Lewis Mumford, a visionary thinker and social critic, reshaped the discourse on urban planning and technology's impact on society. His seminal works, including "The City in History" and "Technics and Civilization," explored the complex interplay between human culture and the built environment, influencing generations of scholars and policymakers.
"The chief function of the city is to convert power into form, energy into culture, dead matter into the living symbols of art, biological reproduction into social creativity."
"A day spent without the sight or sound of beauty, the contemplation of mystery, or the search of truth or perfection is a poverty-stricken day; and a succession of such days is fatal to human life."
"Every generation revolts against its fathers and makes friends with its grandfathers."
"However far modern science and techniques have fallen short of their inherent possibilities, they have taught mankind at least one lesson; nothing is impossible."
"Without fullness of experience, length of days is nothing. When fullness of life has been achieved, shortness of days is nothing. That is perhaps why the young have usually so little fear of death; they live by intensities that the elderly have forgotten."
"A certain amount of opposition is a great help to a man. Kites rise against, not with, the wind."
"To curb the machine and limit art to handicraft is a denial of opportunity."
"The way people in democracies think of the government as something different from themselves is a real handicap. And, of course, sometimes the government confirms their opinion."
"The earth is the Lord's fullness thereof: this is no longer a hollow dictum of religion, but a directive for economic action toward human brotherhood."
"Forget the damned motor car and build the cities for lovers and friends."
"Nothing is unthinkable, nothing impossible to the balanced person, provided it comes out of the needs of life and is dedicated to life's further development."
"One of the functions of intelligence is to take account of the dangers that come from trusting solely to the intelligence."
"The vast material displacements the machine has made in our physical environment are perhaps in the long run less important than its spiritual contributions to our culture."