Final answer:
City life would have been near impossible without the use of metal due to its vital role in construction, industry, transportation, and essential services during the Industrial Revolution and urbanization.
Step-by-step explanation:
I agree that city life would have been near impossible without the use of metal. The development and expansion of cities during the Industrial Revolution were heavily reliant on metals for constructing buildings, infrastructure, machinery, and transportation such as railways and the burgeoning taxicab industry.
Metals like steel transformed cities, supporting skyscrapers in New York and expanding the meatpacking industry in Chicago. The use of metal was integral not just in construction and industry, but also in essential services like plumbing and communication networks.
Without these advancements, the scale and pace of urbanization seen in the 19th and 20th centuries would have been unachievable.