Blogging Social Difference in L.A.: Week 9 - Beverley Hills

Ever since we went through the lecture series on the axes of difference, I have started to think more about gender roles and difference. Growing up I never thought about certain household and work related responsibilities being differentiated based off of gender. This probably has to do with the fact that both of my parents shared all of the responsibilities at home and at work.  I never saw my mom as being confined to the home because she was doing just as much as my dad outside of it.

However, now that I have been exposed to more information and data about these different gender roles in both this class and an urban planning class that I am taking, the social difference tied to them have become more clear to me. Sophie Watson’s article, “City A/Genders,” also made quite an impact on my thoughts. I had never thought about how urban design could be used to either enforce or change these roles, but Watson makes it clear that urban design is a tool that can be used. She even mentioned how many aspects of modern cities actually “curtail women’s easy movement” (Watson 237).  Thus, Watson expands on how the home has become the “domain of women” (237).

However, this week I visited a place that has always felt like another domain for very wealthy women. This place is Beverley Hills. Whenever I make a trip to Beverley Hills or even just drive through it, I notice women eating in the restaurants and shopping in the boutiques. While I do not know the socio-economic status of these women for sure, it seems as though they are very well put together and very wealthy. They do not seem like the type of woman that would be doing the laundry or scrubbing the bathroom floor. Instead of feeling isolated in their own separate worlds of their homes, they are out socializing and shopping. However, this seems to be the exception. Watson’s points are quite valid in many other areas.

This past week when I went to Beverley Hills, I saw another side of this neighborhood. My family went to eat at Lawry’s for my Dad’s birthday. When we walked in I was shocked to see the atmosphere that surrounded me. I felt as though I had gone back in time. The décor was quite decadent and the uniforms of the staff were quite traditional. It was clear from the beginning that eating here would be very much about both the experience and the food.

While I was eating, I observed the people at the tables around us. Right across from our table there was a very big party celebrating another birthday. The family took many pictures and was very involved with each other during their interactions. However, many other tables were not as festive or active. A few barely even seemed to speak to each other. It seemed as though these individuals were definitely in their own world, which did not interpenetrate much. And, for the tables that were filled with interactions the parties shared worlds, but each table had its own. There was not one large world with all of us, but rather separate worlds at each table and even for each individual in some cases. Lawry’s showed me how disconnected individuals can be and reinforced the fact that certain services in our society do not promote a communal world.