Introduction

Abstract

Antiurbanism has received scant attention in the social scientific and historical literature. As a theme in political, cultural, and social history as well as a political and sociological phenomenon, antiurbanism has been sadly understudied and undertheorized.1 Generally it is seen as a product of the fear of cities and their anomic consequences on moral life. Conservative reaction to modernity also included an antiurban impulse since it was in cities that the impact of technological progress could be seen in the ways that workers and families disintegrated and the traditional morality of the past was called into question both in theory and in practice. In these instances, antiurbanism was seen as a means toward the regeneration of traditional life and values. All of this makes sense, but the deeper valences of this problem have not been adequately addressed. The urbanization of consciousness has given rise, historically as well as today, to an antiurbanized consciousness; a sense that cities and urban life more broadly are to be uniformly feared. In this respect, although antiurbanism has largely been studied as a historical reality—one confined to the reaction to the rise of modernity and industrialism—it has by no means subsided in postindustrial societies. In this respect, understanding the ways that antiurbanism has manifested itself in thought and practice is crucial, but it is also important to go a step further: to probe the deeper dimensions of antiurban sentiment in consciousness, in institutional logics, and broader patterns of cultural production. This is the aim of the present volume.KeywordsCultural ProductionInstitutional LogicUrban LifeTraditional MoralityMoral FabricThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.