Shock Cities is environmental history of the highest order. This searching work is the first trans-Atlantic study to examine the industrial city in holistic terms, looking at the transformation of its land, water, and air. Harold L. Platt demonstrates how the creation of industrial ecologies spurred the reorganization of urban areas into separate spheres, unhealthy slums in the center and garden estates in the suburbs. By comparing Chicago and Manchester, Platt also shows how the ruling classes managed the political ...
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Shock Cities is environmental history of the highest order. This searching work is the first trans-Atlantic study to examine the industrial city in holistic terms, looking at the transformation of its land, water, and air. Harold L. Platt demonstrates how the creation of industrial ecologies spurred the reorganization of urban areas into separate spheres, unhealthy slums in the center and garden estates in the suburbs. By comparing Chicago and Manchester, Platt also shows how the ruling classes managed the political creation of urban space to ensure financial gain--often to the environmental detriment of both regions. Shock Cities also recasts the age of industry within a larger frame of nature. Frightening epidemics and unnatural "natural disasters" forced the city dwellers onto the path of environmental reform. Crusaders for social justice such as Chicago's Jane Addams and Manchester's Charles Rowley led class-bridging campaigns to clean up the slums. Women activists and other "municipal housekeepers" promoted regulations to reduce air pollution. Public health experts directed efforts to improve sanitation. Out of these reform movements, the Progressives formulated new concepts of environmental conservation and regional planning. Comparing the two cities, Platt highlights the ways in which political culture and institutions act to turn social geography into physical shapes on the ground. This focus on the political formation of urban space helps illuminate questions of social and environmental justice. Shock Cities will be of enormous value to students of ecology, technology, urban planning, and public health in the Western world.
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Add this copy of Shock Cities: the Environmental Transformation and to cart. $32.38, good condition, Sold by AmazingBooksPGH rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Pittsburgh, PA, UNITED STATES, published 2005 by University of Chicago Press.
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Seller's Description:
Good. Size: 9x6x1; Clean, sturdy copy in good condition. Very close to very good-would be so if not for occasional underlining and marginalia throughout, on about 2% of the pages. Previous owner's name on the front free page. With dust jacket which has kept in very good condition. SZ.
Add this copy of Shock Cities: the Environmental Transformation and to cart. $33.89, very good condition, Sold by FCD Books & More rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Fargo, ND, UNITED STATES, published 2005 by University of Chicago Press.
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Very Good. Size: 9x6x1; Hardcover w/ Pictorial Dust Jacket, DJ has some light normal wear & tear, Pages are clean, tight and for the most part crisp, Item Shrink-wrapped for additional protection.
Add this copy of Shock Cities: the Environmental Transformation and to cart. $75.23, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2005 by University of Chicago Press.