Marcel Hénaff's 'La ville qui vient' examines the defeat of the classical city by the megalopolis

In 'La ville qui vient', published by L'Herne in the Carnets collection, philosopher Marcel Hénaff analyzes the contemporary megalopolis, using Los Angeles as its model. He identifies three modes of urban development—monument-city, machine-city, and network-city—which he sees as articulated rather than sequential. The network-city, sprawling and multi-centered, now houses over half the world's population and daily receives new arrivals. Hénaff argues that this urban form, synthesizing classic studies including Françoise Choay's theses, represents the 'defeat of the city' as a livable microcosm and image of the world. He questions the fate of public space in these megalopolises, hoping for the persistence of classical urban spirit through a 'vicinality' specific to new urban ensembles, and the emergence of a vernacular 'common sphere' of neighborhood that could foster a new citizenship. The essay is deemed useful but remains trapped in an idealized conception of social relations, ignoring group struggles and differences in spatial speed and social mobility that shape real 'common worlds' in giant new cities. Reviewer Laurent Jeanpierre contributes the analysis.