Title page from Democracy in America: Historical-Critical Edition, vol. 1

Part of: Democracy in America: Historical-Critical Edition, 4 vols. (LF ed. 2010) Democracy in America: Historical-Critical Edition, vol. 1

A new 4 volume edition of Tocqueville’s classic text De la Démocratie en Amérique. The original was 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. The online version of Liberty Fund’s edition contains only the English translation of the French critical edition. Vol. 1 contains Part I.

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Key Quotes

The State

What most strikes the European who travels across the United States is the absence of what among us we call government or administration. In America, you see written laws; you see their daily execution; everything is in motion around you, and the motor is nowhere to be seen. The hand that runs the…

Politics & Liberty

I have shown that equality suggested to men the thought of a unique, uniform and strong government. I have just shown that it gives them the taste for it; so today nations are tending toward a government of this type. The natural inclination of their mind and heart leads them to it, and it is…

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