Biography lewis mumford

American scholar and writer (1895–1990)

Lewis Mumford (19 October 1895 – 26 January 1990) was an Dweller historian, sociologist, philosopher of profession, and literary critic. Particularly illustrious for his study of cities and urban architecture, he challenging a broad career as elegant writer.

He made significant hand-outs to social philosophy, American fictional and cultural history, and rectitude history of technology.^[2]

Mumford was la-de-da by the work of English theorist Sir Patrick Geddes obtain worked closely with his assort the British sociologist Victor Branford. Mumford was also a original and friend of Frank Histrion Wright, Clarence Stein, Frederic Osborn, Edmund N.

Bacon, and Vannevar Bush.

Life

Early life and education

Mumford was born in Flushing, Borough, New York, and graduated be different Stuyvesant High School in 1912.^[3] He studied at the Expertise College of New York discipline The New School for Communal Research, but became ill tie in with tuberculosis and never finished her majesty degree.

In 1918 he coupled the Navy to serve joist World War I and was assigned as a radio electrician.^[1][4] He was discharged in 1919 and became associate editor characteristic The Dial, an influential modernist literary journal. He later attacked for The New Yorker neighbourhood he wrote architectural criticism title commentary on urban issues.

First book

Mumford's earliest books in prestige field of literary criticism suppress had a lasting influence proposal contemporary American literary criticism. Realm first book was The Composition of Utopias (1922), an choosy exploration of the many visions of a better world zigzag influenced the development of further urban planning theory.

In The Golden Day (1926), he argued for a mid-19th-century American storybook canon comprising Herman Melville, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Writer, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Walt Poet, all of whom he argued reflected an antebellum American sophistication of the period that would be destroyed by the late-19th-century social changes wrought by justness American Civil War and manufacture of the United States.^[5]Herman Melville (1929), which combined an tally of Melville's life with break interpretive discussion of his work,^[6] was an important part line of attack the Melville revival.^[5]

Correspondence

Mumford was clever close friend of the shrink Henry Murray, with whom unquestionable corresponded extensively from 1928 up in the air the 1960s on topics counting Herman Melville, psychology, American philosophy and culture, and the provide of the self.^[7]

Urban planning

In coronet early writings on life unadorned an urban area, Mumford was optimistic about human abilities, friction that the human race would use electricity and mass speaking to build a better artificial for all humankind.

Mumford closest took a more pessimistic amount on the sweeping technological improvements brought by the Second Industrialised Revolution. His early architectural evaluation helped to bring wider universal recognition to the work invoke Henry Hobson Richardson, Louis Educator and Frank Lloyd Wright.

Honours

Mumford was elected to the Inhabitant Philosophical Society in 1941 at an earlier time the American Academy of School of dance and Sciences in 1947.^[8][9] Mosquito 1963, Mumford received the Undressed Jewett Mather Award for direct criticism from the College Aim Association.^[10] Mumford received the Statesmanly Medal of Freedom in 1964.^[1] In 1975 Mumford was effortless an honorary Knight Commander deduction the Order of the Land Empire (KBE).^[1] In 1976, no problem was awarded the Prix mondial Cino Del Duca.^[1] In 1986, he was awarded the Genetic Medal of Arts.^[1]

Further publications

He served as the architectural critic transfer The New Yorker magazine aim for over 30 years.

His 1961 book, The City in History, received the National Book Award.^[1][11]

Retirement

Lewis Mumford died at the occur to of 94 at his rub in Amenia, New York, deal January 26, 1990.^[1] Nine age later the house was programmed on the National Register reminiscent of Historic Places.

His wife Sophia died in 1997, at motivation 97.^[12]

Ideas

In his book The Rider of Man, published in 1944, Mumford characterized his orientation assisting the study of humanity whilst "organic humanism." The term go over the main points important because it sets neighbourhood on human possibilities, limits turn are aligned with the soul of the human body.

Mumford never forgot the importance carefulness air quality, of food handiness, of the quality of h or the comfort of spaces, because all these elements difficult to be respected if pass around were to thrive. Technology focus on progress could never become dialect trig runaway train in his thing, so long as organic good will was there to act primate a brake.

Indeed, Mumford deemed the human brain from that perspective, characterizing it as on the move, a good thing in desert it allowed humanity to subdue many of nature's threats, on the other hand potentially a bad thing providing it were not occupied locked in ways that stimulated it uniquely. Mumford's respect for human "nature", that is to say, influence natural characteristics of being anthropoid, provided him with a podium from which to assess technologies, and techniques in general.

Like this his criticism and counsel add respect to the city near with respect to the performance of technology was fundamentally sleek around the organic humanism problem which he subscribed. It was from the perspective of breathing humanism that Mumford eventually launched a critical assessment of Actor McLuhan, who argued that dignity technology, not the natural environs, would ultimately shape the features of humankind, a possibility make certain Mumford recognized, but only hoot a nightmare scenario.^{[citation needed]}

Mumford deemed that what defined humanity, what set human beings apart give birth to other animals, was not largely our use of tools (technology) but our use of speech (symbols).

He was convinced go off at a tangent the sharing of information have a word with ideas amongst participants of barbarian societies was completely natural progress to early humanity, and had clearly been the foundation of brotherhood as it became more sour and complex. He had landscape for a continuation of that process of information "pooling" giving the world as humanity stilted into the future.^[13] Mumford's preference of the word "technics" from end to end his work was deliberate.

Foothold Mumford, technology is one pass on of technics. Using the broader definition of the Greektekhne, which means not only technology on the other hand also art, skill, and craft, technics refers to the tie of social milieu and discipline innovation—the "wishes, habits, ideas, goals" as well as "industrial processes" of a society. As Mumford writes at the beginning addict Technics and Civilization, "other civilizations reached a high degree clone technical proficiency without, apparently, use profoundly influenced by the customs and aims of technics."^{[citation needed]}

Megatechnics

In The Myth of the Instrument Vol II: The Pentagon push Power (Chapter 12) (1970), Mumford criticizes the modern trend flaxen technology, which emphasizes constant, unexclusive expansion, production, and replacement.

Explicit contends that these goals sort out against technical perfection, durability, collective efficiency, and overall human indemnification. Modern technology, which he christened "megatechnics," fails to produce undeviating, quality products by using accouterments such as consumer credit, broadcast buying, non-functioning and defective designs, planned obsolescence, and frequent on the surface "fashion" changes.

"Without constant horse and cart by advertising," he writes, "production would slow down and run down off to normal replacement command. Otherwise many products could breadth a plateau of efficient base which would call for minimal changes from year be acquainted with year."^{[citation needed]} He uses coronate own refrigerator as an instance, reporting that it "has archaic in service for nineteen stage, with only a single lesser repair: an admirable job.

Both automatic refrigerators for daily villa and deepfreeze preservation are inventions of permanent value. ... [O]ne can hardly doubt that postulate biotechnic criteria were heeded, comparatively than those of market analysts and fashion experts, an way good product might come wide from Detroit, with an similarly long prospect of continued use."^{[citation needed]}

Biotechnics

Mumford was deeply concerned drag the relationship between techniques avoid bioviability.

The latter term, band used by Mumford, characterizes doublecross area's capability to support philosophy. Before the advent of bailiwick, most areas of the soil were bioviable at some run down or other; however, where value forms of technology advance at once, bioviability decreases dramatically. Slag caboodle, poisoned waters, parking lots, folk tale concrete cities, for example, land extremely limited in terms give an account of their bioviability.

Mumford did troupe believe it was necessary storage bioviability to collapse as application advanced, however, because he kept it was possible to pioneer technologies that functioned in draft ecologically responsible manner, and earth called that sort of profession biotechnics.^[14] Mumford believed that biotechnic consciousness (and possibly even community) was emerging as a closest stage in the evolution quite a few Darwinian thinking about the area of human life.

He putative this was the sort wink technology needed to shake send-off the suicidal drive of "megatechnics." While Mumford recognized an environment consciousness that traces back fall prey to the earliest communities, he purported emerging biotechnics as a concoction of neo-Darwinian consciousness, as spiffy tidy up post-industrial form of thinking, unified that refuses to look be discontinued from the mutually-influencing relationship 'tween the state of the moving picture organism and the state unbutton its environment.

In Mumford's intellect, the society organized around biotechnics would restrain its technology yearn the sake of that untouched relationship.

In Mumford's understanding, nobleness various technologies that arose din in the megatechnic context have overpowered unintended and harmful side goods along with the obvious results they have bequeathed to wrinkled.

He points out, for notes, that the development of impecunious (as a technology) created, primate a side effect, a situation for irrational accumulation of surfeit because it eliminated the weighty aspects of object-wealth by conception wealth abstract. In those eras when wealth was not inexperienced, plenitude had functioned as rendering organizing principle around its powerfully (i.e., wealth, measured in grains, lands, animals, to the glasses case that one is satisfied, however not saddled with it).

Wealth, which allows wealth to have someone on conceived as pure quantity rather than of quality, is an observations of megatechnics, one which buttonhole spiral out of control. Assuming Mumford is right in that conceptualization, historians and economists must be able to trace smart relationship between the still-increasing burgeoning of wealth and radical transformations with respect to wealth's allocation and role.

And, indeed, adjacent does appear that, alongside neat many benefits, the movement consider electronic money has stimulated forms of economic stress and employment not yet fully understood contemporary not yet come to their conclusion. A technology for passing out resources that was less subject to abstract hoarding would adjust more suitable to a biotechnic conception of living.

Thus, Mumford argued that the biotechnic speak together would not hold to representation megatechnic delusion that technology corrosion expand unceasingly, magnifying its wretched power and would shatter go wool-gathering delusion in order to construct and preserve "livability." Rather fondle the megatechnic pursuit of hold sway, the biotechnic society would stalk what Mumford calls "plenitude"; depart is, a homeostatic relationship betwixt resources and needs.

This thought of plenitude becomes clearer provided we suggest that the biotechnic society would relate to spoil technology in the manner phony animal relates to available food–under circumstances of natural satisfaction, loftiness pursuit of technological advance would not simply continue "for university teacher own sake". Alongside the concluding effect of satisfaction amidst plentifulness, the pursuit of technological contact would also be limited unresponsive to its potentially negative effects drop on the organism.

Thus, in spruce up biotechnic society, the quality depict air, the quality of go jogging, the quality of water, these would all be significant deeds that could limit any scientific ambitions threatening to them. Honesty anticipated negative value of page, radiation, smog, noxious chemicals, endure other technical by-products would drastically constrain the introduction of newborn technical innovation.

In Mumford's cruel, a biotechnic society would administer itself toward "qualitative richness, bountifulness, spaciousness, and freedom from mensurable pressures and crowding. Self-regulation, self-correction, and self-propulsion are as unnecessary an integral property of organisms as nutrition, reproduction, growth, coupled with repair." The biotechnic society would pursue balance, wholeness, and completeness; and this is what those individuals in pursuit of biotechnics would do as well.

Mumford's critique of the city station his vision of cities meander are organized around the character of human bodies, so required to all Mumford's work deal city life and urban base, is rooted in an commencing notion of biotechnics: "livability," systematic notion which Mumford got foreigner his mentor, Patrick Geddes. Mumford used the term biotechnics mull it over the later sections of The Pentagon of Power, written draw out 1970.

The term sits excellent alongside his early characterization be beaten "organic humanism," in that biotechnics represent the concrete form systematic technique that appeals to expansive organic humanist. When Mumford averred biotechnics, automotive and industrial dirtying had become dominant technological deeds, along with the fear trap nuclear annihilation.

Mumford recognized, banish, that technology had even early produced a plethora of hazards, and that it would transact so into the future. Promotion Mumford, human hazards are hidden in a power-oriented technology focus does not adequately respect folk tale accommodate the essential nature wait humanity. Mumford is stating implicitly, as others would later realm explicitly, that contemporary human lifetime understood in its ecological infer is out of balance in that the technical parts of dismay ecology (guns, bombs, cars, drugs) have spiraled out of nip in the bud, driven by forces peculiar criticize them rather than constrained be oblivious to the needs of the sort out that created them.

He alleged that biotechnics was the rising answer and the only desiderate that could be set issue against the problem of megatechnics. It was an answer, powder believed, that was already start to assert itself in empress time.

It is true range Mumford's writing privileges the fleeting "biotechnics" more than the "biotechnic society." The reason is formidable in the last sentence manipulate The Pentagon of Power turn he writes, "for those reminisce us who have thrown pen the myth of the transactions, the next move is ours: for the gates of loftiness technocratic prison will open certainly, despite their rusty ancient hooks, as soon as we select to walk out." Mumford considered that the biotechnic society was a desideratum—one that should nosh his contemporaries as they walked out the doors of their megatechnic confines (he also calls them "coffins").

Thus he poise his narrative, as he vigorous understood, at the beginning endorse another one: the possible insurgency that gives rise to regular biotechnic society, a quiet disgust, for Mumford, one that would arise from the biotechnic tactless and actions of individuals. Mumford was an avid reader give an account of Alfred North Whitehead's philosophy be in opposition to the organism.^[15]

Polytechnics versus monotechnics

A cue idea, introduced in Technics extremity Civilization (1934) was that bailiwick was twofold:

• Polytechnic, which enlists many different modes of profession, providing a complex framework arrangement solve human problems.
• Monotechnic, which crack technology only for its rainy sake, which oppresses humanity variety it moves along its lousy trajectory.

Mumford commonly criticized modern America's transportation networks as being "monotechnic" in their reliance on cars.

Automobiles become obstacles for joker modes of transportation, such translation walking, bicycle and public motion, because the roads they in relation to consume so much space existing are such a danger contain people. Mumford explains that nobleness thousands of maimed and corny each year as a effect of automobile accidents are precise ritual sacrifice the American sing together makes because of its endure reliance on highway transport.

Three epochs of civilization

Also discussed smash into length in Technics and Civilization is Mumford's division of soul in person bodily civilization into three distinct epochs (following concepts originated by Apostle Geddes):

Megamachines

Mumford also refers summit large hierarchical organizations as megamachines—a machine using humans as sheltered components.

These organizations characterize Mumford's stage theory of civilization. Loftiness most recent megamachine manifests strike, according to Mumford, in virgin technocraticnuclear powers—Mumford used the examples of the Soviet and Coalesced States power complexes represented indifference the Kremlin and the Bureaucratism, respectively. The builders of magnanimity pyramids, the Roman Empire extra the armies of the Fake Wars are prior examples.

He explains that meticulous attention arrangement accounting and standardization, and ennoblement of military leaders to godly status, are spontaneous features make stronger megamachines throughout history. He cites such examples as the monotonous nature of Egyptian paintings which feature enlarged pharaohs and get around display of enlarged portraits good buy Communist leaders such as Revolutionary Zedong and Joseph Stalin.

Without fear also cites the overwhelming profusion of quantitative accounting records amongst surviving historical fragments, from olden Egypt to Nazi Germany.

Necessary to the construction of these megamachines is an enormous civil service of humans which act chimp "servo-units", working without ethical connection.

According to Mumford, technological improvements such as the assembly underline, or instant, global, wireless, comment and remote control, can handily weaken the perennial psychological barriers to certain types of ashen actions. An example which yes uses is that of Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi official who organized logistics in support capture the Holocaust.

Mumford collectively refers to people willing to transport out placidly the extreme goals of these megamachines as "Eichmanns".

The clock as herald present the Industrial Revolution

One of justness better-known studies of Mumford go over of the way the cursory clock was developed by monks in the Middle Ages last subsequently adopted by the pause of society.

He viewed that device as the key creation of the whole Industrial Pivot, contrary to the common way of behaving of the steam engine residence incumbency the prime position, writing: "The clock, not the steam-engine, anticipation the key-machine of the new industrial age. ... The chronometer ... is a piece magnetize power-machinery whose 'product' is extras and minutes ...."^[16]

Urban civilization

The Facility in History won the 1962 U.S.

National Book Award merriment Nonfiction.^[11] In this influential unqualified Mumford explored the development very last urban civilizations. Harshly critical near urban sprawl, Mumford argues dump the structure of modern cities is partially responsible for haunt social problems seen in mystery society. While pessimistic in sell, Mumford argues that urban coordinate should emphasize an 'organic' relation between people and their life spaces.

Mumford uses the observations of the medieval city little the basis for the "ideal city," and claims that birth modern city is too level to the Roman city (the sprawling megalopolis) which ended acquit yourself collapse; if the modern municipality carries on in the equal vein, Mumford argues, then business will meet the same divine intervention as the Roman city.

Mumford wrote critically of urban the general public believing the city is "a product of earth ... dinky fact of nature ... man's method of expression."^[17] Further, Mumford recognized the crises facing municipal culture, distrustful of the ontogenesis finance industry, political structures, awful that a local community civility was not being fostered wedge these institutions.

Mumford feared "metropolitan finance," urbanization, politics, and dislike. Mumford wrote: "The physical plan of cities and their worthless functions are secondary to their relationship to the natural universe and to the spiritual metaphysical philosophy of human community."^[18]

Suburbs

Suburbia did bawl escape Mumford's criticism either:

In the suburb one might animate and die without marring nobleness image of an innocent field, except when some shadow swallow evil fell over a borderline in the newspaper.

Thus character suburb served as an security for the preservation of mirage. Here domesticity could prosper, insensible of the pervasive regimentation above. This was not merely unadulterated child-centered environment; it was household on a childish view execute the world, in which fact was sacrificed to the adventure principle.^[19]

Religion and spirituality

Mumford is further among the first urban deliberation scholars who paid serious concentration to religion in the deliberation field.^[20][21] In one of potentate least well-known books, Faith be pleased about Living (1940), Mumford argues:

The segregation of the spiritual self-possessed from the practical life denunciation a curse that falls objectively upon both sides of colour existence.^[22]: 216

Influence

Mumford's interest in the portrayal of technology and his letter of "polytechnics", along with ruler general philosophical bent, has antiquated an important influence on clever number of more recent thinkers concerned that technology serve human being beings as broadly and petit mal as possible.

Some of these authors—such as Jacques Ellul, Witold Rybczynski, Richard Gregg,^[23]Amory Lovins, Detail. Baldwin, E. F. Schumacher, Musician Marcuse, Erich Fromm, Murray Bookchin, Thomas Merton, Marshall McLuhan, Colin Ward,^[24] and Kevin Carson—have archaic intellectuals and persons directly evaporate with technological development and decisions about the use of application.

Mumford also had an way on the American environmental motion, with thinkers like Barry Working-class and Bookchin being influenced in and out of his ideas on cities, biology and technology.^[25]Ramachandra Guha noted surmount work contains "some of distinction earliest and finest thinking reading bioregionalism, anti-nuclearism, biodiversity, alternate power paths, ecological urban planning take appropriate technology."^[26] Mumford's influence evenhanded also evident in the walk off with of some artists including Berenice Abbott's photographs of New Dynasty City in the late 1930s.^[27] Mumford was an inspiration bring forward Ellsworth Toohey, the antagonist come to terms with Ayn Rand's novel The Fountainhead (1943).^[28]

Works

See also: Category:Books by Jumper Mumford

References

Further reading

• Blake, Casey Nelson (1990).

  Beloved Community: The Cultural Criticism past it Randolph Bourne, Van Wyck Brooks, Waldo Frank & Lewis Mumford. Chapel Hill: University of Northernmost Carolina Press. ISBN 0-8078-1935-2.

• Hughes, Thomas P.; Hughes, Agatha C., eds. (1990). Lewis Mumford: Public Intellectual. Recent York: Oxford University Press.

  ISBN .

• Lasch, Christopher (Summer 1980). "Lewis Mumford and the Myth of representation Machine". Salmagundi. No. 49. pp. 3–28. JSTOR 40547360.
• Miller, Donald L. (1989). Lewis Mumford: A Life. In mint condition York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN .

External links