Review Essay: First and Final Cities: "Invisible Cities" as a Reflexive Corrective for Qualitative Social Research

Abstract

In Italo CALVINO's novel "Invisible Cities" the distinction between the everyday world and fiction becomes problematic. In his text, CALVINO offers a reflexive perspective on all the facets of cities which neither appear in city maps nor by means of mere observation of city life. In my article, I consider CALVINO's work as a compendium of qualitative urban research, in which he reminds of both the city's steady decoding and regarding methodological pitfalls. It is not just that CALVINO seems to anticipate any concepts of urbanity, "Invisible Cities" rather must be classified as a basic work for everyone being engaged in qualitative social research.