Product Description
This title includes text in English & French. In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and his friend Gustave de Beaumont visited the United States on behalf of the French government to study American prisons. In their nine months in the U.S. they studied not just the prison system but every aspect of American life, public and private - the political, economic, religious, cultural, and above all social life of the young nation. From Tocqueville's copious notes of what he had seen and heard came the classic text "De la Democratie en Amerique", published in two large volumes, the first in 1835, the second in 1840. The first volume focused primarily on political society; the second, on civil society. Tocqueville's account of the travels and adventures of the two Frenchmen aimed to get down the truth about America, not only to praise the new country's strengths but also to critique its shortcomings when these were all too evident to outside eyes. For Tocqueville, virtually every aspect of the new republic was fascinating: the laws and the customs, the manners and the mores of a people so very different from the populations of the kingdoms of Europe.He was particularly interested in the success of democracy in America, specifically of republican representative democracy, which seemed to have failed elsewhere, most conspicuously in revolutionary France. Perhaps because Tocqueville, an aristocrat, was by no means sympathetic to 'pure' democracy, which seemed tainted by its associations with the Terror of the French Revolution, he examined American democracy with a thoroughness such as had never been seen before, and seldom if ever since. Tocqueville considered the tendency of democracy to degenerate into either the tyranny of the majority or what he called soft despotism, a sovereign power that 'extends its arms over the entire society; it covers the surface of society with a network of small, complicated, minute, and uniform rules...it does not tyrannise, it hinders, it represses, it enervates, it extinguishes, it stupifies, and finally it reduces each nation to being nothing more than a flock of timid and industrious animals, of which the government is the shepherd'. Tocqueville noted that religion played a leading role in American life in the 1830s, due to its being constitutionally separated from government.Far from objecting to this situation, he observed that Americans found this dis-establishment quite satisfactory, in contrast to France, with its outright antagonism between avowedly religious people and supporters of democracy. "The Liberty Fund Bilingual Democracy in America" includes Eduardo Nolla's critical edition of the French text and notes on the lefthand pages and James Schleifer's English translation on the right. This is the fullest critical edition of the Democracy, and the notes offer an extensive selection of early outlines, drafts, manuscript variants, marginalia, unpublished fragments, and other materials. From the foreword to the French edition: 'This new Democracy is not only the one that Tocqueville presented to the reader of 1835, then to the reader of 1840. It is enlarged, amplified by a body of texts...the reader will see how Tocqueville proceeded with the elaboration of the main ideas of his book'. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Astute Observer of America
Alexis De Tocqueville was simply of one of the great social scientists writing about America and Democracy.From reading the book I deduced that Tocqueville was a social scientist before Marx!He compares European culture and government with the fledgling culture and democracy he observes in America.He is very much impressed with what he sees taking place in America in the 1830's and hopes it will spread to Europe.He at first believed that America's prosperity was simply due to geography and their distance from powerful neighbors, he abandons this idea after his visit to America.He comes to realize that the West is not being peopled "by new European immigrants to America, but by Americans who he believes have no adversity to taking risks."Tocqueville comes to see that Americans are the most broadly educated and politically advanced people in the world and one of the reasons for the success of our form of government.He also foretells America's industrial preeminence and strength through the unfettered spread of ideas and human industry.

Tocqueville also saw the insidious damage that the institution of slavery was causing the country and predicted some 30 years before the Civil War that slavery would probable cause the states to fragment from the union.He also the emergence of stronger states rights over the power of the federal government.He held fast to his belief that the greatest danger to democracy was the trend toward the concentration of power by the federal government.He predicted wrongly that the union would probably break up into two or three countries because of regional interests and differences.This idea is the only one about America that he gets wrong.Despite some of his misgivings, Tocqueville, saw that democracy is an "inescapable development" of the modern world.The arguments in the "Federalist Papers" were greater then most people realized.He saw a social revolution coming that continues throughout the world today.

Tocqueville realizes at the very beginning of the "industrial revolution" how industry, centralization, and democracy strengthened each other and moved forward together.I am convinced that Tocqueville is still the preeminent observer of America but is also the father of social science.A must read for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy or the social sciences.

Tocqueville with commentary
This elaborate edition is a careful translation and replica of what is regarded as the definitive edition in French.Sometimes it seemed that the translation was too literal, as when "editeur" is translated as "editor," when it actually means publisher.

In my view, though, one can never have too many books on Alexis de Tocqueville, and this one is essential.It is very reasonably priced. ... Read more

Product Description
This title includes text in English & French. In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and his friend Gustave de Beaumont visited the United States on behalf of the French government to study American prisons. In their nine months in the U.S. they studied not just the prison system but every aspect of American life, public and private - the political, economic, religious, cultural, and above all social life of the young nation. From Tocqueville's copious notes of what he had seen and heard came the classic text "De la Democratie en Amerique", published in two large volumes, the first in 1835, the second in 1840. The first volume focused primarily on political society; the second, on civil society. Tocqueville's account of the travels and adventures of the two Frenchmen aimed to get down the truth about America, not only to praise the new country's strengths but also to critique its shortcomings when these were all too evident to outside eyes. For Tocqueville, virtually every aspect of the new republic was fascinating: the laws and the customs, the manners and the mores of a people so very different from the populations of the kingdoms of Europe.He was particularly interested in the success of democracy in America, specifically of republican representative democracy, which seemed to have failed elsewhere, most conspicuously in revolutionary France. Perhaps because Tocqueville, an aristocrat, was by no means sympathetic to 'pure' democracy, which seemed tainted by its associations with the Terror of the French Revolution, he examined American democracy with a thoroughness such as had never been seen before, and seldom if ever since. Tocqueville considered the tendency of democracy to degenerate into either the tyranny of the majority or what he called soft despotism, a sovereign power that 'extends its arms over the entire society; it covers the surface of society with a network of small, complicated, minute, and uniform rules...it does not tyrannise, it hinders, it represses, it enervates, it extinguishes, it stupifies, and finally it reduces each nation to being nothing more than a flock of timid and industrious animals, of which the government is the shepherd'. Tocqueville noted that religion played a leading role in American life in the 1830s, due to its being constitutionally separated from government.Far from objecting to this situation, he observed that Americans found this dis-establishment quite satisfactory, in contrast to France, with its outright antagonism between avowedly religious people and supporters of democracy. "The Liberty Fund Bilingual Democracy in America" includes Eduardo Nolla's critical edition of the French text and notes on the lefthand pages and James Schleifer's English translation on the right. This is the fullest critical edition of the Democracy, and the notes offer an extensive selection of early outlines, drafts, manuscript variants, marginalia, unpublished fragments, and other materials. From the foreword to the French edition: 'This new Democracy is not only the one that Tocqueville presented to the reader of 1835, then to the reader of 1840. It is enlarged, amplified by a body of texts...the reader will see how Tocqueville proceeded with the elaboration of the main ideas of his book'. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Astute Observer of America
Alexis De Tocqueville was simply of one of the great social scientists writing about America and Democracy.From reading the book I deduced that Tocqueville was a social scientist before Marx!He compared European culture and government with the fledgling culture and democracy he observed in America.He is very much impressed with what he saw taking place in America in the 1830's and hoped it would spread to Europe.At first he believed that America's prosperity was simply due to geography and its distance from powerful neighbors, he abandoned this idea after his visit to America.He came to realize that the West was not being peopled "by new European immigrants to America, but by Americans who he believed had little adversity to taking risks."Tocqueville found that Americans were the most broadly educated and politically advanced people in the world and one of the reasons for the success of our form of government.He also foretold America's industrial preeminence and strength through the unfettered spread of ideas and human industry.

Tocqueville also saw the insidious damage that the institution of slavery was causing the country and predicted some 30 years before the Civil War that slavery would probable cause the states to fragment from the union.He also predicted the emergence of stronger states rights over the power of the federal government.He held fast to his belief that the greatest danger to democracy was the trend toward the concentration of power by the federal government.He predicted wrongly that the union would probably break up into two or three countries because of regional interests and differences.This idea is the only one about America that he gets wrong.Despite some of his misgivings, Tocqueville, saw that democracy is an "inescapable development" of the modern world.The arguments in the "Federalist Papers" were greater then most people realized.He saw a social revolution coming that continues throughout the world today.

Tocqueville realizes at the very beginning of the "industrial revolution" how industry, centralization, and democracy strengthened each other and moved forward together.I am convinced that Tocqueville is still the preeminent observer of America but is also the father of social science.A must read for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy or the social sciences.
... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Astute observer of America
Alexis De Tocqueville was simply of one of the great social scientists writing about America and Democracy.From reading the book I deduced that Tocqueville was a social scientist before Marx!He compares European culture and government with the fledgling culture and democracy he observes in America.He is very much impressed with what he sees taking place in America in the 1830's and hopes it will spread to Europe.He at first believed that America's prosperity was simply due to geography and their distance from powerful neighbors, he abandons this idea after his visit to America.He comes to realize that the West is not being peopled "by new European immigrants to America, but by Americans who he believes have no adversity to taking risks."Tocqueville comes to see that Americans are the most broadly educated and politically advanced people in the world and one of the reasons for the success of our form of government.He also foretells America's industrial preeminence and strength through the unfettered spread of ideas and human industry.

Tocqueville also saw the insidious damage that the institution of slavery was causing the country and predicted some 30 years before the Civil War that slavery would probable cause the states to fragment from the union.He also the emergence of stronger states rights over the power of the federal government.He held fast to his belief that the greatest danger to democracy was the trend toward the concentration of power by the federal government.He predicted wrongly that the union would probably break up into two or three countries because of regional interests and differences.This idea is the only one about America that he gets wrong.Despite some of his misgivings, Tocqueville, saw that democracy is an "inescapable development" of the modern world.The arguments in the "Federalist Papers" were greater then most people realized.He saw a social revolution coming that continues throughout the world today.

Tocqueville realizes at the very beginning of the "industrial revolution" how industry, centralization, and democracy strengthened each other and moved forward together.I am convinced that Tocqueville is still the preeminent observer of America but is also the father of social science.A must read for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy or the social sciences.
... Read more

Product Description
Both volumes in a single file, with links from the table of contents to each chapter. The classic work of political science, based on De Tocqueville's observations of America in the 1830s. According to Wikipedia: "Alexis-Charles-Henri Clérel de Tocqueville (July 29, 1805 – April 16, 1859) was a French political thinker and historian best known for his Democracy in America (appearing in two volumes: 1835 and 1840) 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." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Astute observer of America
Alexis De Tocqueville was simply of one of the great social scientists writing about America and Democracy.From reading the book I deduced that Tocqueville was a social scientist before Marx!He compares European culture and government with the fledgling culture and democracy he observes in America.He is very much impressed with what he sees taking place in America in the 1830's and hopes it will spread to Europe.He at first believed that America's prosperity was simply due to geography and their distance from powerful neighbors, he abandons this idea after his visit to America.He comes to realize that the West is not being peopled "by new European immigrants to America, but by Americans who he believes have no adversity to taking risks."Tocqueville comes to see that Americans are the most broadly educated and politically advanced people in the world and one of the reasons for the success of our form of government.He also foretells America's industrial preeminence and strength through the unfettered spread of ideas and human industry.

Tocqueville also saw the insidious damage that the institution of slavery was causing the country and predicted some 30 years before the Civil War that slavery would probable cause the states to fragment from the union.He also the emergence of stronger states rights over the power of the federal government.He held fast to his belief that the greatest danger to democracy was the trend toward the concentration of power by the federal government.He predicted wrongly that the union would probably break up into two or three countries because of regional interests and differences.This idea is the only one about America that he gets wrong.Despite some of his misgivings, Tocqueville, saw that democracy is an "inescapable development" of the modern world.The arguments in the "Federalist Papers" were greater then most people realized.He saw a social revolution coming that continues throughout the world today.

Tocqueville realizes at the very beginning of the "industrial revolution" how industry, centralization, and democracy strengthened each other and moved forward together.I am convinced that Tocqueville is still the preeminent observer of America but is also the father of social science.A must read for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy or the social sciences.
... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

What caused the French Revolution ?
This was required reading for a graduate course in the history of the French Revolution.Alexis De Tocqueville's research for his book The Old Regime and the Revolution taught him that there were several socio-political and economic causes that led to the Revolution.There is enough excellent historical scholarship available to finally put to bed the myth that the Enlightenment was in and of itself the impetus that caused French citizens to storm the Bastille.According to Tocqueville's excellent analysis in his book, he argues that the waning vestiges of feudalism sowed the seeds of destruction of the Old Regime.The reasons why in France the vestiges of feudalism were torn down in the cataclysmic crash of the French Revolution and not discarded as peaceably, as say in England, is the question to which his book was devoted.The first social structure he turns his attention to is the Church, the Second Estate of France, because of the socio-economic and political power it occupied in the nation.

When it came to his observations that the influence the philosophes had on the Revolution, he found that it was not unusual to find intellectuals writing about improving society and that ambition had been historically evident since the early Greeks.What Tocqueville became interested in was that since the mid-eighteenth century, this desire became the bedrock of Enlightenment writing in France and was soaked up like a sponge by its citizenry.Thus, he wrote, "The philosophy of the eighteenth century is rightly considered one of the principle causes of the Revolution and it is certainly true that that philosophy was deeply irreligious" (Tocqueville, 96).Therefore, Tocqueville argued that one of the central causes of the Revolution was the attacks on the Church by the Philosophes throughout the eighteenth century."The priests were not hated because they claimed to regulate the affairs of the other world, but because they were landowners, lords, tithe collectors, and administrators in this one" (97).

Tocqueville noted in his book that during the eighteenth century, for the most part, French intellectuals had no experience or say in governmental affairs.Tocqueville lamented that the philosophe's lack of experience created, "A frightening sight!For what is merit in a writer is sometimes vice in a statesman, and the same things which have often made lovely books can lead to great revolutions" (Tocqueville, 201).However, Tocqueville also found that the country, "...was at the same time the most educated of all nations on earth, and the most fond of things intellectual, one will understand without difficulty how writers became a political power in France, and ended up being the most important one" (Tocqueville 200).

Recommended reading for anyone interested in political philosophy, enlightenment history, and the French Revolution.I also recommend you read the book that Tocqueville is most famous for "Democracy In America" although written in the 1830's it is still the most prescient look at America and its citizenry.

the great French observer of America looks at France
Alexis de Tocqueville is, of course, the most perceptive observer of American democracy ever to grace our shores, his Democracy in America one of the most important books ever written about democracy in general and the American Republic in specific.Here, in a less read work, he takes on the origins of the French Revolution and the peculiar French form of democracy it brought and proves an equally keen observer of his own country and countrymen.

De Tocqueville makes several vital points about the French Revolution: first, that it built gradually and, given circumstances in France, was inevitable; second, where the American Revolution had as its lodestar the ideal of freedom, the French Revolution was motivated by a passionate hatred ofinequality; third, the demise of all insitutions other than the monarchy in France made it certain that when Revolution came, it would be violent and unchecked; finally, this combination of factors lead to the bizarre nature of the French Revolution, with no developed institutions to turn to once the King was gone and with no great emphasis placed on freedom, the French people were willing to tolerate the nihilism of the Terror and the authoritarianism of the governments that replaced the monarchy.He does not make the case, but it lies before us, that the American Revolution was fundamentally a positive action, a demand for greater freedom, but the French Revolution was a negative action, a demand that the few not own more than the many.

This book was to be followed by a second volume dealing with the the Revolution itself, but he died before he could continue the work. That is a shame; it would have been interesting to have some more insight from him into the French, it seems unlikely that anyone has ever rendered a better description of his people than the one he offers in his Conclusion:

When I observe France from this angle [their temperament] I find the nation itself far moreremarkable than any of the events in its long history. It hardly seems possible that there can everhave existed any other people so full of contrasts and so extreme in all their doings, so much guidedby their emotions and so little by fixed principles, always behaving better, or worse, than oneexpected of them....Undisciplined by temperament, the Frenchman is always readier to put up witharbitrary rule, however harsh, of an autocrat than with a free, well-ordered government by hisfellow citizens, however worthy of respect they be.At one moment he is up in arms againstauthority and the next we find him serving the powers that be with a zeal such as the most servileraces never display.

In the context of this paragraph, we can begin to understand Vichy France and the bureaucratic tyranny of the modern French nation.I say "begin"...

GRADE: B+

Tres Tres Bien
Tocqueville has always been, and probably always will be, known as the author of "Democracy in America," a wide-ranging and perspicacious study of the early republic.However, it's when he writes about his own France, and its political system that he knows so intimately,that Tocqueville is at his best.Unlike "Democracy," "TheAncient Regime" is neither sprawling, judgmental, nor inaccurate. These are excusable lapses, of course, in a grand work of poignantanalysis, but such deficiencies do not mar "The Ancient Regime." This book is succinct, beautifully written, expertly researched, andincredibly original.Because Tocqueville was French and worked in theFrench government, this work is much more focused, specific, and accuratethan "Democracy" (written hastily after a 9-month tour of Americain 1830-31).It is simply a brilliant work, the creation of a curious andsometimes eccentric mind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Raises Questions To Ponder
"Tocqueville's America: The Great Quotations" is a stimulating collecting of quotations from this renowned observer of, and commentator on the early American scene.Arranged topically, the reader is treated to a broad range of thought provoking ideas of what America was, served in the span of this relatively short book.

Tocqueville shares his ideas on how Democracies and Aristocracies behave differently in the social, economic, political, religious and military spheres.

Among the selections, I found the most thought provoking to be those which challenge the reader to think about whether the America of Tocqueville's day still exists, or have we become more like the Europe with which he contrasted us.Is the taste for intellectual pleasures still lacking in America, as compared to other countries?Do we still produce a large volume of low quality art, as compared to the small volume, high quality produced by others?Do we still have a broad, but shallow education?Is our country still decentralized?

This book raises questions which we can ponder indefinitely.This is a book to read, reread and just peruse for the intellectual stimulation which only this sage of yore can provide. ... Read more

Product Description

Alexis de Tocqueville was among the first foreigners to recognize and trumpet the grandness of the American project. His two-volume classic, Democracy in America, published in 1835, not only offered a vivid account of what was then a new nation but famously predicted what that nation would become. His startling prescience, as well as the endurance of his political ideas, has firmly established Tocqueville's place in American history; his chronicle of our infancy is a fixture on every American history syllabus. Nearly all of his clairvoyant predictions about American political life, from the influence of Evangelical Christianity to the advent of our "consumer society," have come true—and on the schedule he set.

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Customer Reviews (5)

Nice overview of a most unique individual (3.5*s)
This short work is not so much of an attempt to chronicle de Tocqueville's life and works, as it is an attempt to understand his mind, character, and personality. How can it be that this obscure, aristocratic Frenchmen, in his late twenties, could produce perhaps the most insightful book ever written on democracy and without doubt the most read and quoted? Born in 1805 during Napoleon's reign, the French Revolution and its connection to aristocracy, democracy, monarchy, and dictatorship was, according to the author, the most significant event in de Tocqueville's life. Beyond the family nightmare of his parents being only days away from being guillotined, the Revolution reverberated throughout French society for decades. De Tocqueville, given his fixation on fundamental ideas, sought to understand for himself and his fellow Frenchmen what underlay the social and political developments of his time, including the experiment in democracy in the US that so fascinated Europeans.

As the author notes, de Tocqueville has resisted definitive classification through the years in terms of his profession, his political leanings, and his ranking as a profound philosopher. The biggest debate concerns his being a conservative or a liberal. The contention that he was a Christian conservative is countered by the crisis in religious belief that he underwent in his late teens that affected him the rest of his life and the fact that he was no lover of monarchy or aristocracy, seeing the spread of equality and democracy, not without their own shortcomings, as inevitable. Perhaps de Tocqueville was not of the intellectual stature of a Marx or Stuart Mill, but he was a keen observer and organizer of political and social phenomena, able to offer profound, often prophetic, insights concerning their bases.

Curiously, de Tocqueville longed to be a politician and was finally elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 1840, where he served for eight years with little impact. He was not socially adept; he was a poor speaker and was unwilling to join political coalitions. Furthermore, he was an intellectual elitist, preferring to remain aloof from the less high-minded. It is interesting that he maintained close friendships with several men during his entire lifetime, including his collaborator in his journey to America, Gustave de Beaumont. His other foray into politics was a short term as the minister of foreign affairs in 1849 under the regime of Louis-Napoleon, the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, before the dissolving of the Chamber and the complete seizure of governmental powers.

There is no doubt that de Tocqueville was a most complex individual. His ambition is in little doubt as he made every effort to produce a stylish DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA that did make his reputation, although the benefits were largely personal, not material. He was a profoundly pessimistic man, perhaps bordering on clinical depression. His political insights were more troubling to him than liberating. He did have other real worries, as he was rather sickly over a good bit of his life and died at the age of fifty-three of tuberculosis. His premature death prevented him from completing his comprehensive study of the French Revolution, THE OLD REGIME AND THE REVOLUTION.

This book is a nice overview of Tocqueville, focusing on his broad intellectual inclinations and pointing to his uniqueness. It provides at best a cursory look at his ideas, with the frequent repetition of his concerns about the rise of equality and the average man in political society, at the costs of limiting liberty and settling for widespread mediocrity. The book is very readable, but there is an absence of a table of contents, index, or notes. The bibliography is very limited. Hugh Brogan's biography remains the fullest treatment of de Tocqueville.

Brilliant biography of a brilliant observer of American life
I have spent quite a bit of time reading Tocqueville.It truly is one of the seminal works for understanding America.Epstein does a brilliant job in this short, but satisfying biography.

A Solid Brief Biography ofTocqueville
Joseph Epstein has written a very useful brief (205 pages) biography of Alexis de Tocqueville, author of "Democracy in America" (1835).This is one of two new Tocqueville biographies--the other being the long-germinating volume by Denis Brogan. The author strikes a very nice balance between covering Tocqueville's life, while also devoting some attention to his major writings.So while there is a discussion of "Democracy in America" it is not as extensive as if the book were a commentary on it alone.Other Tocqueville writing efforts, especially his book on the causes of the French revolution and uncompleted second volume on the actual revolution itself, are discussed as well.But basically, the book is a fast paced review of Tocqueville's life, political career, and relationship to various French governments (including his service for a brief time as foreign minister). Several times the author touches upon Tocqueville's central dilemma--the relationship between democracy, liberty and equality.The discussion of Tocqueville as an aristocrat commenting on democracy and equality is quite interesting. The book has no notes, bibliograpy or index--but does have a brief note at the end regarding the most valuable sources the author found on the topic. The author's writing style is quite pleasant and enjoyable.Quite a lot of info packed into a relatively short book--enough of a taste to let the reader know whether it is worthwhile to invest in one of the longer treatments of Tocqueville's life.

A Man For All Reasons
The editors of the Eminent Lives series chose well when they selected Joseph Epstein to write this brief biography of Alexis de Tocqueville.His research and writings about Envy, Snobbery and Friendshiphave served him in his task of "getting at the quality of mind" ofhis subject. Tocqueville was an ideal friend, loyal, generous and abiding.Born an aristocrat at the beginning of the inexorable advance of equality, he knew about envy and snobbery from both sides of the fence. While Equality was the "idee mere" from his observations of democracy in America and the revolution in France, his sympathies favored Liberty although he recognized the dynamic tension and irreconcilability between them.He wrote that democracy and equality discourage both brilliance and great crimes while fostering mediocrity and comfort. Liberty allows the means to excel but few benefit and many suffer.A spectrum of political opinions find confirmation in his books.Epstein projects a clean, sharp picture of the man and his ideas.Informed by Tocqueville's works and other biographies, this is not a digest but a distillation enlivened by Epsteinian wit.

To understand 'Democracy in America', start with this book
'Democracy in America' was a smash hit in France when first published in 1835, an expression of their intense desire to create a democratic society based on the example of Americans.

Americans still love the Tocqueville idea;it is the strongest proof by a European aristocrat that "democracy" was invented in America.Epstein writes, "Americans didn't have a history to rewrite.Setting out very nearly as a tabula rasa, they charged themselves not with changing an existing society so much as with making an entirely new one."

Alexis de Tocqueville wrote the ultimate 'Do-It-Yourself' guide to freedom, a superb portrait of Americans, their quirks, habits, ideas and attitudes.These are also basic English qualities.In America, far from the daily rule of lords, ladies and other layabouts, this natural decency and innate distrust of authority blossomed into an unparalleled freedom.

Epstein understands Tocqueville wrote an astute portrait of how Americans use democracy.But, it didn't inspire the French to copy and improve upon the American precedent.Tocqueville rejected Montesquieu's idea "that forms of government engender modes of behaviour (monarchy, honour;aristocracy, moderation;republicanism, virtue;despotism, terror).Tocqueville showed that things often work the other way around, with modes of behaviour just as likely to engender forms of government."

In other words, the naturally rebellious English flourished in America and created a decentralized government with constitutionally limited powers (see Amendment X to the US Constitution).American democracy is due to evolution, not immaculate conception.It is still evolving and improving, as seen in the change from Dred Scott to Brown vs. Board of Education.

These books, both Tocqueville and Epstein, are a valuable balance to 'Vice' by Lou Dubose and Jake Bernstein which describes how Vice President Dick Cheney schemed to give the presidency unimpeded power to conduct foreign affairs and declare war on their own whims and falsehoods.Epstein cites Tocqueville's strong opposition to centralized authority that has been a feature of France for at least 1,000 years and is now an obsession of the Bush administration.

Anyone who wants to understand democray in America should read this brief but astute insight into the mind, character and nature of Tocqueville.The nature of the imperial presidency changes, from respect for democracy to worship of power.As Epstein shows so clearly, it is the basic decency of Americans that keeps their democracy alive, well and growing.Democracy is what people make it and what they are comfortable in living with;it is not a gift of government or any other paternalist.

Like a great guidebook to a city or country, Epstein has written a great guide to the genius who came, saw and understood the exceptional nature of Americans.In these times, it is an invaluable resource to understand the current debate between a president who thinks "I'm the decider" and the rights of Americans to make the vital decisions about their lives, well-being and destiny. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A comprehensive and insightful biography
Many experts consider Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America the best book ever written on democracy and on the United States. Published in two series of separate volumes, in 1835 and 1840, Tocqueville's political classic is filled with an astonishing number of penetrating insights and acute observations on the nature of democracy, the character of Americans and the exceptional nation they were carving out of the wilderness in the 1800s. Many of Tocqueville's remarkably prescient judgments remain as valid today as they were when he wrote them more than 160 years ago. Hugh Brogan, political scientist and professor, provides an informative account of the life and times of this brilliant French intellectual who expertly captured the essence of America and Americans. Brogan's heavily annotated, exhaustively referenced book is both exceedingly comprehensive and highly nuanced. Many say that to understand America, you should read Tocqueville's classic book. getAbstract says that to understand its renowned author, you should read this commanding biography. ... Read more

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Formatted for the Kindle. Linked Contents. ... Read more

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Editor and Translator Not Identified

There are a number of editions of Democracy in America, and it matters who the editor(s), the translator and those writing the introductions are.No where could I find the editor and translator of this version of Democracy in America listed. The cover does not look like recent 2010 version, Eduardo Nolla , editor, James Schleifer translator, which includes extensive notes andearlier drafts, published by the Liberty Fund.The cover on this version does not seem to be one on the 1966 hardcover version withJ.P. Mayer, Max Lerner editors, and with George Lawrence as translator or 1969 paperback version with J.P. Mayer as editor, and George Lawrence as translator. Is it by Henry Reeve, who was a close friend of Tocqueville, a version first published in America in 1838 and 1840, a version whose language Max Lerner characterized as "Mid-Victorian Florid?"Or is it some one of the other lesser known and less well regarded versions or even an abridged version?Any Kindle version should be labeled so the buyer knows what is really inside.

Astute Observer of America
Alexis De Tocqueville was simply of one of the great social scientists writing about America and Democracy.From reading the book I deduced that Tocqueville was a social scientist before Marx!He compares European culture and government with the fledgling culture and democracy he observes in America.He is very much impressed with what he sees taking place in America in the 1830's and hopes it will spread to Europe.He at first believed that America's prosperity was simply due to geography and their distance from powerful neighbors, he abandons this idea after his visit to America.He comes to realize that the West is not being peopled "by new European immigrants to America, but by Americans who he believes have no adversity to taking risks."Tocqueville comes to see that Americans are the most broadly educated and politically advanced people in the world and one of the reasons for the success of our form of government.He also foretells America's industrial preeminence and strength through the unfettered spread of ideas and human industry.

Tocqueville also saw the insidious damage that the institution of slavery was causing the country and predicted some 30 years before the Civil War that slavery would probable cause the states to fragment from the union.He also the emergence of stronger states rights over the power of the federal government.He held fast to his belief that the greatest danger to democracy was the trend toward the concentration of power by the federal government.He predicted wrongly that the union would probably break up into two or three countries because of regional interests and differences.This idea is the only one about America that he gets wrong.Despite some of his misgivings, Tocqueville, saw that democracy is an "inescapable development" of the modern world.The arguments in the "Federalist Papers" were greater then most people realized.He saw a social revolution coming that continues throughout the world today.

Tocqueville realizes at the very beginning of the "industrial revolution" how industry, centralization, and democracy strengthened each other and moved forward together.I am convinced that Tocqueville is still the preeminent observer of America but is also the father of social science.A must read for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy or the social sciences.
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This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1888 edition by Calmann Lévy, Paris. ... Read more

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Astute observer of America
Alexis De Tocqueville was simply of one of the great social scientists writing about America and Democracy.From reading the book I deduced that Tocqueville was a social scientist before Marx!He compares European culture and government with the fledgling culture and democracy he observes in America.He is very much impressed with what he sees taking place in America in the 1830's and hopes it will spread to Europe.He at first believed that America's prosperity was simply due to geography and their distance from powerful neighbors, he abandons this idea after his visit to America.He comes to realize that the West is not being peopled "by new European immigrants to America, but by Americans who he believes have no adversity to taking risks."Tocqueville comes to see that Americans are the most broadly educated and politically advanced people in the world and one of the reasons for the success of our form of government.He also foretells America's industrial preeminence and strength through the unfettered spread of ideas and human industry.

Tocqueville also saw the insidious damage that the institution of slavery was causing the country and predicted some 30 years before the Civil War that slavery would probable cause the states to fragment from the union.He also the emergence of stronger states rights over the power of the federal government.He held fast to his belief that the greatest danger to democracy was the trend toward the concentration of power by the federal government.He predicted wrongly that the union would probably break up into two or three countries because of regional interests and differences.This idea is the only one about America that he gets wrong.Despite some of his misgivings, Tocqueville, saw that democracy is an "inescapable development" of the modern world.The arguments in the "Federalist Papers" were greater then most people realized.He saw a social revolution coming that continues throughout the world today.

Tocqueville realizes at the very beginning of the "industrial revolution" how industry, centralization, and democracy strengthened each other and moved forward together.I am convinced that Tocqueville is still the preeminent observer of America but is also the father of social science.A must read for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy or the social sciences.
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In Two Volumes. This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting, preserving and promoting the world's literature. ... Read more

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[L]egal charity has not only taken freedom of movement from the English poor but also from those who are threatened by poverty. -from "Memoir on Pauperism" Inspired by a trip to England at a time when that nation was in the throes of political, social, and economic strife and poverty was rampant, political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville developed his theories on civil society as it relates to its poorest members and set them down in this 1835 essay.

With keen insight, he explains: . why the richest nations have the most paupers . why private charity is more likely to alleviate poverty than government aid . how good intentions backfire to produce a chronically dependent underclass.

The political and economic situations Tocqueville examines are immediately recognizable as one that haunts the world's richest nations today, and his lessons are still to be learned. This is an important book for our unsteady times.

Also available from Cosimo Classics: Tocqueville's Selected Letters on Politics and Society. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Find where exactly the waters we're drinking from now got muddled up
How Socialism crept into Western Europe

The great French man takes a look at the paradox offered by modern societies (in this case England, early 19th Century): The countries appearing to be more impoverished (are the ones with) the fewest indigents", and "among the peoples most admired for their opulence, one patr of the population is obliged to rely on the gifts of the other in order to live."

The key? Well-fare, public charity. Today it may not seem a paradox anymore, so ingrained in our righteous leftist minds it is. But Tocqueville saw it as it surreptitiously came forth, along with the Industrial Revolution. His analysis is clear-minded, cool, not coldly detached from the anguish of the miseries of the poor, but -on the contrary- interested enough to inquire into the roots of this modern paradox, which has since provided the daily fuel for the Left's demagoguery, and is the real opium of the self-blinded masses.

Tocqueville is not the Manichean the Left would like to think. His solution to the vicious cycle of wellfare-poverty-more-wellfare is not to cut through and banish it all. It is to get away with what went wrong in an originally fine idea: To cut loose from there, and return to the healthy idea of improving society, not contributing to its impoverishment.

A real diamond this book is, for its value and for its tiny size. You'll find where exactly the waters we're drinking from now got muddled up.

READ THIS!!
Most people who are familiar with Democracy in America are aware of just how well de Toqueville's analysis of the early 19th century United States has held up to the test of time. On Pauperism is brief (miniscule in comparison) but THE BEST analysis of why the welfare state doesn't work; why private charity can work (no guarantees); and a not-cheerful, but frighteningly accurate, discussion of the apparently "wider"spread poverty of affluent nations than poor nations.
A brilliant, valuable, percipacious work which should be much more widely read. Thanks to Cosimo Pres for re-publishing it. ... Read more

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This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's preservation reformatting program. The Library seeks to preserve the intellectual content of items in a manner that facilitates and promotes a variety of uses. The digital reformatting process results in an electronic version of the text that can both be accessed online and used to create new print copies. This book and thousands of others can be found in the digital collections of the University of Michigan Library. The University Library also understands and values the utility of print, and makes reprints available through its Scholarly Publishing Office. ... Read more

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This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1893 edition by Calmann Lévy, Paris. ... Read more

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This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1861 edition by Michel Lévy Frères, Paris. ... Read more

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Volume: 2General Books publication date: 2009Original publication date: 1861Original Publisher: Macmillan and co.Subjects: Biography ... Read more

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General Books publication date: 2009Original publication date: 1861Original Publisher: Macmillan and co.Subjects: Biography ... Read more

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This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from GeneralBooksClub.com. You can also preview excerpts from the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Published by: Macmillan in 1896 in 438 pages; Subjects: France; Historians; Biography & Autobiography / Historical; History / Europe / France; Political Science / History & Theory; Travel / Europe / France; ... Read more

Product Description
This Elibron Classics book is a facsimile reprint of a 1861 edition by Michel Lévy frères, Paris. ... Read more