Frappant Altona: a contribution to urban development

Abstract

Hamburg, Germany, has always been a socially bipolar port city of rich shipowners and poor dock workers, elitist business tradition and alternative protest scene. This dual identity is part of the self-image of the Hanseatic society. In Hamburg upperclass and underclass traditionally live in parallel worlds – the former in bourgeois city villas, the latter in dense blue-collar worker housing blocks. In between: myriad nuances of middleclass milieus. While the mixed neighborhoods interact habitually, the social poles get in contact only occasionally. But, in conclusion, all social groups constantly ascertain their differentness to each other. In this way they outline their particular characteristics – and their interdependence; they need each other in some way. And finally, all social aspects in total produce Hamburg’s specific quality.