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It may be that we have become so feckless as a people that we no longer care how things do work, but only what kind of quick, easy outer impression they give. If so, there is little hope for our cities or probably for much else in our society. But I do not think this is so.

— Jane Jacobs The Death and Life of Great American Cities (1961)

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More quotes by Jane Jacobs

Writing, printing, and the Internet give a false sense of security about the permanence of culture.

Dark Age Ahead (2004)

To science, not even the bark of a tree or a drop of pond water is dull or a handful of dirt banal. They all arouse awe and wonder.

Dark Age Ahead (2004)

Redundancy is expensive but indispensable.

Dark Age Ahead (2004)

Virtually all ideologues, of any variety, are fearful and insecure, which is why they are drawn to ideologies that promise prefabricated answers for all circumstances.

Dark Age Ahead (2004)

Subsidiarity is the principle that government works best — most responsibly and responsively — when it is closest to the people it serves and the needs it addresses.

Dark Age Ahead (2004)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Jane Jacobs (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.