Lewis Mumford
Lewis Mumford (1895-1990) was an influential American cultural critic, historian, and social philosopher, recognized for his extensive writings on the interplay between technology, society, and urban life. Raised in New York City, Mumford's education was largely self-directed, leading him to become a prominent commentator on architecture and planning without formal degrees. He was a co-founder of the Regional Planning Association of America and contributed significantly to discussions on urban development, notably in his works such as "Technics and Civilization" and "The Culture of Cities."
Mumford was also politically active, vocally opposing fascism in the 1930s and 1940s and advocating for U.S. involvement in World War II. His critical perspective emphasized the negative impacts of industrialization and mechanization on human life and community, culminating in his acclaimed book "The City in History," which won the National Book Award in 1962. Over his lifetime, he received numerous accolades, including the National Medal of Arts in 1986 for his contributions to American culture. Mumford's work remains significant for those exploring the philosophical and ethical dimensions of urbanization and technology.
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Subject Terms
Lewis Mumford
Historian
- Born: October 19, 1895
- Birthplace: Flushing, New York
- Died: January 26, 1990
- Place of death: Amenia, New York
American philosopher
Biography
Lewis Charles Mumford was a product of the New York City system of education—and one of the most prominent critics of the New York City way of life. Mumford, the illegitimate son of a businessman, was reared by his mother. He graduated from Stuyvesant High School in 1912, took five years of evening classes at City College, and then took graduate courses at Columbia University and the New School for Social Research. He never received a degree, but he became one of the country’s outstanding self-educated men.
Mumford trained himself in architecture by traveling through New York City and observing the condition of its old buildings and neighborhoods. He branched out into the study of literature, and then of culture in general. In 1922, he was one of the contributors to the famous symposium Civilization in the United States. Thereafter he wrote Sticks and Stones, a history of American architecture. In 1923, Mumford became a cofounder and charter member of the Regional Planning Association of America. In his capacity as planner and urban strategist he was involved in many studies of American cities. Just as notable was his editorial and scholarly work, done in connection with American Caravan, American Mercury, Harper’s, and other publications.
The first of his books that caused him to be called a major influence on U.S. culture was volume 1 of his four-part Renewal of Life, Technics and Civilization, an intensive account of industrial society, its effect on human habits and organization, and the probable ways in which it could be transformed. This book was followed by many others on the problems of urban life. Of particular note is The Culture of Cities, which traced the development of European metropolitan life.
Mumford was politically active in the 1930’s and 1940’s and was one of the first public opponents of fascism. He proposed in books and essays that the United States enter the fight against Nazi Germany, and he resigned from the American Artist’s Congress as a protest over that organization’s approval of the Russo-German non-aggression pact of 1940.
As the world’s population grew explosively, Mumford increasingly became concerned with the philosophical implications of the urban way of life. The City in History is a long study of how the city first gave people a new sense of their capabilities and then betrayed that sense by isolating them in an inhuman and mechanical environment. Mumford received the National Book Award in 1962 for this work. A humanist social critic, Mumford decried the increasing domination of society by a machine-oriented mentality, and he searched for ways to humanize and control what he called “megatechnics.” Mumford was the recipient of countless fellowships, diplomas, and testimonials, and in 1986 he was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Ronald Reagan for his lifetime contributions to U.S. culture.
Bibliography
Blake, Casey Nelson. Beloved Community: The Cultural Criticism of Randolph Bourne, Van Wyck Brooks, Waldo Frank, and Lewis Mumford. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1990. An excellent discussion and overview of these four commentators on American culture and politics.
Holtz Kay, Jane. “Lewis Mumford at 100.” The Nation 261, no. 22 (December 25, 1995): 843-845. This retrospective on Lewis provides an overview of his impact on architecture and finds his theories to be as relevant as ever.
Hughes, Thomas Parke, and Agatha C. Hughes. Lewis Mumford: Public Intellectual. New York: Oxford University Press, 1990. A good collection of essays that examine Mumford’s thoughts and theories on modern culture and technology.
Luccarelli, Mark. Lewis Mumford and the Ecological Region: The Politics of Planning. New York: Guilford Press, 1995. Luccarelli argues that Mumford did not break with tradition but defined a rich ecological history to American urban culture.
Miller, Donald L. Lewis Mumford: A Life. Reprint. New York: Grove/Atlantic, 2002. A thorough, revealing and penetrating biography. The author had access to Mumford’s original and private papers. This sympathetic biography is the result of ten years of dedicated research.
Newman, Elmer S. Lewis Mumford: A Bibliography, 1914-1970. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1971. This is considered the standard biography. It includes an introduction by Mumford.
Wojtowicz, Robert. Lewis Mumford and American Modernism: Eutopian Theories for Architecture and Urban Planning. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Interprets Mumford’s cultural and urban criticism. Includes a fourteen-page bibliography and an index.