Cities and Everyday Life

International and interdisciplinary, this important book provides a clear, user-friendly introduction to contemporary debates on urban life.

It explores the concepts and methodologies through which sociology, cultural studies and cultural geography are coming to terms with the changing configurations of space, time and social relations in cities.

The conceptual framework for understanding urban everyday life is introduced through a summary of relevant classical and contemporary ideas - including the work of Lefebvre, Simmel and Benjamin - and a statement of key themes - such as the relationship between global and local processes.

The book goes on to develop this framework through the exploration of a number of urban domains, including: mobility and travel; consumption and urban spectacle; everynight life; and, new communications technologies.

Throughout the book, illustrative material is drawn from a range of cities in Britain, North America and East Asia, and examples from a range of urban contexts are included, as well as brief biographical portraits of key urban thinkers.This comprehensive text includes end of chapter resources, suggestions for further reading and information on relevant internet sites, all of which make it an ideal student reference.