Territoriality and Symbolism of Las Vegas Strip
...es and regulations clash directly with the strip’s fundamental symbolic quality as a place of escape from “the banality and opaqueness of life” . In addition to the six normative orders described by Steve Herbert , the police forces surveying along the strip are also actively restricted by considerations for its symbolic quality. This breach between the symbolic meaning of the city (which directly affects the interest of private casino owners) and the traditional role of policemen is bridged through police collaboration with private security guards. In essence, police surveillance in the strip of Las Vegas is complicated by mediations of private interest and its apparent clash with the strip’s powerful symbolism. Public vs. Private Space There are two parts to the space within the strip of Las Vegas – the privately-owned casinos and the public side street. Being a place where spending officially replace TV-watching as people’s primary activity, it should be no surprise that casinos are strategically planned private space that, like shopping malls, puts on a welcoming façade of public space. Yet as with shopping malls, in the depths of hotel casinos lies an overwhelming sense of materialism that encourages continuous spending without the feeling of guilt . These hotels on the strip, again, reinforce the symbolic theme of Las Vegas as a sin city that all rules temporarily suspend. The placement of slot machines next to the lobby and near the entrance is not accidental, and the prevalence of buffets also encourages the character of a boundless consumer. In the respect that private space is being strategically modeled as a public realm, the hotel casinos on the strip act as a territory that is owned and controlled by an “institutional power” . The open street on the strip, even as a city-owned public space, is equally strategic as a territory as the casinos along its sides. Large billboards, kaleidoscopic lightings, and overwhelming circulation of flyer advertisements fill up the side walks. Pedestrians are also vulnerable to the grandeur of the hotel exteriors along the side, as they are encouraged to stop and spend at every possible site of attraction. Everywhere, the symbolism of “sin city” is present either implicitly in the private-owned territory of casinos, or explicitly on the streets outside. Tourist Impact on Territoriality and Symbolism Finally, as a popular tourist destination, the symbolism of Vegas relies on its visitors to constantly reproduce itself. This transient tourist culture is evident in new hotels constantly being constructed, and existing ones constantly renovated; the social memory created here is thus “always emergent” as it reflects the present. In examining the history of the strip itself, ...