The Great Urban Escape

Abstract

Throughout the West since the commencement of industrial modernity, the city has been a magnet for attracting population growth. Filled with promises of economic security, increased opportunities for intellectual and vocational development, and an abundant social and cultural life, the metropolis has grown immensely in the modern period. Left behind were the small villages and country towns that became, in some respects, symbols of a time forgotten when life was harsh and less comfortable. Those who still resided in villages and towns were considered “country folk,” backward, and with a limited view of the world. The city, on the contrary, was seen as progressive, technologically advanced, and cosmopolitan. Widespread migration into the city has subsequently resulted for many years in a general decline in population numbers amid some of these smaller country communities. However, in recent years, this general trend is being reversed in areas of high environmental value. Places that have historically been left untouched except through tourism have recently become the center of a great urban phenomenon: escape.