Representations, Diagrams and Visualizations of Space and Place - Advances in Cartography and GIScience - page 82

Using another London example, a sketch of a mental map of a Londoner's
perception of where the wealthy live ( Figure 4 ) . This simple diagram
quickly imparts knowledge about a simple geography of wealth in London.
The wealthy live in the west of London, on the north of the Thames. No
other wealth exists in this simple naïve geography. This naïve image of
where the wealthy live is immediately seen. The place where the wealthy
are perceived to live is known and shown.
And even the 'maps' of board games can be used to 'see' wealth in
London, albeit in a warped geography. The popular game Monopoly, by
Parker Brothers, 'located' one version of the game in London ( Figure 5 ).
The game is built around the ownership properties, each having different
values, in central London. Whilst the actual locations of places included on
the board in London are real, the juxtaposition of each square on the board
has been done to satisfy the demands of the game, rather than allowing a
true picture of the capital to be shown. Properties are clustered together
according to their value, and not their actual relative geographical location -
Mayfair and Park Lane sit near to each other, separated by a 'super tax'
square. Does this 'map' of parts of London show the naïve mental geography
of places in the city?
Figure 5: London Monopoly board. Source:
http://www.edinphoto.org.uk/talks/talk_eps_dig_2009_01_05_page_02.htm