Contenu du sommaire

L'urbanisation des campagnes

• Urbanisation des campagnes - Etienne Juillard p. 5-9
  Urbanization of the Countryside. The urbanization of the countryside or the integration of rural inhabitants into new economic and social relations with town-dwellers, can be interpreted either as the obliteration of the countryside by the technical progress of the town, or as the cooperation of rural and urban inhabitants, resulting in the disappearance of the town/country dichotomy. The essential problem is whether or not a new "urbanized" rural society can develop and create a new balance between natural conditions and technological possibilities. Urban/ rural relations can take three forms: the town, as a colonizer or parasite, lives off the rural populations to whom it rents land; the town, or industrial complex, develops independently of its surroundings, "sterilizing" instead of "fertilizing" them; the town and the countryside work together in view of a generalized and common expansion.
• L'urbanisation dans l'histoire - Georges Duby p. 10-13
  Urbanization in History. Whatever approach is used to study the relationship between towns and the countryside, a crucial point in the problematic of French history for over a quarter of a century, it is necessary to observe carefully the origin and evolution of urban and rural contacts. Historians are concerned with determining when and how towns came to dominate the countryside, financially, administratively and culturally. An historical study of urbanization is essential to understand the evolution of present forms of "inurbation" and their regional variations. Western Europe, especially France, is divided into two sectors: areas where important villages served as mediators between towns and the countryside, and areas where traces of pre-Roman urbanism influenced rural life.
• Village et urbanisation. Problèmes sociologiques - Placide Rambaud p. 14-32
  Village and Urbanization: Sociological Problems. After discussing the different connotations of the term "urbanization" (e.g. population size and density, diffusion of attitudes and behavior, differentiation of social groups, etc.), the author defines it as a process of differentiation within a society. Three kinds of prescientific ideologies of urbanization may influence town-village relations, and because they may deform any analysis of the situation, they must be understood. Urbanization is considered in terms of space and includes all the complementary or conflictual relations existing between two socially differentiated groups of two spatial units, the town and the village. Urbanization can be economic (affecting production, exchange and consumption), cultural (such as the school system, the "folklorization" of local cultures) or political (the remodeling of territorial units: the commune, the department, the region). The creation and modeling of a space where a group can express itself is called urbanism; at the village level, the form it previously took is being changed or copied and deprived of its functions by urbanization. Finally, the author presents a typology of urbanization processes and characterizes urbanization not only by diversification, domination and organic and functional solidarity but also by development. Village urbanization is only part of town development, the constant reorganization of social spaces in all their dimensions.
• Pour une analyse économique de l'urbanisation des campagnes - Michel Gervais p. 33-41
  For an Economic Analysis of Country Urbanization. After defining "town" and "country" in economic terms, the author describes urban economy. The town, characterized by a certain population density and by the kind and variety of its activities, is the manifestation of productive forces and means of production in an historically defined social system; it is where the social, ideological and political relations of capitalistic mode of production most influence individual and group social practices. A study of urbanization is a study of the transformation of rural practices under the influence of urban capitalistic ones. The organization of agricultural production is not directly related to capitalistic production but is founded on the articulation of the dominant mode of capitalistic production with pre-capitalistic, small-market modes. The social, ideological and political relations of rural production are being constantly altered by the increasing domination of capitalistic production. The author considers that the study of urbanization can therefore be reduced to a series of questions inspired by political economy, and in conclusion, proposes areas for further study: the effects of capitalism on the social organization of agricultural production, the role of rural and urban inhabitants in relation to their modes of production, the evolution of rural consumption, the changes in village social structure.
• L'analyse physiocratique des rapports entre la ville et la campagne - Catherine Larrère p. 42-68
  The Physiocratic Analysis of Town and Country Relations. This article deals with Quesnay's physiocratic theories and his attempts to eliminate, by the generalization of capitalism, the antagonism characteristic of urban-rural relations. To rescue the countryside from the misery inflicted by Colbert's mercantilism, he advocated the creation of a capitalistic form of agriculture. In the theoretical analysis leading to the elaboration of this program, town and country antagonism seems to be associated with a certain phase of capitalistic development, and thus bound to disappear as capitalism evolves. Quesnay analyzed capitalistic production in its pure state, formalizing a theory of capitalism in general, rather than a theory of a particular form of agricultural capitalism. Quesnay was also engaged in a controversy with the mercantilists and denounced their policies of urban and industrial expansion. For him, the nation, in order to achieve a harmonious economic cycle, should rely on the countryside and agriculture, not on the town and mercantilism, an urban, colonialist, marginal, form of capitalism. Quesnay announced the maturity of capitalism, which he saw as a means of ending town and country antagonism. Although his projects were never realized and are not entirely realizable, his efforts are of interest for he recognized the necessity of placing urban-rural antagonism in a general theory of social relations.
• Vers une nouvelle fonction de l'agriculture périurbaine - Max Falque p. 69-96
  Towards a New Function of Periurban Agriculture. The author maintains that, in the domain of periurban agriculture, ecological considerations must take priority over economic ones. To defend this argument, he describes the development of the American megalopolis; If France is to avoid similar disasters, we should restructure the town intra muros and thoughtfully divide suburban areas among urbanization, agriculture and parks. The urban planner must understand the spatial consequences of demographic and economic expansion and try to minimize the negative or parasitic consumption of space (urbanized surfaces are surrounded by wastelands where fields and forests have been destroyed but not yet replaced by urban constructions), while not neglecting the positive consumption (each urban inhabitant requires 300 to 400 square meters of land). After examining the inadequacies of contemporary economic policies concerning the localization of agricultural areas, the author explains the concept of "agricultural zones of ecological protection" (ZAPE). Using statistical information on the chemical and biological pollution produced by industrialized farming techniques, he determines the location of these zones in relation to urban centers and the nature of the agricultural activities that should be practiced. He then compares the different means by which a community can acquire the land necessary to create a ZAPE, considering also the cost of such a zone and the ways available to finance It. Ecological protection rather than economic profit should determine agricultural and urbanization policies, and the concept of "gross national product" should be replaced by that of "gross national happiness."
• Appropriation urbaine du milieu rural à des fins de loisirs - Guy Barbichon p. 97-105
  Urban Appropriation of the Countryside for Leisure Activities. The urbanization of certain rural agglomerations is the result of their transformation into winter or seaside resorts; now other country areas, although they lack skiing or bathing facilities, are also beginning to attract urban visitors. The author of this article points out how the development of tourism and leisure activities in rural surroundings enforce town economic and social ascendancy, and he outlines the major phases leading to urban appropriation of the countryside. First rural society takes the initiative in adapting to urban demands, but as these demands become more exigent, urban promoters and contractors assume the financial and technical responsibilities of transforming the contryside. Once the practice of tourism and leisure activities is well established, certain changes occur in rural social organization. These modifications, which are politically and culturally as well as economically motivated, create two opposing groups: the producers and consumers of "leisure" and those of "non-leisure" (farmers, industrials, craftsmen).
• Les ouvriers-paysans en Europe et dans le monde - Corrado Barberis p. 106-121
  The Peasant-Workers in Europe and the World. With the help of historical examples and contemporary statistics, this article examines the professional situation and the sociological "state of mind" of the peasant-worker, considering whether or not he represents the integration of traditional agriculture and modern industry or simply the juxtaposition of two activities. One of the first difficulties encountered in this study in the ambiguity of the expression "part-time"; examples are given to show the diversity of criteria (economic importance, time allotted, actual work accomplished) used to distinguish "full-time" and "part-time" activities in different European countries and the United States. After delineating the statistical problems raised by the analysis of the kinds of employment chosen by part-time farmers (e.g. agricultural, industrial, commercial), the author treats part-time work at the family (as opposed to individual) level, explaining how different members may pursue alternate activities that contribute to the economic development of the group as a whole. The consequences of part-time employment on the structure and conception on the agricultural family are mentioned. Examples of the relationship of part-time agriculture to industrial expansion in various countries lead the author to conclude that the essential difference is not between part-time and full-time but between dilettante farming and professional farming. He predicts the advent of "pleasure-farming"; with the development of synthetic foods, agriculture will no longer be a livelihood for the socially if not economically poor, but a pastime, a luxury enjoyed by the rich.
• De l'espace rural à l'espace urbain. Problèmes de typologie - Robert Chapuis p. 122-136
  From Rural Space to Urban Space: Problems in Typology. The author discusses different methods employed to define rural and urban types of space, not in abstract, universal ways but within definite limits and using criteria that can be expressed in figures. The simplest or "classical" kind of typology uses simple statistical methods and may be based on a single criterion, which is, for example, demographic (agglomeration size, population density) or financial (fiscal potential). But as one criterion, taken alone, proves insufficient, several may be combined. The author next analyzes the ways in which multiple criteria may be selected and utilized, as exemplified by E. Juillard's research on French urbanization and R. Mols' study of the outskirts of Brussels. The indexes chosen by Juillard give an idea of the diversity of criteria available and concern the consumption, mentality, physiognomy, socio-economic development and evolution rate of the communes investigated. After demonstrating how R. Mols arrives at a final overall index by comparing and totalizing the values attributed to different criteria, the author points out the drawbacks inherent in classical typologies. These difficulties can often be overcome by using computers and factorial analysis, which permit the handling of considerable amounts of documentation and its condensation and synthesis with a minimum information loss and of subjective intervention. On the basis of an article by J.-B. Racine treating graphical and mathematical models, the author explains the techniques of factorial analysis and discusses their advantages. Use of these modern methods does not, however, obviate classical geographical experience, and the author warns that a typology is always partial, in both senses, and must not be over-estimated but considered as a research tool whose validity must be proven in the field.
• Les transformations de l'espace rural. Problèmes de méthode - Jean-Claude Bontron, Nicole Mathieu p. 137-159
  The Transformations of Rural Space: Problems of Method. In order to understand the transformations taking place in rural areas, it is essential to define a method of spatial description and classification which makes it possible to determine the nature of these changes and the level at which they occur. After reviewing the diverse connotations of the term "urbanization", the authors explain which definitions they consider unacceptable; in this article, the term is used to designate a certain relationship between densely populated nuclei (towns) and all other space. This concept of "urban-rural relationship" serves as a basis for the development of a method of spatial classification, which is then applied in a simplified form to the analysis of French departments. A tree graph and various maps and diagrams are provided to illustrate the example. Although this method is essentially descriptive and does not elucidate the connection between spatial forms and social processes, it is important because it reveals the inadequacy of the classical, dualistic approach to the problem of town/country relations and focuses attention on the relationship between production and utilization of space, on the social processes involved in spatial and demographic transformations, on the significance of "non-metropolized" space. ments. A tree graph and various maps and diagrams are provided to illustrate the example. Although this method is essentially descriptive and does not elucidate the connection between spatial forms and social processes, it is important because it reveals the inadequacy of the classical, dualistic approach to the problem of town/country relations and focuses attention on the relationship between production and utilization of space, on the social processes involved in spatial and demographic transformations, on the significance of "non-metropolized" space.
• L'influence des implantations industrielles sur les exploitations agricoles - Thérèse Henniquau p. 160-180
  The Influence of Industrial Location on Farming. To show the effect of industrial implantation on agricultural structures, the author discusses the procedures used to obtain land for the Antar and Simca factories in the south-western communes of the Valenciennois. First she describes and compares the communes concerned, using statistics on their total area, cultivated surfaces, crops, population size, growth and density, number of farms, etc. It appears that the degree of industrialization and urbanization of a region is related to the average age of its farmers rather than to the average size of its farms. The consequences of expropriation in a given locality varied according to the location and size of cultivated surfaces, the demographic situation, the technical and psychological possibilities of non-agricultural employment, the understanding among farmers and landowners involved in the transactions, and the possibilities of redistributing land to restructure the farms concerned. To show how the expropriation programs of Antar and Simca have affected the size of farms, comparisons are made between the area of land expropriated and the area offered in compensation, and between the area cultivated in each commune in 1967 and that in 1970. This study reveals that a general policy of expropriation, which tries to preserve workable farms through the redistribution of land obtained by favoring the social or geographic mobility of certain farmers and by advancing the retirement of others, affects the spatial structures of the agricultural areas concerned less than it does their demographic structures.
• Les résidences secondaires des citadins dans les campagnes françaises - Françoise Cribier p. 181-204
  The Second Homes of Urbanités in the French Countryside. After explaining the originality and history of the "second home" phenomenon in France, the author discusses the relationship of the urban occupant to his country home and the consequences for rural areas of the proliferation of secondary residences. Urbanization, the growth of urban populations and the resulting mediocrity of housing conditions are mainly responsible for the acquisition of country homes; economic factors (increased buying power, desire to make a good investment), actual rural conditions (rural exodus, modernization) as well as a romantic longing for rustic life also contribute. The next part of this article gives certain characteristics of country house owners (social and professional situation, location of permanent residence, age) and shows how these factors influence the location, means of acquisition (inheritance, purchase, construction) and choice of style of the home. The rate of occupancy of the country house varies according to its proximity to the principal residence and according to seasonal and climatic conditions; after retirement, the owner may live there permanently. The effects, if any, on rural areas of the presence of second homes belonging to urbanités are much debated and quite varied but in general are either detrimental (architectural degradation, housing problems, strain on communal budgets) or beneficial (stimulation of local business activities, employment of local inhabitants). The relations between the owners of second homes and the local residents depend on the socio-economic situation of the former and the traditions of hospitality of the latter.
• Urbanisation et structures agricoles de la région parisienne entre 1955 et 1966. Essai de méthode - C. R. Bryant p. 205-244
  Urbanization and Agricultural Structures in the Paris Region between 1955 and 1966. In order to define a suitable program of rural planning, it is first necessary to analyze the transformations occurring in agricultural structures as a result of urbanization. This article explains how to prepare a "spatial diagnostic" or representation of situations in geographical space, the first step in such an analysis. After describing the principal characteristics (size of farms, mechanization, production, population) of the region to be examined (the departments of Seine-et-Marne, Val-d'Oise, Yvelines and Essonne), a region "where agriculture and urban development are in conflict, the author discusses his choice of variables that will permit the description of the main aspects of agricultural structure and change and the correlation of the decline, stability, or prosperity of farming with urbanization. The 57 variables selected are listed in Table 1. Next he explains the analytic techniques employed and the methodological framework to which they refer. Factor analysis (Varimax and Promax) is used to define groups of interdependent variables, and dissimilarity analysis, to determine type-situations. Various tables give the results of these analyses, which are then compared with those obtained by the MEAR (Mission d'Étude d'Aménagement Rural) in its study of rural development in the Paris region. The author feels that the method he proposes is more rapid than the traditional one used by the MEAR, and that its results are clearer and more objective. In conclusion, he recommends (to geographers) the use of information theory and its concepts.
• Industrialisation - urbanisation ? L'exemple de Lacq - Suzanne Larbiou p. 245-264
  Industrialization-Urbanization? The Lacq Example. Formerly the most rural agricultural area of the Pau Valley, the Lacq Plain, in less than ten years (1954-1964), has become the third most important urban unit in the department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques. The author describes the economic and social conditions of the region before the discovery of oil and natural gas deposits and then shows the effects that the exploitation of these resources have had on the surrounding countryside. The labor and housing problems caused by the construction and operation of the vast industrial complex are described. Despite the considerable amount of man-power required, few local inhabitants were hired because of the qualifications necessary. The author discusses the changes in the socio-economic situation of those who did find work (young men just released from the army; middle-aged farmers, agricultural workers, craftsmen). As the existing housing facilities were insufficient for the large number of industrial employees not of local origin, a new town, Mourenx, was created to accommodate them. Relations between Mourenx and the surrounding countryside and between the industrial workers and the remaining farmers are also described. All in all, the industrial complex has had only a limited effect on local economy and the creation of the new town has not greatly influenced rural life. If true industrialization and urbanization are to be realized, a policy concerning the development of the Lacq region as a whole (agriculture and industry, rural and urban residents) must be adopted.
• Le renouveau villageois sur la rive gauche du Rhône entre Drôme et Durance - René Grosso p. 265-295
  Village Renewal on the Left Bank of the Rhone between Drome and Durance. The author is concerned with the causes and forms of village renovation in the Rhone Valley. The population of this region, which since the middle of the last century, had diminished, is now beginning to increase, due to the creation of residential suburbs in the villages peripheral to urban centers and to the restoration of abandoned villages. The agglomeration composed of Avignon and its surrounding towns illustrates the classical procedure by which suburbs develop in relation to housing policies, and also shows the effects of urban expansion on village structure and dimension. New relations between the town and the surrounding countryside, and also between urban and rural residents of villages, are formed, and the resulting urbanization, considered in the light of Juillard's definitions, is either that produced by "urbanizing" towns whose influences penetrate the countryside and contribute to its evolution, or that of "insular" industrial centers who do not stimulate their surroundings. The population of the Rhone Valley has grown not only because of the expansion of urban agglomerations but also because of the renovation of abandoned farms and villages by part-time residents of urban origin, tourists, artists and anti-social non-conformists. By their example, the newcomers encourage the local inhabitants to preserve and exploit the natural and historical assets of their region. Four cases are described in detail to show the different ways in which abandoned villages have been revived. In conclusion, the author deplores the creation of villages without villagers, where residents of urban origin have completely replaced native inhabitants and have transformed the site to meet urban needs and desires; he feels that villages where occupants and visitors of diverse origins are associated promise a more durable form of rural renovation.
• « Urbanisation » et vie rurale en Roumanie - Henri-H. Stahl p. 296-303
  Urbanization and Rural Life in Romania. Various processes of "urbanization", "deruralization", and "modernization" are responsible for the changes occurring rapidly in rural Romania. Intense urban industrialization has not only incited peasants seeking employment to move permanently into town but has also created urban zones peripheral to urban centers; the villages of these zones, by supplying daily labor for urban industries and by adapting to the demands of urban markets, have improved their standard of living. The modernization of agricultural techniques and the creation of farming cooperatives have altered both the composition of the rural population and the structure of the agricultural family. Direct cultural action, on the part of the government, through mass media, alphabetization programs and required education, is responsible for the "deruralization" of even remote regions. The disparities between towns and villages are disappearing, not because villages are becoming towns but because they no longer suffer from social and economic underdevelopment. The author concludes by explaining his program for experimentally isolating the diverse factors contributing to village modernization.
• Un exemple de planification rurale : les campagnes de Géorgie soviétique - L. M. Coyaud p. 304-320
  An Example of Rural Planning: The Soviet Georgian Countryside. After mentioning the difficulties encountered in undertaking this study (language problems, lack of maps, aerial views and statistics), the author gives a general description of the Georgian countryside, considering population distribution, houses (construction materials, evolution of styles, organization of living areas) and villages and administrative centers (architecture, public facilities). Certain agricultural activities, because of the nature of the work they require and the profits they bring, are more "urbanizing" than others; examples of areas where mandarins, tea, and grape vines are cultivated show how lucrative crops and their related industries have improved living standards, making the Georgian countryside one of the most advanced rural regions in the Western World. Besides taking advantage of local resources, government projects to prevent country depopulation also increase and diversify rural employment (industry, tourism). There are, however, peasants who seek urban employment and sooner or later, after commuting to work daily, settle in town. These emigrant workers and also the peasants who take their produce to city markets are instrumental in opening the countryside to urban influences. In conclusion, the author discusses types of urban expansion and their effects on rural organization. He describes the plan for the extension of the regional capital Tbilissi: the creation of satellite towns that will permit the maximum penetration of urban "antennas" into the country, allowing the rural inhabitants to take part in their development without transforming or destroying their working and living conditions.
• Les campagnes japonaises et l'emprise urbaine - Augustin Berque p. 321-352
  The Japanese Countryside and Urban Ascendancy. With the help of population statistics and information on vegetable, fruit and meat production and consumption, the author describes the plight of the Japanese farmer who, confronted with government measures to prevent overproduction, attempts to change his agricultural practices. The ensuing economic uncertainty has been responsible, in recent years, for the severe depopulation of the Japanese countryside and for the proletarization of the peasants forced to seek urban employment. This massive exodus has transformed not only the physiognomy of rural Japan (the reduction of cultivated surfaces, the increase of housing and industrial developments) but also the attitudes and practices of the remaining farmers who, from lack of motivation, let their production decline. After treating the problems caused by the sclerosis of agrarian structures and by land speculation in periurban areas, the author describes the forms and consequences of "integration". This phenomenon results from the development of industrialized agricultural companies whose national even international economic importance means extinction to traditional Japanese peasantry. In conclusion, the author defines three factors instrumental in changing urban/rural relations over the past 15 years: the quality of Japanese economic expansion; the need to conform, to be assimilated which characterizes Japanese society; the expression, in terms of spatial organization, of this desire for similarity.