Tag Archives: Manhattan

Manhattan

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Edwin Contreras

Prof. Rosen

English 1101

 

   The Brooklyn Heights Promenade is a place where people come to relax and enjoy the view of Manhattan. Observing Manhattan then looking at the area around me, I could see the big difference in height. Manhattan is the place for opportunities, they say if you can make it in New York then you could make it anywhere in the world. Having the chance to explore the area around City Tech, I believe the Brooklyn Heights Promenade has one of the greatest view in New York City. Everyone has their own perspective of the city we all love. Colson Whitehead wrote an article called “City limits” in which he explains that you have the ability to view the manhatten in your own individual way.

       Being able to live in New york City is a privilege, it’s the city that never sleeps, the city where your dreams come true, a place that I call home. Being able to see the Manhattan skyline from the Brooklyn Heights Promenade is great because it’s not to far away from my school. The Brooklyn Heights Promenade is a long walk way, right over the Brooklyn Queens Expressway. People come onto the promenade for a light jog, to take pictures, and to sit down on a benches to enjoy the view of the Manhattan skyline. Standing in the Promenaded other then seeing the Manhattan Skyline, you also able to see the Brooklyn bridge and also the Statue of Liberty. Depending on the weather conditions, if it gets so foggy or misty then only the Manhattan is visible with the top of the skyscrapers covered by the mist or fog.  

       The Brooklyn Heights Promenade has a spectacular view of Manhattan. Juxtaposing Manhattan to Brooklyn, Brooklyn seems like a small neighborhood compared to the tall skyscrapers that Manhattan contains. Being able to see them both from a view, I can see how Manhatten stands tall and proud while Brooklyn just stands still, without no motion of growth. In the article “City Limits” by Colson Whitehead, he states “The New York City you live in is not my New York City…”, the author states that not everyone sees the same New York. Everyone has their own perspective of New York City.

       Being able to look at something in a group, I notice that not everyone thinks alike. My friend Citlalli came with me once to the Brooklyn Heights Promenade and I told her about the project I was doing and asked for her help. I told her to to tell me what she sees when she looks at the Manhattan skyline. She said she saw “sadness” and a place where she “lost an opportunity to do something in life”. This was nothing compared to what I saw when I looked at Manhattan. I saw the opportunity to become someone in life and also a place where my dreams can come true. Citlalli told me that she saw sadness because one of her family members has cancer and she goes with her to Manhattan for her treatments, she also stated that her dream were crushed because she was not accepted to a college which is located in Manhattan. I on the other hand see a place for better life because my parents migrated from our homeland and came to New York for better opportunities.

     The manhattan skyline is always changing with time. In the late eighteenth century the manhattan skyline didn’t contain any buildings taller than ten stories high. The Brooklyn Heights Promenade contain pictures of the Manhattan skyline made out of stone, here you can see how manhattan has changing over time. The most recent change to the Manhattan skyline was the incident in 2001, when the twin towers were knocked down, in its place the Freedom tower now stands. When I see the Manhattan I see the Freedom Tower while someone who much older than me imagines the Twin Towers standing tall and proud. This reminded me of a quote in “City Limits” by Colson Whitehead which states “You are a real new Yorker when what was there before is more real and solid than what is here now.” Someone older than me would imagine the Twin Towers standing rather than the Freedom tower. Since I was not old enough to see the Twin Towers it’s difficult for me to imagine them in the Freedom towers place.

     When I see the Manhattan skyline, I see a place where anything is possible in life. In “City Limits” by Colson Whitehead argues “ … You have your own personal skyline“, not everyone sees the same Manhattan, we all think differently and have our own personal viewpoints. Citlali and I have two different viewpoints of the same city and someone else could have a different viewpoint from both of us.

References:

 

  • Whitehead, Colson. “City Limits.” The Colossus of New York: A City in Thirteen Parts. New York: Random House, 2004. 1-12. Shared Google Doc.

 

 

New York City’s Alteration

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Old buildings are being transformed into newer ones and new buildings are being constructed in order to maintain a modern outllook. In one instance there’s a large skyscraper under construction in the city of Manhattan that overlooks a shabby factory building located in Dumbo, Brooklyn. This is a good example of how , although the city of New York is advancing in architect there are still buildings that still stand from years ago. Many overlaps such as mine are described by Colson Whitehead and Patrick Mcgrath. Both giving their own perception on how New York goes through changes thus relating to my own juxtaposition.

Although New York is a modernized city there a still instances of pieces of history scattered all throughout the city. I came across an example of this while journeying through Downtown Brooklyn’s “DUMBO”.  On Water and Main Street there is a shabby and decrepit factory building that seems as if it were there from the 1800’s. At first it peaked my interest because Dumbo has already fell victim to gentrification and most buildings around it has already been modernized to fit the lifestyle of incoming yuppies and hipsters. What really got me interested was the large high-rise building being constructed in the distance. It precisely overlooks the factory building in such a way that it seems as if were meant to be built that way. It was my first time being in Dumbo so I was curious to see how long that building was there for. I went to google maps and I was amazed. I searched the address of the building and the latest image of it that came up was in September 2014. As I analyzed the photo the factory building was still in the same tattered and run-down fashion. What really amazed me was that the skyscraper that was being constructed wasn’t there.  This really appealed to me because it shows how fast a large change can be made in a city in just a matter of years.

 

In this day in age, especially in the city of New York, new buildings are being constructed in order to keep up with the modern era. An example of this is the skyscraper that overlooks the old factory building located in Dumbo, Brooklyn. The skyscraper is the Moinian’s Hudson Yards office tower located in 34th street Manhattan with a colossal height of 1,050 feet. The construction of this building began in 2016 (which is the reason why I couldn’t find it on Google Maps) and is projected to be completed in Fall of 2018. This building is being constructed in  the Hell’s Kitchen area of Manhattan which is known for its vast amount of actor and actresses and acting opportunists and also a hub for gay culture. I have been there once to watch my cousin perform at cousin perform at a cafe. I was really young at time and i’m pretty sure the are is nothing like what it used to be. ” Maybe one day we become New Yorkers the day we realize that New York will go on without us.” This was said by Colson Whitehead and he’s trying to say that as New Yorkers we shouldn’t fall victim to the change and keep traditions and cultures the same.

New York is home to many buildings that juxtapose one another. The denotation of juxtapose is to place two different things side by side as to either compare or contrast or to create and interesting effect. The Water and Main Street old factory building versus the Moinian Hudson Yards office tower is a suitable juxtaposition that emphasizes old vs. new. Although they are not exactly side by side, the angle in which the skyscraper is being built overlooks the old factory building in such a precise way it seems as if they are right next to each other. These two buildings are a fitting example of how city can be modernized but still withhold instances from history. New buildings are being created everyday, while old ones are being renovated to be replaced with a Starbucks or Trader Joe’s. Gentrification has been victimizing small pockets of the cities for years now and Dumbo, Brooklyn certainly is one of them. This old factory building is abandoned but still stands today. Why is that so? This building may become a historic landmark in the near future if it’s not transformed into something newer and up to date.

Although these two buildings are of far distance from each other, the overarching size of the sky scraper seems as if it is very close to the old factory building. This juxtaposition really is a good example of how old things will eventually be replaced with something of a more modern taste. Also it compares and contrast Old vs New , and it’s an instance of gentrification. Many people would just walk past this and pay little to no mind to this juxtaposition but this can be made into a bigger picture. A perspective on how cities are advancing and adapting to modern technology.

Whitehead, Colson. “City Limits.” The Colossus of New York: A City in Thirteen Parts. New York: Random House, 2004. 1-12. .

McGrath, Charles. “A Literary Visitor Strolls in From the Airport.” The New York Times, December 6, 2006.