Description
Book SynopsisExamines the cities of Algeria and Tunisia under French colonial rule and those of the Ottoman Arab provinces. By shifting the emphasis from the 'centers' of Paris and Istanbul to the 'peripheries', this title presents a more nuanced look at cross-cultural exchanges.
Trade Review"Ambitious in scope, marvelously conceived, meticulously researched, and generously illustrated, this book . . . an exemplary work of comparative scholarship on imperial urbanism, one that challenges us to consider that similarities between and within empires were greater that their apparent differences."
-- Preeti Chopra * Buildings and Landscapes *
"Zeynep Celik's new book masterfully weaves together urban and architectural studies with cultural and intellectual history in what will stand as a key contribution to the study of imperialism and modernity. . . . A testament to the merit of this book is the range of questions it provokes and will likely continue to provoke for some time."
* Journal of the American Oriental Society *
"Zeynep Celik's elegant and insightful study, Empire and the City is a model of brilliant scholarship and complex cross-cultural analysis. Thanks to her subtle handling of a rich array of archival materials, and to her thorough analysis, Celik points us toward a deeper understanding of a lost world of empire and aspiration, and toward a clearer vision of 'modernity.' Empire and the City tells a compelling story—it is a milestone of scholarship and a terrific read."
* 2010 Spiro Kostof Award Committee, on awarding the prize from the Society of Architectural Historians *
"Celik provides important lessons for those who see our present condition as absolutely unique to our own time. In some ways Empire, Architecture, and the City allows us to look at globalization as a further destabilization and diffusion of the concept of empire—one that is perhaps no longer connected to concepts of space and place, but that nevertheless still reflects an unequal distribution of power that is infinitely more pervasive than it was in the past and that is tied to larger and more numerous imperials interests."
* American Historical Review *
"A timely study that provides significant insights into pressing debates about modernity and imperialism, Empire, Architecture, and the City should enjoy a broad audience within and well beyond the fields of urban and architectural history. Celik's book offers a refreshing counterpoint to the prevailing monographic focus on individual cities of much recent urban history, particularly studies focused on imperial and colonial situations. While this book is certainly essential reading for scholars of the French and Ottoman empires, it has much to teach all historians of the modern period interested in better understanding the far-reaching and still on-going consequences of nineteenth-century imperialism."
* H-Net *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
A Note on Transliterations and Dates
Introduction
Color Plates
1. Imperial Infrastructures
2. Transforming Urban Fabrics
3. New Public Spaces
4. A New Monumentality and an Official Architecture
5. Affirming Empire: Public Ceremonies
Epilogue
Notes
Bibliography
Index
