Henri Lefebvre and the Spanish Urban Experience: Reading from the Mobile City

An important contribution to the still evolving field of ‘urban cultural studies,’ Henri Lefebvre and the Spanish Urban Experience is the first book to thoroughly apply the French urban philosopher’s thoughts on cities to the culture and literature of Spain. Fraser shows how Lefebvre’s complex view of the city as a mobile phenomenon is relevant to understanding a variety of Spanish cultural products-from urban plans and short writings on the urban experience during the nineteenth century by Mariano Jose de Larra, Ramon de Mesonero Ramanos, and Ildefons Cerda to urban theories, cultural practices and literary fiction of the twentieth by Luis Martin-Santos, Juan Jose Millas, Juan Goytisolo, and Manuel Delgado Ruiz. He pushes on to interrogate even the appearance of Mediterranean space and Barcelona in recent video games.

Working through the direct and indirect resonance of the French philosopher’s legacy in Spain, a comprehensive first chapter grounds the reader in the key concepts of Lefebvre’s urban theory that are explored throughout the book-his critiques of static space, modern urban planning, knowledge, alienation in everyday life and his emphasis on a method that underscores the importance of movement and rhythm. Fraser compellingly shows how each of these aspects of Lefebvre’s work relates to the others, just as he ties together canonical and non-traditional cultural products from Madrid and Barcelona.