The Resilient City : How Modern Cities Recover From Disaster

Revealing how traumatized city-dwellers consistently develop narratives of resilience and how the pragmatic process of urban recovery is always fueled by highly symbolic actions, The resilient city offers an informative tribute to the persistence of the city, and indeed of the human spirit. --book cover EEn......Page 0 The Resilient City: How Modern Cities Recover from Disaster......Page 1 Copyright Info......Page 5 Preface......Page 6 TOC......Page 10 Contributors......Page 12 Introduction - The Cities Rise Again......Page 17 Assessing Recovery......Page 26 Memorializing Disaster......Page 27 Structure Of The Book......Page 28 Notes......Page 36 Part I - Naratives of Resilience......Page 39 1 - Making Progress - Disaster Narratives and the Art of Optimism in Modern America......Page 41 The Poetics Of Disaster......Page 47 Cradles And Graves: Chicago, 1871......Page 49 San Francisco, 1906......Page 56 A Distinctly American Embrace: New York, 2001......Page 59 Notes......Page 63 2 - "The Predicament of Aftermath" - Oklahoma City and September 11......Page 69 Notes......Page 87 3 - The City's End - Past and Present Narratives of New York's Destruction......Page 89 Realities: Natural Disasters And Creative Destruction In The Capital Of Capitalism......Page 90 Fantasies And Premonitions......Page 93 Explaining Fictional Disaster......Page 99 Narratives Of Resilience In Stone And Steel......Page 101 Notes......Page 105 Part II - The Symbolic Dimensions of Trauma and Recovery......Page 109 4 - Patriotism and the Reconstruction of Washington, D.C., after the British Invasion of 1814......Page 111 Notes......Page 127 5 - Double Restoration - Rebuilding Berlin after 1945......Page 131 Notes......Page 146 6 - Warsaw - Reconstruction as Propaganda......Page 149 Notes......Page 169 7 - A Delayed Healing - Understanding the Fragmented Resilience of Gernika......Page 173 Physical Resilience: Reconstruction Without Emotional Recovery......Page 178 Emotional Resilience: Remembrance, Memorialization, And Peacebuilding......Page 181 Cultural Resilience: Identity, Symbols, And Traditions......Page 185 Notes......Page 191 8 - Resurrecting Jerusalem......Page 195 The Jewish Temples......Page 201 The Church Of The Holy Sepulchre......Page 206 The Dome Of The Rock And Al Aqsa Mosque......Page 210 The Hurva Synagogue......Page 214 Notes......Page 219 Part III - The Politics of Reconstruction......Page 225 9 - Resilient Tokyo - Disaster and Transformation in the Japanese City......Page 227 Notes......Page 246 10 - "Resist the Earthquake and Rescue Ourselves" - The Reconstruction of Tangshan after the 1976 Earthquake......Page 249 Notes......Page 265 11 - Reverberations - Mexico City's 1985 Earthquake and the Transformation of the Capital......Page 269 Notes......Page 290 12 - A Vital Void - Reconstructions of Downtown Beirut......Page 295 Notes......Page 310 13 - After the Unrest - Ten Years of Rebuilding Los ANgeles following the Trauma of 1992......Page 313 Notes......Page 325 14 - Cyborg Agonistes - Disaster and Reconstruction in the Digital Electronic Era......Page 327 Notes......Page 345 Conclusion - Axioms of Resilience......Page 349 1. Narratives Of Resilience Are A Political Necessity......Page 353 2. Disasters Reveal The Resilience Of Governments......Page 354 3. Narratives Of Resilience Are Always Contested......Page 355 5. Resilience Is Underwritten By Outsiders......Page 356 7. Remembrance Drives Resilience......Page 358 8. Resilience Bene.ts From The Inertia Of Prior Investment......Page 359 9. Resilience Exploits The Power Of Place......Page 361 10. Resilience Casts Opportunism As Opportunity......Page 362 11. Resilience, Like Disaster, Is Site-speci.c......Page 364 12. Resilience Entails More Than Rebuilding......Page 365 Notes......Page 368 Appendix - Suggestions for Further Reading on Urban Disasters and Recovery......Page 371 Notes......Page 374 Index......Page 377 In 1871, the city of Chicago was almost entirely destroyed by what became known as The Great Fire. Thirty-five years later, San Francisco lay in smoldering ruins after the catastrophic earthquake of 1906. Or consider the case of the Jerusalem, the greatest site of physical destruction and renewal in history, which, over three millennia, has suffered wars, earthquakes, fires, twenty sieges, eighteen reconstructions, and at least eleven transitions from one religious faith to another. Yet this ancient city has regenerated itself time and again, and still endures. Throughout history, cities have been sacked, burned, torched, bombed, flooded, besieged, and leveled. And yet they almost always rise from the ashes to rebuild. Viewing a wide array of urban disasters in global historical perspective, The Resilient City traces the aftermath of such cataclysms as: --the British invasion of Washington in 1814 --the devastation wrought on Berlin, Warsaw, and Tokyo during World War II --the late-20th century earthquakes that shattered Mexico City and the Chinese city of Tangshan --Los Angeles after the 1992 riots --the Oklahoma City bombing --the destruction of the World Trade Center Revealing how traumatized city-dwellers consistently develop narratives of resilience and how the pragmatic process of urban recovery is always fueled by highly symbolic actions, The Resilient City offers a deeply informative and unsentimental tribute to the dogged persistence of the city, and indeed of the human spirit. I: Narratives of resilience Making progress: disaster narratives and the art of optimist in modern America / Kevin Rozario "The predicament of aftermath": Oklahoma City and September 11 / Edward T. Linenthal The city's end: past and present narratives of New York's destruction / Max Page II: The symbolic dimensions of trauma and recovery Patriotism and the reconstruction of Washington, D.C., after the British invasion of 1814 / Anthony S. Pitch Double restoration: rebuilding Berlin after 1945 / Brian Ladd Warsaw: reconstruction as propaganda / Jasper Goldman A delayed healing: understanding the fragmented resilience of Gernika / Julie B. Kirschbaum and Desirée Sideroff Resurrecting Jerusalem / Julian Beinart III: The politics of reconstruction Resilient Tokyo: disaster and transformation in the Japanese City / Carola Hein "Resist the earthquake and rescue ourselves": the reconstruction of Tangshan after the 1976 earthquake / Beatrice Chen Reverberations: Mexico City's 1985 earthquake and the transformation of the capital / Diane E. Davis A vital void: reconstructions of downtown Beirut / Hashim Sarkis After the unrest: ten years of rebuilding Los Angeles following the trauma of 1992 / William Fulton Cyborg agonistes: disaster and reconstruction in the digital electronic era / William J. Mitchell and Anthony M. Townsend Axioms of resilience / Lawrence J. Vale and Thomas J. Campanella. Cities have been destroyed throughout history. And yet in every instance they have risen, phoenix-like from the ashes. This anthology, edited by Lawrence J Vale and Thomas J Campanella, explores the resilience of cities, and the politics and processes that govern urban recovery in the wake of disaster, with case studies from around the globe Lawrence J. Vale And Thomas J. Campanella, Editors. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.