Self-study
P1
Over the past 50 years, expansive, low-density .
Intro to Phenomenon ·
Rise of suburban sprawl
Problem ·
Suburban sprawl causes decline of civic life
New Urbanists view the phenomenon (suburban sprawl) as a problem.
Cause of Problem ·
Zoning laws create physical separation
New Urbanists claim that zoning laws that separate spaces by function (commercial, residential, school, etc.) also precludes communal spaces (like a town square). This is likened to a family that doesn't have a home.
P2
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Aspect of Problem ·
Economic separation
The housing subdivisions tend to be identical in price hence children growing up will be sheltered from exposure to economic diversity.
Aspect of Problem ·
Cars erode civility
Since roads connect the various subdivisions, people spend more time in cars which encourages antisocial behavior.
Solution ·
Mix housing and public space
New Urbanists believe that mix housing (different prices) and walkable public spaces will encourage civic interactions.
P3
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Opponents' Critique ·
Suburban sprawl is an expression of people's values
Opponents do not frame the phenomenon as a problem. Instead, they view it as a legitimate desire to have the kind of lifestyle that suburban sprawl makes possible (house, car, backyard, etc.).
New Urbanists' Rebuttal ·
Take a critical view of values and consider the conflict with other values
New Urbanists just want people to take a critical view of these values (individual mobility, consumption, etc.) and to consider that it may conflict with other values (civic engagement, community life, etc.).
Passage Style
Critique or debate
Problem-analysis
6.
The passage most strongly suggests ████ █████ ███ ██ ███ █████████ █████ █████ ██ ███ ███████ ████████████ ██ ████████ ███████████ ████ █████ ██ ██████████ ████ ███ ███████████████ ██ █████ ███ ███ ███████████
Question Type
Application
As the end of P3 describes, if we build in the way Duany wants, housing would involve a mix of prices, and residents would have narrow streets, parks, grocery stores, cafes, and small neighborhood schools within walking distance. In addition, people of diverse backgrounds and lifestyles would have more opportunities to interact and develop mutual respect.
a
The need for ██████ ████ ██ ████ ████████ ███████ ████ █████ ██████████ ██ ███████████
We have no reason to think this would result based on the development plan described at the end of P3. Duany doesn’t advocate the elimination of cars, so there might still be some traffic and traffic flow. Just because various businesses are within walking distance doesn’t imply there will be absolutely zero car traffic of any kind. Saying that the need for zoning laws would be “eliminated” is too strong.
b
There would be █ ████████ ██ ███ ██████████ ██ ████████ █████████ ████ ███████ ███ ██ ████ ███████████
We have no reason to think this would result based on the development plan described at the end of P3. If anything, there might be a greater percentage with two or more apartments, because people would be living in a more urban environment.
c
The amount of ████ ████ █████████ ██ ███████ █████ █████████ ██ ███ ███████ ████████ █████████ ██ ██████ ███ ████ ███ ████████ █████ █████████
Not supported, because if stores and cafes are more spread out, people might spend less time traveling to business districts. We have no reason to think these urban neighborhoods would be further away from central business districts or require more travel time to get to them.
d
The need for ████████████ ██ ██████ ████████ ███████ ██████████ ███████████ ███ ███████████ ██ ██████ ████████ ███████████ █████ ██ ███████████
Not supported, because we have no reason to think the need for coordination would be “eliminated.” Maybe there would be less need for it, but that doesn’t imply it would be completely eliminated.
e
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This is the only answer that has at least some