areas. The economy, culture, and politics in major cities are inseparable from those in smaller towns and rural areas. For example, Shenzhen, located in the southern coast of China, the development of Shenzhen is largely dependent on those migrant workers coming from rural areas in China. It is those migrant workers, be treated as ‘cheap labor’, served as the tools of capital accumulation for factories in Shenzhen, as well as other major cities in China. To conclude, without understanding of other smaller cities or rural areas, it may even be difficult to grasp the essences of major cities in a society. Different parts within a society is inter-related, so when understandings of a society, its various parts as well as how those sites are connected as a whole should be taken into consideration.

Summing up, though it seems that large cities may reflect the characteristics of a society, to grasp its most important characteristics, studying major cities will only brings about limited understanding. With its vast population, different characteristics, and inter-connectedness with major cities, understanding a society through a full picture will yield to more solid knowledge than glances at major cities.