Glocal cities. Spaces and subjectivities in contemporary world

Starting from a cultural semiotic point of view, the paper argues that what are generally called «global cities» should be more correctly defined and thought of as «glocal cities». To substantiate this hypothesis, the paper first analyzes the meanings embedded in the relationships between spatial definitions, such as «cities», «metropolises», «megacities». Secondly, the text maintains that the sense of globality associated with the great cities of the globe is only one level of their reality. Third, it shows how cities become «worlds» through a process that makes them internally global while locating them in relation to other cities and spaces. Finally, the essay focuses on the deep semiotic structures that make the glocality of cities conceivable: this leads to the perception of the complex interplay of subjectivity and poetics that takes shape in and through these cities.