Democracy in America by Alexis

¶ … Democracy in America by Alexis De Tocqueville

Democracy in America -- Democracy in America Today

Alexis de Tocqueville's classic nonfiction work Democracy in America was written in 1831. Some of Tocqueville's observations about American culture and society still seem eerily descriptive of present-day American values. Other pronouncements such as Tocqueville's observations about the status of different racial groups in America deal with aspects of American life that have undergone seismic changes since his visit before the Civil War, but are still important to keep in mind in light of current debates and struggles about equality and justice. Tocqueville came to America as a representative of the 'old Europe,' a French observer with a profound curiosity about the culture and society of a New World that seemed to lack the traditions and class structure of Tocqueville's native land. His book was and is valuable for the insight it provides upon America as seen through the point-of-view of an outsider and a foreigner, albeit a sympathetic one. Sometimes the greatest insights about a culture are provided by 'outsiders.' Tocqueville came from a highly structured, class-bound society with a state religion and of a fairly narrow geographic span. He traveled throughout America, from the first thirteen colonies to the far-reaching settlements and marveled at the diversity, independence, and egalitarianism of Americans as well as America's racism and prejudice.

For the most part, Tocqueville celebrated America's populist form of government, a nation without a king or aristocratic elite: "In other [nation]s the ruling force is divided, being partly within and partly without the ranks of the people. But nothing of the kind is to be seen in the United States; there society governs itself for itself" (I.4). America lacked institutions enforcing primogeniture, enabling more property to be passed on to greater numbers of individuals. America's constitution allowed for freedom of religion, which made religion centrally important in the lives of Americans in a way that it was often not given the state-enforced place of religion in Europe. Religions were diverse and thus a divisive force between citizens. American's 'dream of home ownership' and America's status as 'the most religious nation on earth,' underlines the importance of property and home ownership and the vital, personal importance of religion -- from Protestant evangelicalism to the self-help movement in the nation that still exists today. Capitalist land ownership, choice and independence, freedom from government-imposed rules were values celebrated in America even in Tocqueville's era.