Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book looks at city planning primarily from the perspective of the planners. It explores the potential of the city as a space of ritual or ceremony. The book presents case studies when the city was literally turned into a ceremonial stage. The book examines issues related to agency, the transfer of knowledge and the construction of space. It treats basic elements of the urban landscape such as 'municipality', 'monument', 'neighbourhood' and ultimately, the very concept of 'urbanity' as unstable categories whose meanings are constantly contested and negotiated. The book demonstrates the inherent instability in the definition of another element of the urban landscape, the monument and urbanization in Yugoslavia after the Second World War. The city has traditionally been a place of representation; it has often served as a stage for forming, displaying and solidifying power relations.