Whether it’s for going dancing, meeting new people, listening to music, switching off from daily routine, drinking alcohol or looking for drugs, social nightlife is a process of cultural construction. The idea of having fun and the different ways in which fun occurs form part of socially created contexts, respond to organised dynamics and are constructed in terms of social interests and ideals. From an historical point of view, the idea of having fun was elaborated parallel to the idea of leisure time. The notion of having a time for leisure became increasingly popular and, in addition, became homogenous for the majority of the population in industrialized societies, particularly in large cities, giving rise to the idea of the weekend. As these new concepts of free time and leisure began to emerge so did the need to endow them with significance.
So what has influenced the ways in which people interact with their free time? Technological changes made a substantial contribution to driving social changes in the use and interpretation of time. The most important technological development that sustained this revolution was in transport, the ability of people being able to go places with ease of access. The collages of diversity that characterize cities are composed of different cultural groups each with differing combinations of norms values and lifestyles. This is a reflection of the fact that ‘publics have become more mobile and diverse’ than has been the case in the past (Zukin 1995:3)
According to Hall and Barrett (2012) the definition of creative industries is broad, encompassing the arts, media and science, but this emphasizes the significance of knowledge and intelligence and cultural production to the economics of urban spaces; economics therefore in urban spaces is intrinsically linked to Social Nightlife.
This photo was taken at the ‘world famous’ Zen nightclub on Keate Street, Port-of-Spain, the reason for selection of this photo was to show how social nightlife in Trinidad is centered in well-developed urban areas. The nightclub targets a wide audience, primarily those living in urban areas within close proximity and is deemed the ‘best’ nightclub in Trinidad and Tobago by some and even the wider Caribbean by many.
Hall and Barrett, Urban Geography. London and New York, Routledge Publishing. 2012 (page 163-165)
Zukin, S. (1995) The Culture of Cities, Oxford: Blackwell
Read More-
http://legacy.guardian.co.tt/archives/2004-12-28/bussguardian5.html
Or have a look-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IilPjckKUHQ
honestly, first time i'm actually seeing zen hehe no really...like how you stuck in "looking for drugs" in the beginning, made me laugh...also the idea of a socially constructed night life is quite interesting thinking about the past vs. present ideas of having fun
ReplyDeleteI think this is an excellent picture choice. Its almost like the epitome or prime of the nightlife in Trinidad (correct me if I'm wrong). It is also engraved into our trini culture that a party goer must have gone Zen at some time. It is so true what you said that the urban dweller's idea of having fun is so very different from the rural dweller's idea of a fun night! Looking forward to seeing more!
ReplyDeletethank you both for reading and the kind comments,yes people do indeed go with the intention of looking for drugs! it is true that it is a part of our culture and at some point one must have visited the 'fun' liming spots in the city , stay tuned for more!
ReplyDeletethis blog shows the nightlife so well because it does focus mainly in well developed areas. It attracts people from both urban and rural areas and is really a great way to throw all that stress away :D great post!!!
ReplyDeleteYour referencing needs to be formatted correctly.
ReplyDeleteGreat photo and first entry!