What caused the rise of Chicago, and how did the city\'s expansion fuel the westward movement of the American frontier - and influence the type of society that evolved as a result? Nature\'s Metropolis, then, is a work in which the rise of Chicago is explained by generating alternative possibilities, and one that uses a rigorous study of the evidence to decide between competing solutions to the problem.
It is also a fine work of interpretation, for a large part of Cronon\'s argument revolves around his attempt to define exactly what is rural, and what is urban, and how the two interact to create a novel economic force..
What caused the rise of Chicago, and how did the city\'s expansion fuel the westward movement of the American frontier - and influence the type of society that evolved as a result? Nature\'s Metropolis, then, is a work in which the rise of Chicago is explained by generating alternative possibilities, and one that uses a rigorous study of the evidence to decide between competing solutions to the problem
