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During the period of time the author has spent studying in Shanghai, he has often heard of various major planning issues. In some lecture series, the Danwei community was highlighted. However, in this short written piece, the author would like to focus on the smaller problems that lie underneath larger planning issues: the human aspect of a city. Particularly the way people behave in public, in relation to Shanghai’s “seven don’ts”. This article will take a closer look at the “seven don’ts” and question whether or not it has been obeyed by the general public through everyday observation. Most of the contents of this essay come from the author’s own thoughts, supported by various available references. Does the “seven don’ts” truly apply? Or is it just a list of things that are deemed unacceptable in the public sphere but nobody pays attention to it?

 

To begin things, let us first understand what public space really means. According to various sources, the term public space or a public place is a place accessible to anyone regardless of their economic or social conditions, although in its practice, this has not always been the case. Places such as non-government-owned malls are examples of private space appearing to be public. To further understand public space, one must know where public space takes place, or its area of usage. Public space cover most streets, including the pavement or sidewalks. Town squares or parks are also considered to fall under the category of public space. Adding to the list are government buildings such as public libraries, and many other similar buildings. However, not all state-owned buildings fall under this category.

 

After understanding what public space is all about, it is time to question ourselves with what rights does one have in public space? The answer to such question varies greatly according to time and place. In other words, different places, different rules apply. For example, in Islamic nations, during the holy month of Ramadan, eating and drinking in public space are not appreciated.

 

Although generally considered that every member of society has a right to access and use public space, as opposed to private space which may have restrictions, there has been some academic interest in how public spaces are managed to exclude certain groups, specifically homeless and young people. Certain measures are then taken to make the public space less attractive to them, including design, and the removal of benches to restrict their use for sleeping and resting, restricting access during certain times, locking indoor/enclosed areas. Authority may some times be involved in removing ‘unwanted’ members of the public from public spaces. Disabled people are also subject of exclusion from certain public areas due to the lack of suitable access.

 

Public Behavior

 

After a brief discussion of one’s rights in public space, the next aspect to consider in conjunction to people’s rights in public space is behavior. As the author currently resides in Shanghai, China, he would like to point out a set of general rules that is known to the general public as “Seven Don’ts”. The seven don’ts include the following:

 

1. Do not expectoration everywhere
2. Do not chuck garbage everywhere
3. Do not attaint public property
4. Do not destroy virescence
5. Do not random through the street
6. Do not smoking in public concourse
7. Do not say four-letter word

From the set of rules we see above, it is clear that although public spaces are accessible to every member of society, there are rules that one must abide by. This set of rules determines which behaviors are acceptable by society’s standards, and which are not. Let us now discuss the rules a little closer. Since the rules presented here were translated literally from Chinese into English, they may seem a bit awkward. Here is the author’s general understanding of the rules:

 

1. Do not expectoration everywhere (do not expectorate in public): this rule basically points out that people are not permitted to expectorate (spit) wherever their heart wills.
2. Do not chuck garbage everywhere (dispose of garbage properly): a general rule that one can find wherever they go. Garbage must be disposed of in designated spots (rubbish bins)
3. Do not attaint public property (do not deface public property): this rule invites members of society to look after public property/public facilities.
4. Do not destroy virescence (do not disturb other people’s right of a pleasant scenery): rounding up the first three rules, inviting members of society to participate in keeping the public sphere a pleasant place for everyone else.
5. Do not random through the street (do not cross the street at random places): a rule related to safety. One must cross the streets only at designated spots.
6. Do not smoking in public concourse (do not smoke in public places): a very clear and general rule that applies practically all over the world.
7. Do not say four-letter word (do not swear in public): this rule is as vague as it gets before the author had fully understood what is meant by “four-letter word”.

After having fully understood what each and every rule meant, it is time to take a look and discuss each rule closely. The author realized that the rules put together in a way that is not random. It has been put together according to the degree of severe-ness.

 

1. Do not expectorate in public

 

It is interesting to find this rule being the first of seven. In an article written by Di Fang which was published in China Daily on March 28^th, 2005, it is said that spitting is what Beijing residents hate most about living in the city, among the multitude of anti-social behavior to be witnessed on a daily basis. An undated photo of a man walking past a public announcement poster published in Shanghai saying “Don’t Spit” was also found in the same article. The poster depicted a man expectorating a small missile instead of saliva on a yellow background. A brief thought given to the poster by the author: the cartoon man in the poster, shown in an ignorant manner symbolizes people breaking the first “don’t” in Shanghai’s “seven don’ts”. The poster clearly states that spitting in public places is an ignorant and anti-social behavior, while the bomb, expectorated from the man’s mouth, though small, has a large impact in the social scene. From this poster it is also clear that spitting hurts China’s overall image, and the existence of this poster has shown that authorities are calling on people to quit this behavior. However, it seems that spitting in public has become a habit for some. This may be related to the statement given by Yang Ling, a Beijing resident, published in the same article:

 

“I find that few people will spit in their residential district or workplace. Spitting at home goes without saying. But on streets and in other public places such as buses and railway stations, spitting is more common. People believe that home and their residential district are their own places. In workplaces, people care about what people think of them as everybody else will know them, but in public places, due to a lack of supervision, some people believe the environment has nothing to do with them.”

 

According to this statement, lack of supervision exists in public places. Although authorities have called on people to stop spitting in public places, it seems that their actions can be considered to be lacking in seriousness. If authorities are seriously attempting to put an end to this anti-social behavior, then there should be laws to enforce their concerns. If lack of control still exists, then it can be expected that spitting in public places will continue to exist, and when the author relates the lack of control to the public service announcement poster published in Shanghai, then it is apparent that China is willing to risk their image by allowing public expectoration to continue. Education can also be a powerful tool to help remove public expectoration from the public sphere. It is up to educators to raise public awareness, and coming back to Yang Ling’s statement, where she said that people believe the environment has nothing to do with them, grow a stronger sense of belonging between people and their environment.

 

2. Dispose of garbage properly

 

The second “don’t” in Shanghai’s “seven don’ts” can probably be considered as a world wide problem as it exists not only in Shanghai, but basically everywhere all over the world. There’s no need for deep scientific research to prove that improper garbage disposal exists everywhere. This common behavior follows the lack of sense of belonging towards the environment.

 

3. Do not deface public property

 

As far as the author’s observation goes, this third “don’t” has been obeyed quite well, at least until one walks in a public toilet. However, when we relate this third “don’t” to the first; can we also consider people who expectorate in public to be defacing public property as well?

 

4. Do not disturb others’ right of a pleasant scenery

 

This rule is similar to the previous in some ways, but taking a look back at the first “don’t”, couldn’t we relate public expectoration to the violation of people’s right of beauty?

 

5. Do not cross the street at random places

 

The fifth “don’t” concerns public safety. It is reasonable, quite clear, and easy to understand anywhere that people cannot cross the streets wherever they feel like. It is a dangerous action, both for the pedestrian, and motorist. However, as far as the author’s observation goes, if one crosses at a pedestrian crossing, then safety issues are only for pedestrians to consider. Countless times have the author crossed the streets at designated crossing zones, and although the crossing light is green, motorists seem to care less about pedestrians. Therefore, there is almost no difference between pedestrians crossing the streets in random spots, or in designated crossing zones, thus a question comes to mind: why designate a crossing zone when there’s no guarantee of safety either pedestrians cross in the designated zones, or not? Of course some legal power when one gets hit by a vehicle while crossing in the designated crossing zone may exist, but the physical damage has been done, and material compensation is surely not enough to erase the possible psychological traumas.

 

Still related to vehicle/pedestrian issues, there surely exists a clear segregation between roads and sidewalks. First of all, let us take a look at the general understanding of the term road. This is what Wikipedia has to say: A road is an identifiable route, way or path between two or more places. Roads are typically smoothed, paved, or otherwise prepared to allow easy travel though they need not be, and historically many roads were simply recognizable routes without any formal construction or maintenance. In urban areas roads may pass through a city or village and be named as streets, serving a dual function as urban space easement and route. According to dictionary.com, a road is a long, narrow stretch with a smoothed or paved surface, made for traveling by motor vehicle, carriage, etc., between two or more points; street or highway. Whereas a sidewalk is defined as follows: A sidewalk (chiefly North American English), pavement (British English and Philadelphia dialect), footpath (Australian English, British English, Irish English, Indian English and New Zealand English) or footway (Engineering term) is a path for pedestrians that is situated alongside a road or formed like sidewalks that are alongside roads (such as a cement footpath through a park). They are usually constructed of concrete (particularly in the United States and Canada), asphalt, brick (particularly in Europe), stone or (increasingly) rubber, are designed for pedestrian traffic and are often found running alongside a road.

 

Notice how the author has underlined the words pedestrian traffic? It is apparent to the author that sidewalks, or footpaths, exist especially to cater to pedestrians’ needs, whereas roads cater especially to motorized vehicles. This, however, is not the case here in Shanghai. One can still see some friction between pedestrians, and motorized vehicles on the sidewalks.

 

6. Do not smoke in public places

 

Smoking in public comes down to individual versus society rights. Will the individual have control over society’s rights if they are allowed to smoke, or is it possible for society to ban smoking in public for the good of everyone else? The rationale to ban smoking in public places is of course to protect society from the harmful risks of second-hand smoke. Many countries have introduced smoking bans in enclosed spaces in various forms throughout the years, citing scientific proof of the harms that smoking does to one’s health regardless whether one is an active smoker, or a second-hand smoker. Another rationale of banning smoking in public space is to reduce the overall health care costs in a short term. It seems, although existing in the list of “don’ts” in Shanghai that society leans towards the rights of the individual, which is to allow smokers to smoke in public places. This is a discussion that continues to take place all over the world. However, seeing that smoking restrictions exist in the list of “don’ts” then Shanghai authorities should take measures in living up to their decision to ban smoking in public by either imposing heavy fines on those who smoke in public, or providing special areas for people to smoke in.

 

7. Do not swear in public

 

As we come to the final point of discussion, the author would firstly like to introduce the concept of a swear word to readers. A swear word is a word considered indecent and inappropriate in polite contexts which exists in most languages and cultures. These linguistic taboos are spawned from social taboos. As the author’s linguistic abilities are limited, he will use examples in English. In English, linguistic taboos generally surround blasphemy or obscenity. In the case of obscenity, the link between forbidden words and forbidden actions is illustrated by the fact that there is a surprisingly close correlation between the degree to which a word is deemed unacceptable, and the degree to which the action that it denotes is also considered publicly unacceptable. Thus, to burp or fart is considered only mildly offensive, and as a result these terms is not used as swear words. To s**t or f**k in public, however, would generally be deemed highly inappropriate and this is reflected by the taboos surrounding these words.

 

Of course, even when the subject matter being described is highly obscene, some words are considered to be significantly more offensive than others. There is a general conception that there is no true synonym in English, and in the case of obscenity, that appears to be true. The words copulate and f**k share the same denotative meaning, but their connotations are notably different, with the first term being a biological terminology, and the second being crude and contemptuous, and this is where the significant difference is located.

 

There is a widespread public association between swearing and social class, and many of those who criticize the habit most strongly do so because they believe it to be a ‘common’ and unrefined habit. It may be fair to say that many regular swearers come from anarchic or lower-class backgrounds, and that they swear primarily as a means of distancing themselves from mainstream society and affirming their position as a member of a particular social group. However, many famous swearers do not come from such backgrounds, and even English monarchs and American Presidents have been known to participate in the habit.

 

Having this pointed out in the “seven don’ts” is a direct attempt to avoid having the Shanghai citizens judged as being harsh, and uncivilized. However, we must view this matter in such a perspective that public swearing is, although disturbing, a very powerful tool to express extreme emotion, and swear words are also able to achieve effects that are difficult to create in more legitimate, or socially acceptable ways. Swearing may also be beneficial as a means of relieving anger, and some studies have indicated that those who swear regularly suffer less from stress than those who do not. When used in moderation, therefore it is safe to conclude that swearing is a valuable part of language. Excessive use, however, is less commendable, as not only it is tedious, but gradually diminishes the impact of the words involved, and as for the offense that may result from the explicit or blasphemous denotations of many swear words, this is a question of individual morals.

 

Conclusion

 

From the discussions above, it is hard to say exactly whether or not the “seven don’ts” has been obeyed by local citizens. For example, the first “don’t”, which is “do not expectorate in public”, seems to be an issue not just in Shanghai, but also a problem in Beijing. Other cities which the author had visited (e.g. Shijiazhuang and Zhengding), though not mentioned within the main discussion text, also seemed to face the same problem. As mentioned before, authorities have called upon the public to quit this habit by publishing public service announcement posters. However, these posters seem to have done little in even reducing the amount of people ‘involved’ in the habit. Public expectoration can still be seen on a daily basis. It is also possible, according to the author’s point of view, to relate the first “don’t” to the third, and the fourth “don’ts”. Public expectoration can be considered as defacing public property. Aren’t the roads, and sidewalks part of public property? And isn’t it up to every member of the society to look after it? Surely we cannot just rely on people employed by the authorities to clean up after our own mess. Public expectoration, when related to the third “don’t”, which is “Do not disturb other people’s right of a beautiful scenery”, can be deducted as the following: everyone has a right to enjoy pleasant scenery wherever they are. And though may be not directly related to the cityscape, performing bad habits such as expectorating in public may be considered as a direct violation of that right. So this means that whenever someone expectorates in public, they are not only violating the first “don’t”, but they are also violating the third, and the fourth.

 

The second “don’t”, which tells people to dispose of garbage properly, can also be closely related to the third, and the fourth. Having garbage all over the streets, and sidewalks can be said as defacing public property, and can also be said as a violation to other people’s right of pleasant scenery.

 

Observing the relationship between the first, second, third, and fourth “don’ts”, it is scary to think that one action can mean a violation of three different rules at the same time. And it is a shame to know that people still violate these four “don’ts”.

 

Coming to the fifth “don’t”, which regulates people not to cross the street in random places. The case may be, that people see no difference between crossing the street in pedestrian crossing zone, and outside the pedestrian crossing zone, since the risk of being hit by a vehicle is basically the same.

 

The sixth and seventh “don’ts” question each individual’s own morals. However, with the sixth “don’t”, a stronger law may be passed to further enforce it.

 

The author is more than happy to see such public restrictions exist, though better measures can be taken to implement these restrictions, such as passing laws, imposing fines to those who violate them, or even put together a special task force to watch over society, making sure that the “seven don’ts” are respected.

 

Putting together a special task force can also provide jobs for those who are currently unemployed, therefore covering two issues, the first being social behavior, and the other being unemployment, with one simple method. With the “seven don’ts” being obeyed respectively, and laws to enforce it, then the author is certain that Shanghai can look forward to a much better and harmonious future. And with the 2010 Shanghai Expo just around the corner, China doesn’t have to worry about having its image tainted face in front of the whole world because of petty things such as bad public behavior.

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