Democracy in America (2 vols.)

by Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville

Publisher:

Sever and Francis

, 1864

Overview

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont were commissioned by the French government to study America’s prison system. The two took a nine-month tour of the country studying prisons, but also the character of American religion, politics, and society. Tocqueville noted the lack of regard for social class, the high regard for labor, and the equality of economic opportunity. Two years later they’d published their official report on penitentiaries, but it was Tocqueville’s Democracy in America the stores could not keep in stock.

In Democracy in America, Tocqueville examines why democracy flourished in America, while having disastrous effects elsewhere. Tocqueville admires the American constitution, but gives most of the credit to American “habits of mind.” He credits America’s Puritan foundations for creating a climate of equality, with a dominant middle class and an emphasis on religious and political liberty. Throughout the massive work, Tocqueville becomes the first to identify the ideology of separate spheres for men and women, and he makes many accurate predictions about slavery and industry—anticipating both the Civil War between North and South, and the Cold War between Russia and the United States.

Marking a new era of social science, Tocqueville’s classic work is a necessity in the library of any student of politics, sociology, or history.

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Key Features

• Examines the history of American politics, economics, civil society, and family structure
• Keystone text in political science, sociology, and history
• Classic 1835 translation by Henry Reeve

Top Highlights

“American institutions as affording the most instructive lessons for the organization and conduct of the new French republic.” (Volume 1, Page iii)

Praise for the Print Edition

At once the best book ever written on democracy and the best book ever written on America.

—Harvey Mansfield, William R. Kenan Jr., Professor of Government, Harvard

Product Details

• Title: Democracy in America
• Author: Alexis de Tocqueville
• Translator: Henry Reeve
• Edition: Fourth
• Publisher: Sever and Francis
• Volumes: 2
• Pages: 1,094

Democracy in America, vol. 1

• Author: Alexis de Tocqueville
• Translator: Henry Reeve
• Edition: Fourth
• Publisher: Sever and Francis
• Publication Date: 1864
• Pages: 563

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Volume 1 of Democracy in America primarily examines the governmental structure and social conditions of America. It is divided into eight chapters:

• Exterior Form of North America
• Origin of the Anglo-Americans and Its Importance in Relation to Their Future Condition
• Social Conditions of the Anglo-Americans
• The Principle of the Sovereignty of the People in America
• Necessity of Examining the Condition of the States before That of the Union at Large
• Judicial Power in the United States and Its Influence on Political Society
• Political Jurisdiction in the United States
• The Federal Constitution

Democracy in America, vol. 2

• Author: Alexis de Tocqueville
• Translator: Henry Reeve
• Edition: Fourth
• Publisher: Sever and Francis
• Publication Date: 1864
• Pages: 531

Sample Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Volume 2 of Democracy in America focuses on the sweeping influence of democratic thought on American society. It is divided into four books:

• Influence of Democracy upon the Action of Intellect in the United States
• Influence of Democracy on the Feelings of the Americans
• Influence of Democracy on Manners Properly So Called
• Influence of Democratic Ideas and Feelings on Political Society

About Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville

Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville was a French political thinker and historian best known for his Democracy in America and The Old Regime and the Revolution (1856). In both of these works, he explored the effects of the rising equality of social conditions on the individual and the state in western societies. Democracy in America (1835), his major work, published after his travels in the United States, is today considered an early work of sociology and political science.