lewis mumford - art in the machine age
TRANSCRIPT
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7/25/2019 Lewis Mumford - Art in the Machine Age
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1 0 2
T H E S A T U R D A Y R E V I E W
OF
L I T E R A T U R E , S E P TE M B E R
8, 1928
' I ij . I . . .1 I
^
^ Art in the
Machine
Age,
D
U R I N G a g r ea t p a r t of h istory , the ar ts
w e r e an ind iv isib le par t of the l i fe of a
c o m m u n i t y . It is difficult, as Kar l B i i ch er
poin ted out, to say wh e re wo rk l eav es oif and art
b eg i n s : d r am a is in o r i g i n the signif icant re hearsa l
of the " t h i n g d o n e , " the p l an t i n g of seed and the
g a t h er i n g
of
h a rv es t ; so n g
and
d an ce rh y t h m i ca l l y
r ecap t u r e the ecstasy of co u r t sh i p or m a r t i a l t r i u m p h ;
p a i n t i n g and scu lp ture v isu al ize d iv in i ty , or r ea l i ze ,
i n m o re p e r f ec t co m p o su re , the f o r m s of men and
l an d scap es ; to live is to ex p er i en ce art. A m o n g all
t h e o ccu p a t i o n s k n o wn to men and pract ised by t h em
d o w n to m o d ern t i m es , the o n l y one t h a t was de
g r a d e d ,
to the
exclusion
of art, in the
process
of
c o n
d u c t i n g the w o r k or sh ap i n g the m a t e r i a l s or s h a r
in g in civ ic l i fe, was t h a t of the m i n e r . F r o m the
miserable slaves who w o r k e d the s i lv e r m i n es of
A t h e n s to the se r f s who r e m a i n e d in the m i n e s of
G r e a t B r i t a i n up to the n i n e t een t h cen t u ry , the
m i n er a l o n e was c o n d e m n e d a l o n g w i t h the p u b
l i c ex ecu t i o n ert o ex i s t wi t h o u t b en ef i t of the ar ts .
T h e i n d u s t r i a l p e r i o d b eg i n s wi t h a r ev er sa l of
t h i s co n d i t i o n . Th e m i n er d ev e l o p s the s t eam en
gine
and
i n v en t s
the
r a i l r o ad ;
for a
w h i l e ,
the
steam
e n g i n e , the r a i l r o ad , and a g r ea t a r r ay of m ech an i ca l
co n t r i v an ces o ccu p y the cen t r e of m en ' s ac t i v i t i e s ;
a nd the one art wh i ch t h ro u g h o u t h u m an h i s t o ry had
been
a
sy m b o l
of
d eg rad a t i o n d o m i n a t es
the
scene,
d isp lacing human desi res and h u m a n s t a n d a r d s , and
erec t i n g , as an I r o n C a l f for the m u l t i t u d e to w o r
sh ip , the
not ions
of
mechanical eff iciency
and
m ere l y
p ecu n i a ry wea l t h . E v ery art feels the shock of th is
ch an g e : l i v i n g b eco m es su b o rd i n a t e to w o r k i n g , and
w o r k i n g is no l o n g er en r i ch ed by the wh o l e p e r
so n a l i t y . The new wo rk i n g c l as s ,as it isca l l ed , can
a l as n e i t h e r p ro d u ce art nor respond to it; the in
t r icate fo lk dances d isappear; the folk songs lose
both
in fun and in
d e p t h ;
the
m an u fac t u r ed fu rn i
t u r e , r u g s , cu r t a i n s , and dress mater ials that take
the p lace of th e old p ro d u c t s of h an d i c r a f t l o se all
es t h e t i c v a l u e ; by the m i d d l e of the n in e t een t h cen
t u ry the age of n o n - a r t has, ap p aren t l y , b eg u n .
^% t^* (5*
W a s the d i sp l acem en t of art t h a t m ark ed the in
t r o d u c t i o n of m a c h i n e r y a p e r m a n e n t or a t e m p o
rary process? It wasimpossib le to an swer t h i s q u es
t ion
in
J o h n R u s k i n 's t i m e ;
but by now I
t h i n k
we
m ay say co n f i d en tl y t h a t the process was o n l y a t e m
p o ra ry one. W h i l e t h o se who v a l u e the t r ad i t i o n a l
a r t s are chiefly conscious of the loss,we are now also
conscious of the fact that indust r ial ism has p ro d u ced
new ar ts , associated wi th the appl icat ion of precise
m e t h o d s and m ach i n e t o o l s. W i l l t h ese new i n d u s
t r i a l a r t s a l t o g e t h er r ep l ace the t rad i t iona l ones?
W i l l the t rad i t ional ar ts recover some of their lost
g r o u n d ? Has the m ach i n e age d ev e l o p ed a new
esthet ic,
or is its
b ias essent ial ly an t i -esth et ic? W il l
the expression of the h u m an p er so n a l i t y t h ro u g h the
ar t s r eg a i n its an c i en t p l ace and w i l l art once more
acco m p an y all h u m an ac t i vi t y ? T h e se are so m e of
the quest ions we m u s task.
T h e p r i m ary r esu l t , w i t h o u t d o u b t , of m o d e r n
m et h o d s of p ro d u c t i o n and i n t e r co u r se u p o n the
ci t ies and countrysides of the W e s t e r n W o r l d was
t h e wh o l esa l e d e f acem en t of the l an d scap e and the
reckless misuse and perversion of a l m o s t ev ery n a t u
r a l r eso u rce ; ab o v e
all, the
stark misuse
of the
wo rk er s t h em se l v es .
T h e co a l t h a t was b r o u g h t to the su r f ace to run
t h e en g i n es in the new f ac t o r i es r esu l t ed in the h o r
r id debris of the p i t h ead ; ca r r i ed by r a i l way s mto
th e ne w t o w n s , it c r ea t ed the sm o k ep a l l wh i ch sh u t
o u t su n l i g h t , r ed u ced the aer ial co lors to fo g g y g r ey ,
an d , f a l l i n g in a sooty f ilm whic h effaced every
g rad a t i o n of co l o r in s t r ee t and b u i l d i n g , it sank
i n t o the l u n g s and the pores of the i n d u s t r i a l d e n i
z e n .
In
ce r t a i n i n d u s t r i e s ,
the
escaping gases
or
f inely d iv ided part icles dest royed the su r ro u n d i n g
v eg e t a t i o n ; wh i l e in o t h e r s the refuse dumpe d in to
the st reams k i l led the an i m al l i f e and m a d e the wa
ter unfi t to d r i n k or to s w i m in. The d isso lu t ion
of so l id forms in the l a t e r p a i n t i n g s o{ T u r n e r and
in those of W h i s t l e r in the n ex t g en era t i o n , was
p ar t l y
a
wi t n ess
of the
e a r ly c o a l r e g i m e . W i t h o u t
the sof t ob l i terat ion of fog, the l an d scap e was
h i d eo u s : the so le beauty that remained was t h a t of
a t m o sp h ere .
n n ^
In t h i s en v i ro n m e n t a r ch i t ec t u r e t o t a l l y co l l ap sed ,
ex cep t so far as it was s t i l l ca r r i ed fo rwa rd by the
m o m e n t u m a c q u i r e d in an ea r l i e r age. It was ev en
wo rse wi t h the m o re i n t i m at e fo rm s of d eco ra t i o n
a n d f u r n i t u r e . K n o w l e d g e
and
taste occupied
dif
f e r e n t c o m p a r t m e n t s : the i n d u s t r i a l i s t was one p e r
son , the esthete was a n o t h e r ; the operat ive was one
person , the d es i g n er was an o t h er . Th e u t i l i t a r i an
was r i g h t wh en he insisted upon l iv ing in his own
ag e and t ak i n g ad v an t ag e of the i n s t ru m en t s t h i sage
h ad p ro d u ced ;
the
ro m an t i c i s t
was
r i g h t wh en
he
was aware t h a t
the
h u m an p er so n a l i t y co u l d
not be
split up, and t h a t a phi losophy whic h arb i t rar i ly
l imi ts our p r ac t i ca l f u n c t i o n s and d ivorces them
from quest ions of taste and b eau t y , is an i n s t r u m e n t
o f d eg rad a t i o n .
t^k t ^ 5*
B u t w h e n we t u rn f ro m the t r ad i t i o n a l a r t s to
th e new ar ts that arose wi th the m ach i n e eco n o m y
t h e p i c t u r e b eco m es so m ewh at d i f f e r en t. E n g i n eer
in g as an ex ac t art came in to ex istence duri ng the
Ren a i s san ce and en t e r ed u p o n a per iod of astonish
i n g g r o w t h in the e i g h t een t h cen t u ry , the cen t u ry
t h a t saw the p e r f ec t ed s t eam en g i n e , the p o wer
l o o m , and the i r o n b r i d g e . E v en in its pr imit ive
appl icat ions, in the art of for t i f icat ion in the sev en -
LEWIS MUMFORD
Copyright y Bachrach
t een t h cen t u ry , en g i n eer i n g sh o wed r esu l t s wh i ch
placed
it, at
t i m es ,
on the
l ev e l
of
a r ch i t ec t u r e .
W i t h the d ev e l o p m en t of m at h em at i cs and p h y s
ics, the art of enginee ring f lourished . By exact
m e a s u r e m e n t s , by tested formu las, by f ine cal ibra
t ions, a new t ech n i q u e in h an d l i n g m at e r i a l s cam e
in to ex istence whose success was m easu red , not by
i t s incorporat ion of the h u m an t o u ch and the h u m an
personal i ty ,
but by its
to tal el imina t ion
of
these char
ac t e r i s ti c s . E n g i n e er i n g d ea l s
in
k n o wn q u an t i t i e s :
it seeks to ach i ev e ca l cu l ab l e r esu l t s ; and its h ighest
p ro d u c t s h av e b een in t h o se d ep ar t m en t s wh ere the
u n k n o w n or u n cer t a i n f ac t o r s co u l d be r ed u ced to a
m i n i m u m . By m ak i n g cas t - i r o n and steel avai lab le
as a co m m o n m at e r i a l of art t h r o u g h o ut W e s t e r n
E u ro p e an d Am e r i ca , m e t a l l u rg y p l aced at our d i s
posal a substance more p l iab le than stone or wo o d ,
an d m u ch m o re h a rd and t o u g h and s t r o n g in its
various possib le mixtures than copper and its a l l o y s ;
wh i l e in the l a t h e , the d r i l l , and l a t e r the p l an i n g
m a c h i n e , the art of ad ap t i n g t h i s m et a l to the finest
m ech an i ca l ad j u s t m en t s was made possib le. The
special ized machine i t sel f
is a
d e r i v a t i v e p ro d u c t :
it
is
t he
m ach i n e- t o o l t h a t
is the
source
of our
t r i u m p h s
in the ex ac t a r t s .
W i t h o u t s t e e l , our m ach i n e t o o l s m i g h t h av e p ro
d u ced i n s t ru m en t s
of
exquisi te accuracy ,
but
they
wo u l d h av e b een
few in
n u m b er ; wi t h o u t m ach i n e
tools, our p len t i fu l supply of i r o n wo u l d h av e had
l i t t le formal effect upon design , fo r t h i s m at e r i a l
would st i l l have been subjected to the character ist ic
modif icat ions of han dicr af t . Both these possib i li t ies
w e r e
ex p l o r ed in the ea r l y d ev e l o p m en t of t ech
n o l o g y ; for up to the e i g h t een t h cen t u ry the exact
a r t s had p ro d u ced as t h e i r c ro wn i n g ach i ev em en t s
only smal l inst ruments l ike clocks
and
wa t ch es ,
wh i l e as soon asi r o n cam e i n t o g en era l use, the ear ly
d es i g n er su ccu m b ed to the t em p t a t i o n to t r ea t it in
the fash ion of h a n d i c r a f t stuff, wi t h m o d e l l ed anc
cas t em b el l i sh m en t s in the form of flowers and bird;
an d f ru i t d eco ra t i o n s wh i ch ap p ear eq u a l l y on th(
b ar r e l s of can n o n s , on the g i rd e r s of b r i d g es , anc
on the vacant par ts of the ear l iest typewri ters.
In spite of numerous sort ies down these b l inc
a l l ey s , en g i n eer i n g by the m i d d l e of the n i n e t een t l
cen t u ry , wh en the Cry s t a l P a l ace was b u i l t in Lon
d o n ,
had
b eg u n
to
find
its
leg i t imate task
and it
p ro p er can o n s of w o r k m a n s h i p . Th e first completi
d em o n s t r a t i o n of its p o w e r to p ro d u ce g r ea t wo rk
of art cam e in the co n s t ru c t i o n of the Brookly i
Br i d g e
in New
Y o r k . W i t h o u t d o u b t,
the
Brook
lyn Bridge is one of the g r ea t m as t e rp i eces of n ine
t een t h cen t u ry en g i n eer i n g , and, considered by th
s t an d ard s of esthet ics, it is p e rh ap s the m o s t com
p l e t e wo rk of a r ch i t ec t u r e on a large scale that th
cen t u ry can sh o w a p er f ec t ex p ress i o n , in l ine am
m ass , of all t h a t the s t r u c t u r e d em an d s f ro m th
en g i n eer i n g e l em en t s , and of all t h a t the eye re
quires in thei r d isposi t ion .
T h a t en g i n eer i n g d em an d s i m ag i n a t i v e d es i g r
a n dis not the lessan art because all the esthet ic con
di t ions must be ach iev ed w i t h i n a n a r r o w set of ma
ter ial l imi tat ions, is l ikewise estab l ished by the larg
n u m b e r of badly designed engineering st ructure
t h a t we h av e p ro d u ced : ag a i n s t a Bro o k l y n Br i d g
on e may pit the u n co u t h d es i g n of the W i l l i a m s
b u rg h B r i d g e , ag a i n s t
the
Arm y S u p p l y Base
ii
South Brooklyn
one
m i g h t
put a
score
of
u n rh y t h
m i ca l , b o x l i k e f ac t o r i es ; and in g en era l , for ev er
ex am p l e of s t r o n g i m ag i n a t i v e en g i n eer i n g on
m i g h t put a d o zen ex am p l es of f eeb l e wo rk to p ro v
t h a t , wh i l e the i m p er so n a l a r t s are as capable o:
b eau t y as the h u m a n e a r t s , the m ere em p l o y m en t o:
m at h em at i ca l f o rm u l ee or the close adherence ti
m ach i n e p a t t e rn s is no g u aran t ee w h a t ev er fo
esthet ic success.
^9* t5* t5*
D u r i n g the last th i r ty years we h av e b eco m emon
conscious
of the
esthetic possibilities
of the
exact ar ts
an d it is no acc i d en t t h a t our n ewes t i n s t ru m en t s
t h e au t o m o b i l e and the ae ro p l an e , are not the w e a k
es t but the best of our m ach i n e p ro d u c t s , a d ist ino
t ion which they share wi th American k i tchen equip
m e n t and bathroo m fixtures. U nde r our very eyes
a n i m p r o v e m e n t in design has taken p lace , t rans
f o r m i n g
the
a w k w a r d m a s s
and the
broken l ines
o;
the pr imit ive au to in to the unif ied mass and the sl id
s t r eam - l i n es of the m o d e r n car ; or, by an evei
g r ea t e r r ev o l u t i o n in d es i g n , t u rn i n g the i m p er f ec t l ;
related p lanes of the p u sh -p o wer ae ro p l an e i n t o th.
m o re b u o y an t , g u l l - l i k e t r ac t o r p l an e of to-day
with body and wi n g b o t h g a i n i n g in beauty as the;
were ad ap t ed m o re ca r e fu l l y
to the
m ech an i ca l
re
q u i r e m e n t s of flight. So s t r o n g , so l o g i ca l are thes
designs that they have inevi tab ly a p o wer fu l i m ag i
native eflFect; and one does no t w o n d e r at the im
p u l se m an y E u ro p ean a r ch i t ec t s h av e su ccu m b ed tc
to copy the fo rm s of the ae ro p l an e or the steamshii
ev en in b u i l d i n g s wh ere t h e i r f u n c t i o n s are foreigi
o r i r r e l ev an t .
I n ap p rec i a t i n g the g r ea t ach i ev em en t s of moder;
e n g i n e e r i n g , as an art, we m u s t not, h o w e v e r , for
g e t t h e i r l i m i t a t i o n s . Th e f ac t is t h a t all the indis
p u t ab l e t r i u m p h s of the exact ar ts have been in field
w h e r e the h u m a n e l e m e n t has been e l i m i n a t ed , o
w h e r e
the
fu n c t i o n
of the
machine i t sel f expressei
t h e o n l y h u m an d es i r e i n v o l v ed as the aeroplan
expresses the an c i en t h u m an d es i r e for the power
of flight. Th e real test of our ab i l i ty as ar t i s ts am
en g i n eer s wi l l co m e wh en we a t t e m p t to apply th
machine-technique in to f ields of ac t i v i t y wh ere th
personal i ty as a wh o l e m u s t beco n s i d er ed , and wh er
social adaptat ions
and
psychological st resses
an.
s t r a i n s
are
j u s t
as
i m p o r t an t f ac t o r s
as
tensil
s t r en g t h , l o ad , or mechanical eff iciency in operat ion
U p to the p r esen t our use of m ach i n e m et h o d
h as b een m u d d l ed by two d i f f e ren t a t t i t u d es . On.
has been the p a t h e t i c e r ro r of u s i n g m ach i n e m et h
od s to ach i ev e fo rm s and q u a l i t i e s t h a t are an t ag o
nist ic to the n a t u r e of the m ach i n e : u n d er t h i s hea.
c o m e s
the
i n t ro d u c t i o n
of
m a c h i n e - c a r v i n g
in tb
m a n u f a c t u r e
of, say,
T u d o r c h a i rs
in
o r d e r
to
sttm
u l a t e the an c i en t h an d i c r a f t d es i g n s on a scale tha
w i l l m e e t the v u l g ar m i n d . Fo r an y o n e wi t h aj
honest sense of d es i g n , the ch eap es t b en t wo o d cha.
i s superior
to the
faked rep l ica
of the
m a c h i n e .
h.
c o n t S r y e r r o r is t h a t of h o l d i n g t h a t the b en t woo.
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7/25/2019 Lewis Mumford - Art in the Machine Age
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THE SATURDAY REVIEW OF LITERATURE, SEPTEMBER 8, 1928
1 0 3
by Louis Mumford ^ ^ ^
m ach i n e d ch a i r i s ad m i rab l y su i t ed to m o d ern p u r
poses because i t is so lely and en t i re ly a pro duct of
the machine: th is neglects the simple fact that i t i s
to tal ly unadapted in design to the contours of the
human body in al l bu t one or two brief st i f f postures.
T o d en y t h a t t h e m ach i n e can p ro d u ce a r t is a f a l
l acy ; t o b e l i ev e t h a t ev ery t h i n g t h e m ach i n e p ro
duces is exce l len t ar t i s also a rom ant i c fal lacy . T o
curb the machine a nd l imi t ar t to han dicr af t i s a
d en i a l o f o p p o r t u n i t y . T o ex t en d th e m ach i n e ev en
in to provinces where i t has no funct ion to per form
is l ikewise a denial of opportu ni ty .
I t i s no t on ly in the ar ts that have bee n fruct i f ied
by science that there has been a d ist inct gain . On ce
the d isrupt ion of the t rad i t ional a r ts was com plete, i t
became possib le to rev ive them on a modern basis;
an d s i n ce , r o u g h l y , 1 8 8 0 , t h e r e h as g o n e o n a r e
v ival in typography, tex t i les, furn i ture, in arch i tec
t u r e an d c i t y p l an n i n g wh i ch sh o ws , I t h i n k , t h a t
science and technics, whi le they have al tered the basis
of these ar ts , have not done away wi th the possib i l i
t ies of thei r proper grow th and develo pme nt . I
sh a l l co n cen t r a t e o n a r ch i t ec t u r e an d c i t y d es i g n ;
for these are the master ar ts; and they f lourish only
to the ex ten t that they can cal l f reely on the acces
so ry c r a f t s .
J ^ ^
Beg i n n i n g f i r s t i n Am er i ca , am o n g t h e g ro u p o f
orig inal minds that began to design the warehouses
and off ice bui ld ings of Chicago during the eight ies,
a f resh impe tus in arch i tectura l design has no w
sp read t h ro u g h o u t Wes t e rn C i v i l i za t i o n . W h a t is
in back of i t? M ode rn archi te cture d i ffers f rom
al l the rev ivals that began wi th the Renaissance in
that i t spr ings out of a new logic of st ructure, in
stead of der iv ing from the last s tage in arch i tec
t u r a l d ev e l o p m en t t h e o rn am en t . T h i s lo g i c i s
founded on cer tain capi tal facts: f i rst , that our habi ts
of l iv ing have changed; second, that the funct ions
of a bui ld ing have been modif ied part ly by the in t ro
duct ion of mechanical u t i l i t ies for heat , d rainage,
equal iz at ion of tem per atur e; f inal ly, that mod ern
t ech n o l o g y h as p rov i d ed a wh o l e r an g e o f n ew m a
t e r i a l s an d m et h o d st h e s t ee l cag e an d f e r ro - co n -
c r e t e co n s t ru c t i o n fo r ex am p l ewh i ch h av e a l t e r ed
the essent ial p roblems of design .
As a resu l t , the conten t and potent ial rhythm of
a m o d ern b u i l d i n g h as ch an g ed . M r . F r a n k L l o y d
W r i g h t h as a l t e r ed t h e p ro p or t i o n s o f wa l l an d w i n
d o w, m ak i n g h i s ce i l i n g s l o w an d h i s wi n d o ws co n
t i n u o u s ; M r . E r i ch M en d e l so h n , i n t h e E i n s t e i n
T o we r , h as c r ea t ed f e r ro - co n cre t e as a co m p l e t e ly
p l as t i c m at e r i a l : P . P . Ou d i n Ho l l an d an d M ess r s .
S t e i n an d Wr i g h t i n Am er i ca h av e d es i g n ed d wel l
ing houses whose esthet ic value comes so lely through
t h e sp ac i n g an d g ro u p i n g o f s i m p l e , s t an d ard i zed
uni ts; whi lst the most or ig inal skyscraper arch i tects ,
M e s s r s . C o r b e t t, K a h n , W a l k e r , H a r m o n , a n d H o o d ,
have created vast St ructures which , by sheer mass
and proport ion and d isposi t ion of the par ts some
t i m es acq u i r e t h e d i g n i ty o f g r ea t b u i ld i n g . T h e re
i s n o t h i n g i n E u ro p ean o r Am er i can a r ch i t ec t u r e
since the seventeenth century to equal in or ig inal i ty
of design and in posi t ive concept ion the importan t
bui ld ings of the last th i r ty years, bu i ld ings l ike the
M arsh a l l F i e l d Wareh o u se , t h e M o n ad n o ck Bu i l d
i n g , t h e L o s An g e l es P u b l i c L i b r a ry , t h e S h e l t o n
Ho t e l , t h e Barc l ay -Vesey Bu i l d i n g , t h e i n t e r i o r o f
t h e Hi l l Au d i t o r i u m a t An n A rb o r , t h e r a il r o ad s t a
t i o n a t He l s i n g fo r s , t h e T o w n Hal l a t S t ock h o l m ,
t h e Bo u r se a t Am st e rd am , t h e co n cer t -h a l l a t Bres -
l au t o m en t i o n o n l y a h an d fu l o f ex am p l es ch o sen
at ran dom . I t is almo st as impossib le to char ac
ter ize al l the var ied manifestat ions of th is arch i tec
ture, par t icu lar ly during the last twenty years, as i t
i s to character ize the Goth ic; bu t , l ike the Goth ic
of the th i r teenth century , i t perhaps wi tnesses a com
m o n i m p u l se t o ward s sy n t h es i s t h ro u g h o u t Wes t e rn
Ci v i l i za t i o n .
Ou r a ch i ev em en t s i n a r ch i t ec t u r e , h av e b een
curbed by the fact that except in cer tain Euro pea n
ci t ies the arch i tect has lost h is sense of the whole:
the best bu i ld ings are not assured , by adequate ci ty
p lanning , of the best s i tes, o r even of relat ively im
por tan t ones; so that , whi le in the actual order of
deve lopme nt we have r isen from good engin eerin g
to good archi tecture, and may eventual ly r ise from
lood
arch i tecture to good ci ty design , as numerous
p l an s fo r c i t y ex t en s io n s an d n ew co m m u n i t i e s a l
ready promise, i t i s on ly by reversing th is process and
securing contro l of the social s i tuat ion that we shal l
be ab le to ex tend and perpetuate the advances we
h av e m ad e . W h a t do es t h i s m ean
?
I t m ean s m o d i
fy ing publ ic taste through the creat ion of a new
es t h e t i c ; i t m ean s cu rb i n g ex t r av ag an t g ro u n d r en t s
and prevent ing the misuse of si tes; in general , i t
m ean s t r ea t i n g t h e co m m u n i t y i ts e lf a s a m aj o r e l e
me nt in design . Befo re arch i tec ture can produce
more than iso lated masterp ieces, our social sk i l l must
be pushed at least as far as our engine ering sk i l l ,
def in ing the several funct ions of a ci ty and con
t ro l l ing the use of land for the benefi t o f the whole
co m m u n i t y . W h er e t h is h as b een d o n e b y p u b l i c
au t h o r i t y i n Ho l l an d , Germ an y , an d E n g l an d , a r ch i
tecture has profi ted .
t3^
a^
(5*
W e come at last to ci ty design . I f one excepts
the ex travagant and social ly dubious improvements
m ad e i n P ar i s an d Vi en n a d u r i n g t h e n i n e t een t h cen
tury , ci ty design almost completely d isappeared .
W ith indisputable gains in mechanica l eff iciency, in
t h e m an u fac t u r e an d t r an sp o r t a t i o n o f ce r t a i n p ro d
ucts, there was a vast loss in the communal ar t o f
l i v i n g . I s t h e n ew c it i e s t h e h o u s i n g acco m m o d a
t ion , no t merely for the indust r ial workers but for
a good part o f the middle classes, was below decent
h y g i en i c s t an d ard s ; p r i v a t e g a rd en s d i sap p eared , an d
as the ci t ies increased in area, populat ion , and weal th
the amount of sunl ight , f resh ai r , open spaces rela
t ively d iminished .
T h ere were m an y c r i t i c i sm s o f t h i s co n d i t i o n
from Eng els to Rusk in , f rom the physician who
p l an n ed t h e i m ag i n ary t o wn o f Hy g e i a t o th e i n d u s
t r i a l m ag n a t es wh o a t t em p t ed t o i m p ro v e co n d i t i o n s
in Pul lman, Port Sunl ight , and Essen; but the f i rst
adequate concept ion of the problem was formulated
b y S i r E b en ezer Ho ward wh en h e p u b l i sh ed h i s c l as
sic proposal for garde n ci t ies unde r the t i t le, " T o
m o r ro w . " M r . Ho w ard p oi n t ed o u t t h a t t h e n i n e
teenth century ci ty had become amorphous: i t had
nei ther shape nor bounds: the only in terrelat ion of
i ts par ts was an in terrelat ion of mech anical u t i l i t ies,
sewer s , wa t e r -m ai n s , an d t r an sp o r t a t i o n sy s t em s
and sven these were designed at haphazard .
Ad eq u a t e d es i g n , M r . Ho ward saw, was n o t a
m at t e r o f m ere l y p ro v i d i n g a r ch i t ec t u r a l ap p ro ach es
o r " c i v i c cen t r es , " n o r was i t a m at t e r o f e l ab o ra t
ing fur ther the physical u t i l i t ies: i t was essent ial ly
a socio logical mat ter , and i t must face every prob
lem of the ci ty 's ex istence; a ny f ine esthet ic resu l t
could only be the .crown of a long ser ies of effor ts .
Modern ci ty design involved p lanning ci t ies as uni ts
in relat ion to natural resources and recreat ion areas;
i t meant p lanning of house-si tes and gardens and
schools so that ch i l dren could be bred unde r cond i
t ions that would fu r ther thei r physical surv ival an d
their cu l ture: i t cal led for the provision of factory-
si tes and the coord inat ion of indus t r ies: and f inal ly,
i t dema nded as a condi t ion of cont inuo us growt h the
creat ion of new ci ty-uni ts , surrounded by rural areas,
but wi th al l the benefi ts of urban cooperat ion , schools,
amusements, l ib rar ies, theat res, hospi tals , and so
fo r t h . M o d ern c i t y d es i gn m ean t t h e ad eq u a t e r eso
l u t i o n o f a l l th ese p ro b l em s p ro b l em s wh i ch ac
tual ci ty p lanning by engineers and archi tects not
merely sh i rked but never even posed for themselves.
M r . Ho ward ' s co n cep t i o n o f c i t y g ro wt h as
growth by communi t ies, related to thei r reg ion and
to it s indust r i al l i fe, chal le nged the ex ist ing meth ods
and habi ts; for i t sh i f ted the whole emphasis f rom
m ech an i ca l p l an n i n g an d p a t ch wo rk , t o co m p reh en
s i ve so c i al p l an n i n g . Al t h o u g h M r . Ho war d ' s co n
cept ions have actual ly been embodied in two Eng
l i sh c i ti e s , W el l w y n an d L e t ch w o r t h , an d a l t h o u g h
they have deeply modif ied the curren t concept ions
o f c i t y p l an n i n g i n E u ro p e , an d t o a sm al l e r ex t en t
:n Amer ica, ci ty p la nnin g is st i l l the least progres
sive of the ar ts; and the new ci t ies of the western
world are not organic centres but ineff icien t me
chanica l agglor nerat io ns. Th is state of affai rs need
not exci te our won der ; for compa red wi th any single
special ized indust ry , the coord inat ions and t ransfor
m at i o n s r eq u i r ed fo r m o d ern c i t y p l an n i n g a r e i n
f ini tely more complica ted , and the hum an variab les
are muc h more d i ff icu l t to hand le. Despi te th is tar
d iness in development , our ci ty p lanning must even
t u a l l y n o t m ere l y r each t h e p o i n t t h a t M ess r s . Ho w
ard an d Un wi n h ad r each ed b y 1 90 4 ; i t m u s t ev en
pass beyond i t ; for our new technological achieve
m en t s i n t h e au t o m o b i l e , t h e ae ro p l an e , l o n g d i s
t an ce co m m u n i ca t i o n s an d g i an t p o wer t r an sm i ss i o n
have made our ex ist ing centres ineff icien t and obso
lete.
Ci ty design is the ar t o f orchest rat ing h um an
fu n c t i o n s in th e co m m u n i t y . As , t h ro u g h t h e ap p l i
cat ions of the scien t i f ic method , our ab i l i ty to fore
cast and contro l our purposes increases, reg ional
p l an n i n g m u s t p ro v i d e t h e f r am ewo rk fo r c i t y d e
sign , arch i tecture must avai l i t sel f more and more
o f co m m u n i t y p l an n i n g an d en g i n eer i n g m u s t g i v e
p reced en ce t o a r ch i t ec t u r et h u s r ev er s i n g t h e p r es
ent condi t ion und er which th ere is a vast pro l i fera
t ion of misconceived and misappl ied physical u t i l i
t ies and perpetua l scamping of huma n purpose
and design . Th is is no t an abst ract conclu sion; i t
emerges from the actual si tuat ion in the ar ts to -day .
On c e t h e f r am ewo rk fo r a h u m an l i f e i s p r ep ared ,
the ar ts that ar ise natural ly under these happy au
sp ices wi l l appea r , no t con st raine d , special ized ,
shrun ken, of ten insignif icant , as they are to-day , bu t
in someth ing l ike the or ig inal v i r i l i ty that cha rac
t e r i zed t h em t h ro u g h o u t wes t e rn E u ro p e b efo re t h e
i n t ro d u c t i o n o f t h e m ach i n e .
In sum, we can now see, I bel ieve, that the ma
chine age is no t a f ixed mon um ent in relat ion to
wh i ch t h e a r t s m u s t g e t t h e i r b ea r i n g s . ' T h e m a
chine age began wi th great d iscoveries in the physi
cal sciences, wi th the appl icat ion of experiment and
invent ion to mech anical contrap t io ns, and wi t h the
d o m i n a t i o n o f en g i n eer i n g as t h e su p rem e a r t . I t s
ea r l y g ro wt h was m ark ed b y t h e d i lap i d a t i o n o f a l l
the t rad i t ional ar tsexcept those which by thei r na
ture could ret rea t to the clo ister . In the ar ts v irh ich
arise out of personal i ty and social needs, the machine
age has developed slowly; but wi th the increasing
appl icat ion of b io logical knowledge to hygiene,
agricu l ture, and medicine, of psychology to educa
t ion , and of the social sciences to the actual prob
lems of indust ry , p lannin g and ci ty design and
regional development , the one-sided emphasis oh
m ech an i ca l t ech n i q u e , wh i ch m ark ed t h e ea r l y t r an s i
t ion , should eventual ly g ive way to a more even-
handed competence in deal ing wi th every aspect of
l i fe. W ith the ex istence of great er opportun i t ies
for leisure, p rovided potent ia l ly by the mac hine
econom y but st i l l far f ro m actua l achiev eme nt , the
personal and contemplat ive ar ts , which were ei ther
iso lated or reduced to fr ivo l i ty in the ear ly stages
of indust r ial ism, should f lourish again .
f^V < ?
Th er e is , o f course, no cer ta in ty that any of these
th ings wi l l happe n. A d isast rous ser ies of w ars
mig ht even throw us back in to a pre- indust r ia l era,
or dr ive the sp i r i t in to a superst i t ious ideology in
which compliance wi th inscru tab le powers outside
ourselves, powers working fear , d isaster , death ,
wou ld take the p lace of tha t act ive i f unna me able
fai th which buoys up al l those who now heart i ly
pursue the ar ts and sciences. I t i s even possible that
our f inancial org aniza t ions, tak in g adva ntage of
sundry narrow psychological sk i l l s , may f ind a way
of keeping the ar ts and sciences tethered to the mar
ket , and of emasculat ing them of every hypothesis
t h a t wo u l d up se t t h e p ro f i t -m ak i n g m ech an i sm . An y
or al l o f these perversions and miscarr iages may
come to pass; bu t none of the m wi l l ar ise out of the
leg i t imate method of science, nor wi l l they occur
because tested and veri f iab le knowledge d iscourages
the ar ts and annuls the funct ion of the ar t i s t .
Science cannot take the p lace of rel ig ion and
phi losophy; nor can engineering arrogate to i t sel f
the provinces of al l the o ther ar ts . O ur sciences,
our ideologies, and our ar ts are, on the contrary ,
essent ial to humane l iv ing; and thei r expression is
wholene ss in Life .
The foregoing article is to constitute the g reater
fari of a chafter of the volume entitled Whither
Mankind? an interfretation of the Machine Age,
edited by Charles A. B eard and shortly to be fub-
lished by Longman 's, Green
&?
Comfany. Its
tvriter, Lewis MuTnford, is the author of The
Golden Day {Boni & Liveright), and of numer
ous essays and studies.
-
7/25/2019 Lewis Mumford - Art in the Machine Age
3/3
1 0 4
T H E S A T U R D A Y R E V I E W O F L I T E R A T U R E , S E P T E M B E R 8, 1928
Books of Special Interest
Unpublished Letters
B A L Z A C
AN D
SOUVER AIN. Ed i ted
by
W A L T E R S C O T T H A S T IN G S . New York:
Doubleday , Page
&
Co .
1927. $15.
Reviewed by E. P R E S T O N D A R G A N
University of Chicago
A M O N O the most revealing pages in
^* Balzac's l ife-history are those co n
ce rn ing hisrelations with publishers. These
figures emerge as definitely as if theybe
longed
to the
"Comedie Hu maine"
itself.
We come
to
know
the
"od ious" Madame
Bechet, Edmond Werdet, gossip and " v u l
t u r e , "
and the c ra fty Chlendowski . We
learn afresh how closely Balzac commingled
his financial affairs and his li t e ra ry am bi
t ions.
Such are the interests of thepresent v ol
ume,
-consisting mainly of fifty-six hitherto
unpublished letters from Balzac to H i p p o -
lyte Souvarain. Thi s
editeur
stood sponsor
for numerous novels during
the
au thor 's
g rand c l imac te r ic (1833-1844 . ) . Th eo r i g
ina l ho lographs are the p roper ty of Mr.
Gabr ie l Wel l s , who invarious w ays hasap
peared as the "twentieth centu ry god father
of Ba lzac . "
Th e
volume republishes also
certain complementary letters from Souve-
. ra in to thenovelist . Th e editing hasbeen
carefully done byProfessor W. S. Hastings,
a l ready known for his work on Balzac's
pl ays .
Th e commenta ry or runn ing t ex t ,
if notalways explicit , isthoroug hly reliable
and readable. Professor Hastings
has had
to surmounnt great diflSculties in transcrib
ing , g roup ing , andda t ing theletters. The
result is a we l l -kn i t and complete chapter
from Balzac's professional l ife.
At best,
the
au thor ma in ta ined
an
armed
truce with hispub l i she rs at wors t , it was
a guer i l l a war fa re of recriminations. M.
de Balzac est un homme a ne j amaisi m-
primer," declared a p r in te r to Souverain.
We need
no t
dwel l
on the
famil iar tale
o f
how th i s "Mans layer" rewro te l a rge por
tions of his novels on proof-sheets. Such
revisions meant infinite delays; and Souve
rain complains mainly of overdue proof-
sheets, unfurnished copy, andcarelessnessas
to contracts.
On the
other ha nd,
the
letters
are constantly referring
to
money mat te r s ;
here it is Balzac who accuses le suferbe
Hiffolite of sharp dealing andwants more
liberality including frequent advances. In
short, anatmosphere of mutual distrust long
prevailed. Th eeditor of thevolum e seems
too good-natured
in
endeavor ing
to
clear
this atmosphere. It is hardly true th atthe
"first signs of coldness" date from1843.
All along there are too many signs of i r r i
tation, threats of legal proceedings, and
clearly expressed suspicion.
As fo r li terary matters, the chief lesson
I learn
is
tha t
one
cannot understand
the
composition
of the
"Comedie Humain e"
wi thou t
due
regard
to
Balzac's correspon
dence and hismutable contracts w ith pu b
lishers. A dozen masterpieces were brought
ou t by Souverain in these years. Concern
ing them weglean much inform ation. It is
noteworthy that sometimes
a
vo lume
is to
be filled
out by
writin g, rather hastily,
an
additional tale or two . To set up pa r t ot
one volume required of the compositors
three hundred hours of proof-corrections.
The cos t of polishing "Pierrette" exceeded
w h a t the au thor waspaid for that story.
Sweeping revisions were made
fo r
"Le Cure
de Vi l l age" as for Un Grand Homme de
Prov ince a Pari s." Occasionally the pub
lisher isa l lowed to make the necessary cor
rections, bu t Balzac vehe mently protests
against Souverain's passing a " rev i se" wi th
ou t
the
author ' s consent. Freque ntly
we
hear
of
obligations unfulfil led, because
the
novelist has undertaken fresh enterprises to
the prejudice of a previous contract. We
can understand Souverain's constant lament
that Balzac is " a lways p romis ing , " but sel
dom per fo rming .
Ye t the Titan 's productivity du ring this
period wa senormous . Th evolume shows
that hewrote incessantly, asone hag -ridden .
It
is
wha t killed
him
ultimately. Even
in 1843 his printers n early d rove him to
death. Th ebreak w ith S ouverain, asp u b
lisher came
at
this t ime.
But
later, while
Balzac was ill in Russia, the tone of the
correspondence reveals that cordial relations
were fo rthe first time established. Notonly
OTASBfe'iaBts'sai i iwa'ft'aJiSsa'^
By
L I A M O T L A H E R T Y
THE ASSASSIN
L
IAM O'FLAHERTY has written f ive novels which
have wonrecognition in England , France, Russia,
and America. His latest is a dramatic story of political
assassination during the Irish Revolution. In it Mr.
OTlaherty evokes thestates of mind of themurderers
as they plan and carry out their crime and escape capture.
The assassination henarrates is modeled upon an actual
event which occurred last year.
"That genius lurks behind
the
fabrication
of
'The Assassin'
all
who read this highly dis
tinctive tale will readily admit."
New York Times.
Second Printing,
$2.50
H A R C O U R T , B R A C E A N D C O M P A N Y
did Souverain help
the
suffering author
financially (he had done this befo re), but
he came forward with various friendly ser
vices ,
which included
the
purvey ing
of the
latest Parisian gossip and books to the
Ukra ine
Professor Hastings islikelyto becredited
wi th
a
notable discovery about this Russian
so journ . It is indicated fr om a monogram
on one of the letters that B alzac was in a
State hospital during
the
au tumn
of 1849,
instead of at his fiancee's home. If thisbe
fully proven, it would coun t asano the rin
stance
of
Mada me Ha nska's neglect.
Altogethe, this is a volume which for
external beauty and intrinsic value should
appeal to every Balzac, amateur.
sm
if^JtfiiSMf^Kfei^^
Historical Criticism
LIN COLN OR LEE. By
W I L L I A M
E.
DoDD. New Y o r k : Th e Cen tury Co.
1 9 2 8 .
$2.
Reviewed by L. E. R O B I N S O N
TN three chapters
Mr.
D o d d
has
essayed
*
a
very difficult task even
for a
historian
of his attainments. He attempts in brief
compass a " compar i son and con t ras t " of
Lincoln and Leeth rough a resume of their
conduct and fortune as leaders of theirr e
spective sides in wha t he somewhat naively
calls
the war
between
the
states."
The
swi f t ly -moving andwe l l -wr i tt en pa ra l l e lof
th e twoleaders sketches theopen ing of the
Civ i l War and the events of the epic duel
tha t fo l lowed; it indicates Lincoln's success
ful management of Palmerston's atti tude
and English public opinion,
and
stresses
the
hostil i ty
the
President encountered
in
Con
gress ,
in thecabinet, andelsewhere. Up to
Gettysburg, Lincoln loses and Lee wins.
After Gettysburg, which Lee lost because
"his greatness was his ruin," the Confederate
leader declined before
the
superior force
o f
Gran t , who ,
in
spite
of
excessive losses, per
sisted in fighting Lee's army.
Lee
is
called
the
greatest
of
American,
if not Eng l i sh -speak ing , com manders . " He
was the best representative of his time of
the "aristocratic principle." He was great
and knew hewas gre at. Herepresentedthe
section that
ha d
abandoned
the
social ph i
losophy
of
Jefferson,
its
greatest thinker,
fo r the "ha rder doc t r ine of Hami l tonand
John Marsha l l , the doctrine of inequality
a m o n g men. Lincoln, polit ically sym
pathetic with Jefferson's doctrine of equality
a m o n g
men, was
gentle
and
submissive
to
the will
of the
ma jor i ty .
It is
perplexing
te find a good American historian re ferring
to Lincoln as "unre l ig ious" ; to hisassissina-
tion as hav ing hur r ied him" in to an earlier
an d a greater immortality than life i tself
could have given."
It is an
open question
whether Lee's last five years "completed"
or redeemed
his
" immor ta l i ty . "
Mr. Dodd's l i t t le bookis an interestingif
journalistic essay
in
historical crit icism.
H e
has selected
the two
greatest
and
most
in
teresting Civil War leaders for parallel
study. In his estimate he has been influ
enced obviouslyby hisown observation that
"Americans love success"an d bythe ideaof
" the na r row
and
accidental ma rgin
of
suc
cess ." Th e
President
and the
Genera l
are
legarded too exclusively from the same level
of responsibility andac t ion . There issome
reason, however, fo r this point of view,
since Lincoln was p r imar i ly a statesman
with major military problems forced upon
his unwarlike temper,
and
Lee wa s
a
trained
soldier whose life affords noda ta fo r study
in the service or ideals of democratic gov
ernment. Mr . Dodd keeps before hisreader
Lincoln's hope of " l i f t ing theweights from
the shoulders
of all
men" ; l i t t le
is
made
of
his major objective
of the
Union
as the
means of achieving that hope; l i t t le is made
of his militar y vision and judgment , so
clearly summarized
two
yea rs
ago by the
English General Ballard; l i t t le or no th ing
is made
of his
philosophy
of
individualism
as
the
ideal
of
republican government
set
cu t in hisperma nent con tribution to A m e r
ican polit ical l i terature, far and away
superior to any contributed by others on
either side of the struggl e. Lincoln was
the thinker
and
spokesman
of his era on its
political side.
Lee was the
finest flower
of
manhood and of generalship furnished by
his side of thecontroversy, and thelast five
years of his life w ere, from all we know,
beautiful. In their private l ives and char
acter both leaders were irreproachable. As
protagonists
of
their period, Lincoln stood
fo r the humani ty and development of all
m e n ; Leestood for an aristocratic idealof
c.reat antiquity, doomed topass away before
the newer world tendencies of popu la r edu
cation and economic opportu nity. As a
historian,
Mr.
Dodd declines
to
interpret
his
f act s ;
pe rhaps
he is
right . Possibly
he
does not care to have these three chapters
looked upon as the estimate of a crit ical
historical essay.
The Commonwealth
and
Restoration Stage
By L E S L I E H O T S O N
P r o f e s s o r H o t s o n ' s r e c e n t b o o k
on th ed e a t h of M a r l o w e is now
fo l lowed
by an
equally br ill iant
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R e s t o ra t i on t h e a t r i c a l c o m
pan ies , based
on an
impor tan t
b o d y of newfac t s f rom ther e c
o r d s of the C o u r t of Chancery .
I t o f fe r s much h i the r to unpub
l i shed mate r ia l
on the
h i s to ry
of va r ious ea r ly London the
a t r e s ;
and, for the Cromwel l i an
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il
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H A R V A R D U N I V E R S I T Y
P R E S S
2
R A N D A L L H A L L
C A M B R I D G E , M A S S .
g a ^ g S B B f f i S M ' a g M
Elsie
Sln^mastei'
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widowed mother (a l lof whom
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4 C r p
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THE NORMS
ARE
SPINNING,
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Norse ride likea stallion through
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The Norns Are Spinning'
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M A C Y - M A S I U S " S M
. THE VANGUARD PRESS ^ ^