The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010

Plans are among the most durable products of planning, and as such offer a revealing window into the worlds of the planners of their time. In this paper we set out a methodology for viewing those worlds using critical discourse analysis (CDA). This method focuses on four key textural features of pla...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: MacCallum, Diana, Hopkins, D.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Routledge, Taylor and Francis Ltd 2011
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16405
_version_ 1848749167211446272
author MacCallum, Diana
Hopkins, D.
author_facet MacCallum, Diana
Hopkins, D.
author_sort MacCallum, Diana
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Plans are among the most durable products of planning, and as such offer a revealing window into the worlds of the planners of their time. In this paper we set out a methodology for viewing those worlds using critical discourse analysis (CDA). This method focuses on four key textural features of plans: construal of substance, construction of agency, generic structure, and presentation. Together they enable the investigator to go beyond thematic discourses and uncover the institutional, political and ideological role of planning during the time period in which plans are produced. We use this method to interrogate the changing rationalities governing planning in Western Australia (WA) since the Second World War by analysing the four major city plans for Perth, covering a period from 1955 to 2010. This longitudinal analysis suggests that planning in WA mirrors concurrent trends in international planning theory, and highlights the significance of "the plan" as an object of inquiry for revealing the changing nature of planning and planners over time.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T07:16:38Z
format Journal Article
id curtin-20.500.11937-16405
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T07:16:38Z
publishDate 2011
publisher Routledge, Taylor and Francis Ltd
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-164052017-09-13T15:51:40Z The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010 MacCallum, Diana Hopkins, D. Discourse analysis planning history Western Australia strategic spatial planning metropolitan plans Plans are among the most durable products of planning, and as such offer a revealing window into the worlds of the planners of their time. In this paper we set out a methodology for viewing those worlds using critical discourse analysis (CDA). This method focuses on four key textural features of plans: construal of substance, construction of agency, generic structure, and presentation. Together they enable the investigator to go beyond thematic discourses and uncover the institutional, political and ideological role of planning during the time period in which plans are produced. We use this method to interrogate the changing rationalities governing planning in Western Australia (WA) since the Second World War by analysing the four major city plans for Perth, covering a period from 1955 to 2010. This longitudinal analysis suggests that planning in WA mirrors concurrent trends in international planning theory, and highlights the significance of "the plan" as an object of inquiry for revealing the changing nature of planning and planners over time. 2011 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16405 10.1080/14649357.2011.626313 Routledge, Taylor and Francis Ltd fulltext
spellingShingle Discourse analysis
planning history
Western Australia
strategic spatial planning
metropolitan plans
MacCallum, Diana
Hopkins, D.
The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010
title The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010
title_full The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010
title_fullStr The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010
title_full_unstemmed The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010
title_short The changing discourse of city plans: Rationalities of planning in Perth, 1955-2010
title_sort changing discourse of city plans: rationalities of planning in perth, 1955-2010
topic Discourse analysis
planning history
Western Australia
strategic spatial planning
metropolitan plans
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16405