Part of: Democracy in America. English Edition. 2 vols. Democracy in America. English Edition. Vol. 1

Volume 1 of a two volume English only version of Liberty Fund’s 4 volume bi-lingual critical edition. In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and his friend Gustave de Beaumont visited the United States. From Tocqueville’s copious notes of what he had seen and heard came the classic text De la Démocratie en Amérique, 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.

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Citation

Democracy in America. English Edition. Edited by Eduardo Nolla. Translated from the French by James T. Schleifer. (Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 2012). Vol. 1.

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Jean-Jacques Rousseau (Author)

Rousseau was a French social contract theorist whose political writings greatly impacted Tocqueville.
Voltaire (Author)

Tocqueville drew much from Voltaire, an influential French philosopher of the Enlightenment.

Andrew Jackson (Author)

Jackson served as President of the United States when Tocqueville visited America. His political policies emphasized rule of the majority and other radical democratic ideals.
Gustave de Beaumont (Author)

Beaumont and Tocqueville’s research on prison reforms took the friends to America. This trip served as the inspiration and groundwork for Democracy in America.

Critical Responses

Journal Article

Liberty, Equality, and Democracy

Eduardo Nolla

This title dives into Tocqueville’s political philosophy and social theories.

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Democracy and Its Friendly Critics: Tocqueville and Political Life Today

Peter Augstine Lawler, editor

As the title suggests, this compilation of essays examines Tocqueville and the political life of contemporary America.

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