Jane Jacobs Cities and the Wealth of Nations Book Review

Urban Geography

Review: “ Cities and the Wealth of Nations” by Jane Jacobs

“In theory, everything was so logical. In reality, so little worked out the way it was supposed to”, (p.5). This quote in my opinion, sums up the premise of Jacobs book, Cities and the Wealth of Nations. I had no knowledge of the content of this book prior to reading it and was quite surprised by the author’s objective that is, challenging the classic and currently employed economic theory, mainly because Jacobs’ argument is nouveau compared to other theories that oppose Adam Smith’s classical economics. One of the striking things about this book is the author’s writing style. In the book, Jacobs describes the decline of major cities and challenges the current macroeconomic theory in a conversational tone, allowing the reader to easily comprehend the ideas presented in her book. Jacobs presents comprehensive examples supporting her argument in a witty and quirky tone that makes an otherwise leaden subject, into an interesting one.

The title of the book is an apt one because in Cities and the Wealth of Nations, Jacobs attempts to challenge the classical model of economics based on Adam Smith’s work, ‘The Wealth of Nations’. The current macroeconomic model analysis is based on nations; Jacobs believes that this is not the case, and cities, not nations should be the proper unit for macroeconomic analysis. Jacobs’ opinion of the current macroeconomic model is clearly exemplified when she describes it as being in ‘shambles’. According to the author, the overindulgence of money into the macroeconomic theory has led to the economic downfall of otherwise prosperous cities setting them on a path of decline.

Jacobs’ main argument against the macroeconomic theory is substantiated in stagflation. In the book, stagflation is described as simultaneous high unemployment and high inflation. Stagflation can be considered an abnormality, something that was not supposed to occur theoretically,...