Summary “City Limits”

Colson Whitehead, whom is the author of the book “The Colossus of New York”, talks about how people view New York in their eyes opposed to others in the first chapter “City Limits”. In the first paragraph Whitehead is questioning the reader about how they have arrived to this city and with what intention. Whitehead talks about the different ways the city is advertised to other parts of the world and how this attracts people to the city, but to us who have been here do not see any of that glamour that the movies, TV shows, and music talk about. When I read the first paragraph I felt as if there was a fast pace to it since some sentences seemed longer than others. It reminded me of how some people here actually do speak pretty fast, and how our daily environment is rushed. He then starts talking about how the different experiences in New York build up memories and the way you see things. For example, if you came as a child, you  would probably not see the same things an adult would or perhaps not even feel the same way about it as they do. Whitehead then starts talking about how his New York looks like to him. How he can still see an old building that is now something completely different, not because he sees things but because he remembers it how it was and not for what it is now.He also talks about how even the places we moved from or rooms we have been in are our witnesses of the things we have done. He puts personification to the old apartments he has lived in. I also sensed maturity throughout the reading, because in the beginning he would talk a lot more ignorant about how people view things, but then starts talking about how that is what makes it unique to us and how we should not let anyone say different, not even facts.Whiteheads goal I believe is to encourage people to keep building their New York the way they want to, even if in the end it probably will never be the same.