An Unnatural Metropolis

Wresting New Orleans from Nature

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Biological Sciences, Environmental Science, History, Americas, United States, 19th Century, Technology
Cover of the book An Unnatural Metropolis by Craig E. Colten, LSU Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Craig E. Colten ISBN: 9780807147825
Publisher: LSU Press Publication: September 1, 2006
Imprint: LSU Press Language: English
Author: Craig E. Colten
ISBN: 9780807147825
Publisher: LSU Press
Publication: September 1, 2006
Imprint: LSU Press
Language: English

Strategically situated at the gateway to the Mississippi River yet standing atop a former swamp, New Orleans was from the first what geographer Peirce Lewis called an "impossible but inevitable city." How New Orleans came to be, taking shape between the mutual and often contradictory forces of nature and urban development, is the subject of An Unnatural Metropolis. Craig E. Colten traces engineered modifications to New Orleans's natural environment from 1800 to 2000 and demonstrates that, though all cities must contend with their physical settings, New Orleans may be the city most dependent on human-induced transformations of its precarious site. In a new preface, Colten shows how Hurricane Katrina exemplifies the inability of human artifice to exclude nature from cities and he urges city planners to keep the environment in mind as they contemplate New Orleans's future. Urban geographers frequently have portrayed cities as the antithesis of nature, but in An Unnatural Metropolis, Colten introduces a critical environmental perspective to the history of urban areas. His amply illustrated work offers an in-depth look at a city and society uniquely shaped by the natural forces it has sought to harness.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Strategically situated at the gateway to the Mississippi River yet standing atop a former swamp, New Orleans was from the first what geographer Peirce Lewis called an "impossible but inevitable city." How New Orleans came to be, taking shape between the mutual and often contradictory forces of nature and urban development, is the subject of An Unnatural Metropolis. Craig E. Colten traces engineered modifications to New Orleans's natural environment from 1800 to 2000 and demonstrates that, though all cities must contend with their physical settings, New Orleans may be the city most dependent on human-induced transformations of its precarious site. In a new preface, Colten shows how Hurricane Katrina exemplifies the inability of human artifice to exclude nature from cities and he urges city planners to keep the environment in mind as they contemplate New Orleans's future. Urban geographers frequently have portrayed cities as the antithesis of nature, but in An Unnatural Metropolis, Colten introduces a critical environmental perspective to the history of urban areas. His amply illustrated work offers an in-depth look at a city and society uniquely shaped by the natural forces it has sought to harness.

More books from LSU Press

Cover of the book Cosmos by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Claude McKay, Rebel Sojourner in the Harlem Renaissance by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Girocho by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Soldier of Southwestern Virginia by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book U.S. Military Intervention in the Post-Cold War Era by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Interpreting Social Violence in French Culture by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book The Forgotten People by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Blood Image by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Secessionists and Other Scoundrels by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book The Civilian War by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book This Scribe, My Hand by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book The Dream of Arcady by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Public Spaces, Private Gardens by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Eve's Enlightenment by Craig E. Colten
Cover of the book Tumult And Silence At Second Creek by Craig E. Colten
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy