Coda
1 he past two decades of the twentieth century saw technological advance s in communication an d transportatio n facilitat e capita l globalization, whic h gives rise to a popular belief in a new global space that is fluid, flexible, and open to everyone democratically. Examining the validity of such a conception of space, I turn to Asian global cities such as Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Shanghai, whose urban geography has been radically reshaped to cater to the needs of flexible accumulation at an unprecedented speed. The social/historical account of the urban development of these cities during the campaign of their "global city formation" reveals how the idea of an infinite space opened up by global flows i s mediate d i n developmen t slogans , governmen t whit e papers , o r commercial film s fo r rea l estat e agency . Hong Kon g people, Tokyoite s an d Shanghainese are instructed to make room for their metropolises to accelerate capital flow s a s well as to tak e pride i n being a member o f the globa l city, which supposedly shoul d lea d them t o a prosperous Utopia of possibilities. Pointing t o th e azure , th e glitterin g skyscraper s becom e th e site s wher e urbanites project thei r desire for a space of limitless aspirations despite th e fact that many of them never get to use the monumental space in their everyday life. The collective longing for an open space enabled by globalization ofte n finds its anchor in the monumental buildings in the city. To address th e question o f whether th e Utopian aspect of globalizatio n should also be represented and if one has to be completely pessimistic about the futur e o f people' s abilit y t o b e i n contro l o f thei r everyda y lif e i n th e global city, I argue that th e tone of this project o n globalization is "critical" rather tha n "pessimistic. " As I illustrated i n these chapters, interest group s like nation-states , transnationa l corporations , rea l estat e companies , 138Cod a multilateral financial organizations, and a small group of elite urban planners and architects have been disseminating and promulgating globalization as a decentralized, open space for everyone in every corner of the world. I choose to leave the happy story for them to tell. Yet, in the future when government officials o r urba n planner s proudl y presen t thei r campaig n o f globa l cit y formation and monumental buildings, hopefully the y also have in mind th e September 11 attacks and the needs of the exploited people before telling the grand narrative of globalization. The artistic account in each chapter tell s the story of walking in thes e global cities as an experience of oscillating between yearning and frustration . It is through the representation of walking in the films and novels that we see the contradictions inherent in the lingering belief in the open space mobilized by global flows . Th e walkers ' footstep s compos e "littl e narratives " o f th e concrete here-and-now of the global city as experienced rather than conceived by the individuals. The sense of melancholy, angst, and nostalgia these walkers display whil e wanderin g th e street s o f thei r citie s suggest s th e fallac y o f globalization as an immediate Utopia without any inhibitions. Investigating the representation o f walking in global cities, I conduct an inquiry into th e way i n whic h th e powe r o f capital , b y re-inscribin g th e ideolog y o f ope n space o n th e urba n landscape , conceal s o r misrepresent s th e forbidden , confined, or monitored in the global city. The critique of the ideology of open space, presented throug h th e politics o f walking and th e ga p between th e official account and the private account of the Asian global cities, is to provide a counte r narrativ e t o th e myt h o f globalizatio n a s a progress t o th e bes t interest of all. ...
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