Mechanization Takes Command

A classic book that is often cited in studies of the history and social impact of technology is Sigfried Giedion's 1948 Mechanization Takes Command. Lucky for us the always-excellent New York Review Books is bringing it back into print (March 2010). From the description:

Sigfried Giedion's extraordinary, encyclopedic book traces the various ways in which, for better and for worse, mechanization has assumed control of our lives, from modern systems of hygiene and waste management, to agricultural production, fashion, and beyond.

Giedion's book is not only clearly written but also eloquent and thoughtful in its investigation of mechanization's reach and appeal, and it offers fascinating insights into the intersection between mechanization and the imagination, as manifested in literature and the visual arts. With a wealth of unusual and intriguing illustrations taken from old sales catalogues, industrial manuals, magazines, and other sources, Giedion's book constitutes a remarkable and endlessly suggestive history of modernity itself, as comprehensive as it is provocative and eccentric.

Link: Mechanization Takes Command.

Update (June 5 2010): looks like it's been canceled.

Comments

[Ivo Quartiroli]

Thanks Kevin, I pre-ordered the new edition.

[tomslee]

I had never heard of this book. Thanks for the recommendation.

[Evan]

Did they give any reason for the cancellation? Seems like it kind of just up and disappeared from the NYRB site without a trace.