Overview

Full Product Details

9780822946410

Table of Contents

Reviews

Kristin Poling's innovative and deeply researched monograph uses nineteenth-century debates about de-fortification and the ongoing and uneven transformations of the urban edges to imagine the German burgher as a pioneer 'frontiersman' caught between new horizons of development and the weight of a history and tradition. By envisioning the city from its margins, Poling reinforces a key finding in urban studies: settlement frontiers, whether in the form of fashionable apartment blocks or improvised 'shantytowns, ' are not simply overflow from a crowded city but strategically and creatively shaped urban spaces in their own right.--Thomas Lekan, University of South Carolina Through a series of insightful case studies, Poling shows how the shifting urban border, especially as embodied in the city wall, became a flashpoint for both conflicting interpretations of Germany's urban past and competing visions for the ideal German city of the future. Her astute and engaging analysis encourages us to reevaluate much of our conventional wisdom regarding urbanization and modernity in nineteenth-century Germany.--Matt Erlin, Washington University in St. Louis

Through a series of insightful case studies, Poling shows how the shifting urban border, especially as embodied in the city wall, became a flashpoint for both conflicting interpretations of Germany's urban past and competing visions for the ideal German city of the future. Her astute and engaging analysis encourages us to reevaluate much of our conventional wisdom regarding urbanization and modernity in nineteenth-century Germany. --Matt Erlin, Washington University (St. Louis) Kristin Poling's innovative and deeply researched monograph uses nineteenth-century debates about de-fortification and the ongoing and uneven transformations of the urban edges to imagine the German burgher as a pioneer frontiersman caught between new horizons of development and the weight of a history and tradition; between the prerogatives of municipal administration and the dictates of the bureaucratic nation state; between the carefully planned pavement and parks and the wilderness hinterland at its edges; and between the infrastructures of a modernizing city and the unruly natures that challenged even the most adept engineer. By envisioning the city from its margins, Poling reinforces a key finding in urban studies: settlement frontiers, whether in the form of fashionable apartment blocks or improvised shantytowns, are not simply overflow from a crowded city but strategically and creatively shaped urban spaces in their own right. -Thomas Lekan, University of South Carolina

Kristin Poling's innovative and deeply researched monograph uses nineteenth-century debates about de-fortification and the ongoing and uneven transformations of the urban edges to imagine the German burgher as a pioneer frontiersman caught between new horizons of development and the weight of a history and tradition; between the prerogatives of municipal administration and the dictates of the bureaucratic nation state; between the carefully planned pavement and parks and the wilderness hinterland at its edges; and between the infrastructures of a modernizing city and the unruly natures that challenged even the most adept engineer. By envisioning the city from its margins, Poling reinforces a key finding in urban studies: settlement frontiers, whether in the form of fashionable apartment blocks or improvised shantytowns, are not simply overflow from a crowded city but strategically and creatively shaped urban spaces in their own right. -Thomas Lekan, University of South Carolina Through a series of insightful case studies, Poling shows how the shifting urban border, especially as embodied in the city wall, became a flashpoint for both conflicting interpretations of Germany's urban past and competing visions for the ideal German city of the future. Her astute and engaging analysis encourages us to reevaluate much of our conventional wisdom regarding urbanization and modernity in nineteenth-century Germany. --Matt Erlin, Washington University (St. Louis)

Author Information

Kristin Poling is assistant professor of European history at the University of Michigan–Dearborn.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available