Title page from Democracy in America. English Edition. Vol. 1

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

Alexis de Tocqueville (author)
Eduardo Nolla (editor)
James T. Schleifer (translator)

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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democracy in america
Contents
Translator’s Note
Acknowledgments
Key Terms
Foreword
The Manuscripts of Tocqueville
Some Details Concerning the Present Edition
Abbreviations and Symbols Used in This Edition
Note on the Manuscripts
Acknowledgments
Editor’s Introduction
I: Legacies
The Machine at Law
The July Days
America
The Penitentiary System
The First Democracy
The Reception of Democracy
England and the Second Democracy
The Second Democracy
II181: To Understand the Revolution
The Theoretician of History
A Philosophy of Action
The Reign of Total Reason
Dialectic of Ideas
Foreword to This Edition
Note on Volumes and Pagination
VOLUME 1 (1835) Edition: current; Page: [2] : DEMOCRACY IN AMERICAa
PART I Introductiona
CHAPTER 1: Exterior Configuration of North America
CHAPTER 2: Of the Point of Departure and Its Importance for the Future of the Anglo-Americansa
Reasons for Some Singularities That the Laws and Customsb of the Anglo-Americans Present
CHAPTER 3: Social State of the Anglo-Americans
That the Salient Point of the Social State of the Anglo-Americans Is to Be Essentially Democratic
Political Consequences of the Social State of the Anglo-Americans
CHAPTER 4: Of the Principle of the Sovereignty of the People in America
CHAPTER 5: Necessity of Studying What Happens in the Individual States before Speaking about the Government of the Uniona
Of the Town System in Americac
Town District
Town Powers in New England
Of Town Life
Of Town Spirit in New England
Of the County in New England
Of Administration in New Englanda
General Ideas on Administration in the United States
Of the State
Legislative Power of the State
Of the Executive Power of the State
Of the Political Effects of Administrative Decentralization in the United Statesc
CHAPTER 6a: Of the Judicial Power in the United States and Its Action on Political Societyb
Other Powers Granted to American Judges
CHAPTER 7: Of Political Jurisdiction in the United StatesTN 4
CHAPTER 8: Of the Federal Constitution
Historical Background of the Federal Constitutiona
Summary Picture of the Federal Constitutionj
Attributions of the Federal Government
Federal Powers
Legislative Powersr [difference between the constitution of the senate and that of the house of representatives]
Another Difference between the Senate and the House of Representativesw
Of Executive Power16
How the Position of the President of the United States Differs from That of a Constitutional King in France
Accidental Causes That Can Increase the Influence of the Executive Power
Why the President of the United States, to Lead Public Affairs, Does Not Need to Have a Majority in the Chambers
Of the Election of the President
Mode of Election
Election Crisis
Of the Re-election of the President
Of the Federal Courts24
Way of Determining the JurisdictionTN 5 of the Federal Courts
Different Cases of Jurisdiction
The Federal Courts’ Way of Proceeding
Elevated Rank That the Supreme Court Occupies among the Great Powers of the State
How the Federal Constitution Is Superior to the State Constitutions
What Distinguishes the Federal Constitution of the United States of America from All Other Federal Constitutions
Of the Advantages of the Federal System in General, and of Its Special Utility for Americam
What Keeps the Federal System from Being within the Reach of All Peoples; And What Has Allowed the Anglo-Americans to Adopt It
PART II
CHAPTER 1: How It Can Be Strictly Said That in the United States It Is the People Who Govern
CHAPTER 2: Of Parties in the United States
Of the Remnants of the Aristocratic Party in the United States
CHAPTER 3: Of Freedom of the Press in the United States
That the Opinions Established under the Dominion of Freedom of the Press in the United States Are Often More Tenacious Than Those That Are Found Elsewhere under the Dominion of Censorship.n
CHAPTER 4: Of Political Association in the United States
Different Ways in Which the Right of Association Is Understood in Europe and in the United States, and the Different Use That Is Made of That Right
CHAPTER 5: Of the Government of Democracy in America
Of Universal Suffrage
Of the Choices of the People and of the Instincts of American Democracy in Its Choices
Of the Causes That Can Partially Correct These Democratic Instincts
Influence That American Democracy Has Exercised on Electoral Lawsm
Of Public Officials under the Dominion of American Democracy
Of the Arbitrariness of Magistrates2 under the Dominion of American Democracyx
Administrative Instability in the United States
Of Public Expenses under the Dominion of American Democracy
Of the Instincts of American Democracy in Determining the Salaries of Officials
Difficulty of Discerning the Causes That Lead the American Government to Economyx
[Influence of the Government of Democracy on the Tax Base {and on the Use of the Tax Revenues}]a
[Influence of Democratic Government on the Use of Tax Revenues]
Can the Public Expenditures of the United States Be Compared with Those of Francej
Of the Corruption and Vices of Those Who Govern in Democracy; Of the Effects on Public Morality That Result from That Corruption and Those Vices
Of What Efforts Democracy Is Capable
Of the Power That American Democracy Generally Exercises over Itself
Of the Manner in Which American Democracy Conducts the Foreign Affairs of the State
CHAPTER 6a: What Are the Real Advantages That American Society Gains from the Government of Democracy?
Of the General Tendency of Laws under the Dominion of American Democracy, and Of the Instinct of Those Who Apply Them
Of Public Spirit in the United Stateso
Of the Idea of Rights in the United States
Of the Respect for the Law in the United Statesx
Activity That Reigns in All Parts of the Political Body in the United States; Influence That It Exercises on Society
CHAPTER 7: Of the Omnipotence of the Majority in the United States and Its Effectsa Edition: current; Page: [403]
How the Omnipotence of the Majority in America Increases the Legislative and Administrative Instability That Is Natural to Democracies
Tyranny of the Majoritym
Effects of the Omnipotence of the Majority on the Arbitrariness of American Public Officials
Of the Power Exercised by the Majority in America over Thought
Effect of Tyranny of the Majority on the National Character of the Americans; Of the Courtier Spirit in the United States
That the Greatest Danger to the American Republics Comes from the Omnipotence of the Majority
CHAPTER 8: Of What Tempers Tyranny of the Majority in the United States
Absence of Administrative Centralization
Of the Spirit of the Jurist in the United States, and How It Serves as Counterweight to Democracyf
Of the Jury in the United States Considered as a Political Institutionw
CHAPTER 9: Of the Principal Causes That Tend to Maintain the Democratic Republic in the United Statesa
Of the Accidental or Providential Causes That Contribute to Maintaining the Democratic Republic in the United Statese
Of the Influence of Laws on Maintaining the Democratic Republic in the United States
Of the Influence of Mores on Maintaining the Democratic Republic in the United States
Of Religion Considered as a Political Institution, How It Serves Powerfully to Maintain the Democratic Republic among the Americans[*]
Indirect Influence Exercised by Religious Beliefs on Political Society in the United States
Of the Principal Causes That Make Religion Powerful in Americap
How the Enlightenment, Habits, and Practical Experience of the Americans Contribute to the Success of Democratic Institutions
That Laws Serve More to Maintain the Democratic Republic in the United States than Physical Causes, and Mores More than Laws
Would Laws and Mores Be Sufficient to Maintain Democratic Institutions Elsewhere than in America?
Importance of What Precedes in Relation to Europet
CHAPTER 10: Some Considerations on the Present State and Probable Future of the Three Races That Inhabit the Territory of the United Statesa
Present State and Probable Future of the Indian Tribes That Inhabit the Territory Possessed by the Unionh
Position That the Black Race Occupies in the United States;30 Dangers to Which Its Presence Exposes the Whitesc Edition: current; Page: [549]
What Are the Chances for the American Union to Last? What Dangers Threaten It?m
Of Republican Institutions in the United States, What Are Their Chances of Lasting?
Some Considerations on the Causes of the Commercial Greatness of the United States
Conclusiona
Notes
First Part
Second Part

Democracy in America. English Edition. Vol. 1

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