Examine the claim that cities have recently entered a "postmodern" stage in their development

Anthony Giddens defines postmodernism as "the belief that society is no longer governed by history or progress." He sees postmodern society as "highly pluralistic with no 'grand narrative' guiding its development"(Giddens, 2001). But it is also important to look at 'postmodernity' in relation to 'modernity', to see it as the direct result of the latter, as a reaction to the industrial, functional qualities of the modern movement (James-Chakraborty, 2001). From a sociological view-point the two movements …

…apter 7 of Consumer Culture and Postmodernism -Giddens, Anthony, 2001, Sociology -Harvey, David, 1989, The condition of Postmodernity -James-Chakraborty, Kathleen, 2001, Postmodern Architecture and Urbanism Available at: http://arch.ced.berkeley.edu/courses/arch170/past/SP2001/05-01-01.html -Klotz, Heinrich, History of Postmodernism Architecture Available at: http://www.geog.utoronto.ca/info/facweb/Rankin/CourseOutlines/OH_wk9_03.htm -Macionis, John J, and Plummer, Ken, 1997, Sociology, a global introduction -Rogers, Richard, 1997, "This is Tomorrow", Independent on Sunday, 23rd November 1997