The chapter examines how 20th-century utopian thought gave way to dystopia amid the failures of science and reason. Literary imagination shaped the mythologies of great metropolises — from Dickens's London to Haussmann's Paris — while deepening class divides made the ideal city a privilege of the bourgeoisie. Benjamin's reading of Paris as collective dream captures the tension between utopian desire and social exclusion defining modern urban life.
University of Florence, Italy
Chapter Title
La città tra immaginari e disincanto
Authors
Giandomenico Amendola
Language
Italian
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-0985-4.17
Peer Reviewed
Publication Year
2026
Copyright Information
© 2026 Author(s)
Content License
Metadata License
Book Title
L'utopia e la città ideale
Book Subtitle
Sogni, paure, desideri
Authors
Giandomenico Amendola
Peer Reviewed
Number of Pages
120
Publication Year
2026
Copyright Information
© 2026 Author(s)
Content License
Metadata License
Publisher Name
Firenze University Press
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-0985-4
ISBN Print
979-12-215-0984-7
eISBN (pdf)
979-12-215-0985-4
eISBN (epub)
979-12-215-0986-1
Series Title
People_Places_Architecture
Series ISSN
2975-0415
Series E-ISSN
2975-027X