The Death and Life of Great American Cities
Jane Jacobs's 1961 critique of urban renewal and case for dense, mixed-use streets.
At a glance
Key ideas
Orthodox urbanism, The sidewalk ballet, Eyes on the street …
See all 6Influence
The Power Broker, Criticism from the left
See all 2Connections
Also on this page: Key facts · Links · Sources · Related pages
- The book opens: "This book is an attack on current city planning and rebuilding." Jacobs blames 1950s planning, from the Garden City to Le Corbusier, for the decline of many US neighbourhoods.
- She argues that busy sidewalks keep cities safe and build public trust among strangers.
- She proposes mixed uses, short blocks, old buildings and density in place of large clearance projects.
Why it matters
- It turned public opinion against modernist planners such as Robert Moses and remains one of the most influential books in American city planning.
Key facts
- Author
- Jane Jacobs1
- Published
- 1961, Random House1
- Written with
- A Rockefeller Foundation grant, over three years affiliated with The New School2
- Award
- Finalist for the 1962 National Book Award for Nonfiction1
- Reach
- Translated into six languages; over a quarter-million copies sold1
- Later edition
- Modern Library hardcover, February 1993, with a new foreword by the author1
Key ideas
-
Orthodox urbanism1
Jacobs traces planning theory to Ebenezer Howard's Garden City, the Decentrists and Le Corbusier's Radiant City, and calls it anti-urban.
-
The sidewalk ballet1
Sidewalk life is an intricate ballet whose many small encounters compose an orderly whole.
-
Eyes on the street1
A street needs a clear line between public and private space, buildings facing it, and people watching it continuously.
-
Parks need life1
Parks thrive only with diverse uses around them; badly placed ones repel people.
-
Neighbourhoods at three levels1
The city, the district (big enough to fight city hall) and the street.
-
Four generators of diversity1
Mixed primary uses, short blocks, buildings of various ages, and density.
Influence
Connections
Written by
Links
Sources
Last checked against its sources today
Is something on this page wrong or out of date? Tell us
The line under a date fills as time passes: empty when new, then one equal share each for a day, a week, a month and a year. For episodes and other items it is full at 2 years; for "last checked", at a year. A striped line means the date is known only to the month or year.