The Death and Life of Great American Cities Characters & Character Analysis

The Death and Life of Great American Cities Important People

William Kirk

Kirk is the leader of the Union Settlement, located in East Harlem. He shows Jacobs around East Harlem and points out the good and bad points of the area. From Kirk, Jacobs learns how to look at neighborhoods in different cities.

Ebenezer Howard

Howard was a British court reporter with a hobby of city planning. His solution for city problems was to rebuild in another area and demolish the problem area. He proposed the creation of small rural towns, much like the company town of the 1800s in America. His emphasis was on healthy housing with everything else being secondary. His views are the basis for city planning and are referred to as the Garden City planning.

Sir Patrick Geddes

Geddes viewed city planning in terms of planning whole regions. He more or less picked up where Howard left off.

Le Corbusier

Le Corbusier was a European architect who proposed a skyscraper city named Radiant City. It...
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