Synopsis
Six-part series tracing the origins of the city, its transformations and prospects, based on Lewis Mumford's book The City in History. Aired by CBC in their Explorations strand.
Episodes
Season 11
The City: Heaven and HellOutlines the opposed natures — creative and destructive — of the city throughout history, focusing on the elements that created the first cities about 5000 years ago and the forces that now threaten our "most precious collective invention."29m2
The City: Cars or People?A study of an old but still-growing problem: how to ensure the city is accessible to all without allowing cars to make it congested and uninhabitable.29m3
The City and Its RegionExplores the tension and mutual dependence of urban and rural areas. How can sprawling metropolitan regions maintain or restore the balance?28m4
The Heart of the CityA study of the growing sterility, dullness and congestion that is destroying the vitality, variety and human scale that once made cities physically attractive and humanly creative.29m5
The City as Man's HomeContrasts the squalor of the working poor with the relative safety and security of the wealthy, asking what can be done to address "the spirit of social hopelessness" that thrives in the overcrowded slums where cities' poorest residents live.28m6
The City and the FutureAn outline of the prospects for the city and some suggestions to restore its role as the focus of man's highest achievements.29m
The City: Heaven and HellOutlines the opposed natures — creative and destructive — of the city throughout history, focusing on the elements that created the first cities about 5000 years ago and the forces that now threaten our "most precious collective invention."29m2The City: Cars or People?A study of an old but still-growing problem: how to ensure the city is accessible to all without allowing cars to make it congested and uninhabitable.29m3The City and Its RegionExplores the tension and mutual dependence of urban and rural areas. How can sprawling metropolitan regions maintain or restore the balance?28m4The Heart of the CityA study of the growing sterility, dullness and congestion that is destroying the vitality, variety and human scale that once made cities physically attractive and humanly creative.29m5The City as Man's HomeContrasts the squalor of the working poor with the relative safety and security of the wealthy, asking what can be done to address "the spirit of social hopelessness" that thrives in the overcrowded slums where cities' poorest residents live.28m6The City and the FutureAn outline of the prospects for the city and some suggestions to restore its role as the focus of man's highest achievements.29mCast