Dark Age Ahead - Softcover

Jacobs, Jane

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1400076706 ISBN 13: 9781400076703

Publisher: Vintage, 2005

Synopsis

In this indispensable book, urban visionary Jane Jacobs argues that as agrarianism gives way to a technology-based future, we’re at risk of cultural collapse. Jacobs—renowned author of The Death and Life of Great American Cities and The Economy of Cities—pinpoints five pillars of our culture that are in serious decay: community and family; higher education; the effective practice of science; taxation, and government; and the self-regulation of the learned professions. The corrosion of these pillars, Jacobs argues, is linked to societal ills such as environmental crisis, racism, and the growing gulf between rich and poor.

But this is a hopeful book as well as a warning. Drawing on a vast frame of reference—from fifteenth-century Chinese shipbuilding to Ireland’s cultural rebirth—Jacobs suggests how the cycles of decay can be arrested and our way of life renewed. Invigorating and accessible, Dark Age Ahead is not only the crowning achievement of Jane Jacobs’ career, but one of the most important works of our time.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

In this indispensable book, urban visionary Jane Jacobs--renowned author of The Death and Life of Great American Cities and The Economy of Cities--convincingly argues that as agrarianism gives way to a technology-based future, we stand on the brink of a new dark age, a period of cultural collapse. Jacobs pinpoints five pillars of our culture that are in serious decay: community and family; higher education; the effective practice of science; taxation, and government; and the self-regulation of the learned professions. The corrosion of these pillars, Jacobs argues, is linked to societal ills such as environmental crisis, racism, and the growing gulf between rich and poor.
But this is a hopeful book as well as a warning. Drawing on her vast frame of reference-from fifteenth-century Chinese shipbuilding to Ireland's cultural rebirth-Jacobs suggests how the cycles of decay can be arrested and our way of life renewed. Invigorating and accessible, Dark Age Ahead is not only the crowning achievement of Jane Jacobs' career, but one of the most important works of our time.

From the Back Cover:

Praise for Jane Jacobs:
“Probably no single thinker has done more in the last fifty years to transform our ideas about the nature of urban life.” -- Chicago Tribune

“[Jacobs] is a thinker of wondrous acumen and curiosity looking still deeper into the human condition.” -- The Globe and Mail

“Jane Jacobs has become more than a person. She is an adjective.” -- Toronto Life

About this edition

• Publisher: Vintage
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1400076706
• ISBN 13: 9781400076703
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 256