The World Cities Culture Forum Shanghai Symposium, themed “City Narrative: Memory, Imagination and Identity,” was held in Shanghai from Oct. 20 to 21.

Memory, imagination and identity are the three core elements of urban development, said Rong Yueming, a research fellow from the Institute of Literature at Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences (SASS). The memory of a city, which includes various forms of cultural heritage, plays a significant role in city development, he said.

All the individuals in modern society suffered from the double decay of rural and urban memory, said Huang Changyong, chairman of the Shanghai Theatre Academy. Urban development should be achieved through considering the essential needs of human life rather than simply protecting urban heritage, he said.

Cities should have more nostalgia, said He Jianhua, vice-president of SASS, adding that the city is not just a collection of buildings but also a vessel for culture. If we do not protect the rich cultural resources or cherish the valuable heritage left by our ancestors, cities will be places where nostalgia no longer exists, he said.

Chen Shenglai, director of the National Base for International Cultural Exchange and Research, said the culture requires diversity and plurality, and these are the roots and basic elements of culture. In the trend of globalization, urban literature supports each city in preserving its uniqueness, he said.

The discussion on urban culture and literature should extend from the subject itself to the urban-rural relationship, said Wang Guangdong, a research fellow from the Institute of Literature under SASS. Urban-rural migration has complicated and profoundly affected social ties due to the great changes in social structure and cultural composition.

The discussion on urban culture should take into consideration urban mobility and pay more attention to the mental factors brought by the farmers moving into cities, he said. This changing process brings with it change of lifestyle and cultural factors, which alters previous notions of urban culture and literature, he added.