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The City in History

January 31, 2023

The City in History: Its Origins, Its Transformations, and Its Prospects is a 1961 National Book Award winner by American historian Lewis Mumford.

The City in History
First edition
AuthorLewis Mumford
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
PublisherHarcourt, Brace and World
Publication date
1961
Media typePrint
Pages657
ISBN0-15-618035-9
OCLC7102629

It was first published by Harcourt, Brace & World (New York).

Synopsis

Mumford argues for a world not in which technology rules, but rather in which it achieves a balance with nature. His ideal vision is what can be described as an "organic city," where culture is not usurped by technological innovation but rather thrives with it. Mumford contrasts these cities with those constructed around wars, tyrants, poverty, etc. However, the book is not an attack on the city, but rather an evaluation of its growth, how it came to be, and where it is heading, as evidenced by the final chapter "Retrospect and Prospect."

Mumford notes apologetically in his preface that his "method demands personal experience and observation," and that therefore he has "confined [him]self as far as possible to cities and regions [he is] acquainted with at first hand."[1]

Style

Mumford's florid writing style is also "organic" compared to the cold, mechanical style of many history texts. Stylistically, his works are full of metaphors and similes, as well as quotations from famous novelists, giving his prose shades of poetry. He refers to such texts as Great Expectations and Hard Times, sometimes using citations to illustrate to the reader what life was like during the industrial era and the city in which Dickens lived.

Articles have been written on Mumford's use of metaphors and how his works can often be read as "fiction," in the sense that they have narrative flow.[citation needed] That is evident in this book, in which, instead of a human protagonist on which the story centers, we have the city and its growth in a quasi-bildungsroman fashion.

Editions

References

  1. ^ Lewis Mumford, The City in History San Diego, Harcourt Inc, 1961; p. XI

January 31, 2023
city, history, origins, transformations, prospects, 1961, national, book, award, winner, american, historian, lewis, mumford, first, editionauthorlewis, mumfordcountryunited, stateslanguageenglishpublisherharcourt, brace, worldpublication, date1961media, typep. The City in History Its Origins Its Transformations and Its Prospects is a 1961 National Book Award winner by American historian Lewis Mumford The City in HistoryFirst editionAuthorLewis MumfordCountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglishPublisherHarcourt Brace and WorldPublication date1961Media typePrintPages657ISBN0 15 618035 9OCLC7102629It was first published by Harcourt Brace amp World New York Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Style 3 Editions 4 ReferencesSynopsis EditMumford argues for a world not in which technology rules but rather in which it achieves a balance with nature His ideal vision is what can be described as an organic city where culture is not usurped by technological innovation but rather thrives with it Mumford contrasts these cities with those constructed around wars tyrants poverty etc However the book is not an attack on the city but rather an evaluation of its growth how it came to be and where it is heading as evidenced by the final chapter Retrospect and Prospect Mumford notes apologetically in his preface that his method demands personal experience and observation and that therefore he has confined him self as far as possible to cities and regions he is acquainted with at first hand 1 Style EditMumford s florid writing style is also organic compared to the cold mechanical style of many history texts Stylistically his works are full of metaphors and similes as well as quotations from famous novelists giving his prose shades of poetry He refers to such texts as Great Expectations and Hard Times sometimes using citations to illustrate to the reader what life was like during the industrial era and the city in which Dickens lived Articles have been written on Mumford s use of metaphors and how his works can often be read as fiction in the sense that they have narrative flow citation needed That is evident in this book in which instead of a human protagonist on which the story centers we have the city and its growth in a quasi bildungsroman fashion Editions EditHardcover MJF Books August 1997 ISBN 978 1 56731 211 9 Paperback Harvest Books October 1968 ISBN 978 0 15 618035 1References Edit Lewis Mumford The City in History San Diego Harcourt Inc 1961 p XI Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The City in History amp oldid 1117846812, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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