Study Guide for Tocqueville

Study Guide for Democracy in America, by Alexis de Tocqueville

This study guide is to help you read and understand selections from Tocqueville's Democracy in America and relate them to the lectures in HIST 103. I'll give you some introductory context for the book here.

Background on Democracy in America

First, let me point out the importance of Democracy in America as a primary document in American history. I suspect this is the most quoted, most cited of all sources on the American character and American nationhood. In other words, we are reading a classic, not some textbook. This is a book you ought to know something about. It's one that may be useful to you in other college course work, too--as a source of insights, quotations, and authority. That's why at the conclusion of this page I have placed a brief bibliography--a list of sources I have consulted in order to enlighten my own reading of Tocqueville.

Second, I'd like you to understand that Democracy in America is part of a specific genre of literature, that is, a particular type of writing common at a particular time. This genre still flourishes today, but its heyday was in the 19th century, Tocqueville's time. It's called a "travel narrative." Other examples of this genre were Robinson Crusoe, by Daniel Defoe; Three Years Before the Mast, by Richard Henry Dana; Innocents Abroad, by Mark Twain; and The Oregon Trail, by Francis Parkman. In recent times we have Travels with Charley, by John Steinbeck, and Blue Highways, by William Least Heat Moon. A travel narrative commonly has certain themes--almost a formula. In a travel narrative, the narrator leaves civilization behind, and he does so with a quest in mind. He is looking for something. In search of that thing, he travels to far places and encounters exotic peoples. These experiences cause him to be changed somehow, to think in new ways--they make an impression on him. So then he returns to civilization, recounts the wonders he has seen, and tells how the experience has changed him, or what he has learned.

For an on-line version of TQ, along
with some great context material, go to
University of Virginia Hypertexts.

Third, you need to know a little something about the French Revolution. Tocqueville was interested in what was going on in America because of what was going on in France. Americans declared their independence from the British Empire in 1776 and soon afterward founded a democratic republic--a radical new form of government. Americans believed that in doing so they were fulfilling a destiny assigned them by God, showing the rest of the world the way to leave autocracy and aristocracy behind and follow the star of democracy. Then came the French Revolution in 1789. In some ways it was similar to the American Revolution, but in other ways it was different. For one thing, the French Revolution was a class struggle, a revolt of the masses against rule by the elite; it was more radical than the American Revolution. For another thing, the French Revolution took a more desperate and dangerous turn. During the Reign of Terror the revolutionary authorities executed countless enemies of the people. Moreover, the French republic, the French experiment in democracy, was vulnerable. If you know the story of Napoleon, then you know that after the fall of monarchy, France wavered between democracy and dictatorship. As Tocqueville said, "In the French Revolution there were two opposite tendencies which must not be confused; one favored freedom, the other despotism."

Get Started on Your Own

Now, the first things I want you to read for this course are the two introductions to Democracy in America. The first introduction is by the editor, Richard D. Heffner. This, then, is secondary writing, providing us with background about Tocqueville and his book. The second introduction is by Tocqueville himself, telling us what he is trying to do in his book. You are responsible for knowing the content of these two introductions. Here are a few questions you might ask yourself.

What sort of a man was Alexis de Tocqueville? What was his background?
Why did he come to America in 1831-32? What was his quest?
Why does Tocqueville want to study American democracy? Why is the subject important? What does he think of democracy? What is the future of democracy?

Online Discussions of Readings

Most of the rest of this web page is devoted to a study guide providing study questions for specific chapters, or essays, in Democracy in America. It's organized according to lecture topics. I want you to read certain chapters in conjunction with certain lectures. Now and then in lecture I will make reference to Tocqueville, making a connection for you, but most of the dicussion of Tocqueville will take place online, in the discussion sections of the listserv, Cumberland Gap.

Note: the study questions for Tocqueville chapters given below are replicated also in the study pages for the individual lectures.

Here's how the online discussions work. By checking the calendar, you will know what chapters you are supposed to be reading and discussing. Keep up! When the time comes, post your comments to the listserv. Comments, what comments? Well, you can respond to one of the study questions given below; I expect most postings will be along those lines. But you also can write about other things. You can apply what Tocqueville says to American life, you can dispute what he says, you can express puzzlement with what he is trying to say. You are encouraged, too, to reply to one anther via the listserv, asking questions or giving comments, so as to improve understanding of the reading by all members of the discussion section.

You don't have to comment on every reading assignment, but your contributions to the listserv discussions are the largest element in determining your participation grade in the course. Quality of responses is considered along with quantity, but if by the end of semester you haven't posted ten or more responses to readings, I'd say you would be below average.

What is the appropriate style and tone for writing these postings? I think the tone is conversational, as if you were writing a letter to a friend. This isn't formal writing, it's expressive writing, intended to convey your own response to the readings. On the other hand, it should not be sloppy. Pay attention to matters of style--clean up your grammar and punctuation, write good sentences, be considerate of your readers.

Please be timely and keep up with the work. The idea of these online discussions of Tocqueville is that by writing your impressions and responding to one another, you come to a better understanding of the readings that if you just did them alone. If you lag behind, and you post comments about one set of readings when others already have moved on, then you are not helping. Such late messages are just clutter that make the list less useful for others. Of course, sometimes exchanges of discussion about a particular item can go on for some time, and that's fine--go with the flow. Just don't be negligent about the work and then try to catch up with messages that are not timely.

Questions? If you don't know what to do, ask your instructor.

Readings to Accompany Lecture 1: History and Mythistory

No readings in Tocqueville are assigned in connection with Lecture 1. Explore the web site!

And you might want to get started on the introductions to Tocqueville, as discussed above.

Readings to Accompany Lecture 2: American Indian Cultures

· Chapter 12: Unlimited Power of the Majority in the United States and Its Consequences

In this chapter Tocqueville puts forward his most famous and controversial concept, the "tyranny of the majority." He applies this both to political life and to social custom. This concept, tyranny of the majority, is basic to understanding Tocqueville, so make sure you understand it. Listen in lecture for an application of the concept to Indian-European relations.

What is tyranny of the majority? Can you give an example?
Comment on: "When I refuse to obey an unjust law, I do not contest the right of the majority to command, but I simply appeal from the sovereignty of the people to the sovereignty of mankind."
Is there true freedom of thought in the United States, a democracy?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 3: Imperialism

· Chapter 1: Origin of the Anglo-Americans

The lecture deals with European colonization in general, whereas this chapter of Tocqueville focuses specifically on the English, but he does provide some clues as to why the imperial designs of the European nations might not be fulfilled the way they wish.

Tocqueville begins this chapter with a theory of how to explain national character--why nations are the way they are. What is his theory? What is peculiar about the U.S. in respect to this theory?
Why was it impossible for Europeans to impose a social class system on the American colonies?
What were the differences between the Southern colonies and the New England colonies? Tocqueville obviously prefers New England--what was the contribution of that region to American development?
Near the end Tocqueville discusses "the spirit of Religion and the spirit of Liberty." What fundamental American principles is he dealing with here?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 4: Life in the English Colonies

· Chapter 2: Democratic Social Condition of the Anglo-Americans

This continues Tocqueville's line of thought about why the American colonists became more and more democratic.

Two terms you need to be able to define: primogeniture and partible inheritance.
What are the effects of these two systems of inheritance, primogeniture and partible inheritance, on a society, on democracy?
Take a look at the paragraph on p. 53 that begins, "In America, there are but few wealthy persons; nearly all Americans have to take a profession." Tocqueville here is talking about the effects of democracy on intellectual life. Now see if you can relate this paragraph to how the curriculum of the university is structured.
What is the effect of the social condition of equality on the political life of a nation? Is there a danger to it?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 5: The Revolution

· Chapter 48: Why Great Revolutions Will Become More Rare

The American Revolution has been the subject of interpretation that explores its class base--some historians seeing it as a conservative revolution to protect property, others viewing it as a radical revolution bent on leveling classes. Class lecture here offers an ambivalent view. Tocqueville definitely sees a class basis for the revolution, but has his own peculiar view as to what will follow.

Answer the title question: Why will revolutions in democracies, such as the U.S., be rare?
Tocqueville assumes that middle-class values will dominate American life. What are these values? Are these our values?
How do these middle-class, post-revolutionary values affect individual creativity and social progress?
Some Business major ought to comment on the passage p. 265 that begins, "I know of nothing more opposite to revolutionary manners than commercial manners."

Readings to Accompany Lecture 6: The Constitution

· Chapter 7: Aspects of the Federal Constitution

One popular historian of the Constitutional Convention has called that event the "Miracle at Philadelphia." Many Americans, then and now, believe in the doctrine of American exceptionalism, the idea that Americans have been chosen and blessed by God to accomplish a certain mission to the rest of the world. Tocqueville admires the American federal system, but he has a more clear-eyed view of it.

There are advantages to living in small nations, and advantages to living in large nations. What are these? And how does this relate to the American federal system?
Separation of powers, federal and state, is an important principle of the Constitution. What logic provides this separation? Which government entity should be responsible for what sort of powers?
Tocqueville thinks that American federalism is a wonderful thing for Americans. Would he advise bringing it home to France? (Another way of asking, Is it God or the Atlantic Ocean that has blessed America?)

Readings to Accompany Lecture 7: Federalists and Republicans

· Chapter 8: Political Parties

Tocqueville is writing in the time of President Andrew Jackson, a time when the two-party system had withered away, and for a while, the U.S. had only one functioning party. On the other hand, he writes quite a bit about the Federalists and Republicans of an earlier era, when partisanship was rife. And many of his comments about political parties are timeless. It falls to us to consider whether they have general application.

America once had great political parties, Tocqueville says, but doesn't anymore. He is writing in the times of Andrew Jackson, which we will study later. The great parties he is writing about are the Federalists and the Republicans, the subject of this lecture. What made them great parties?
There is a fundamental question that divides one political party from another. It was so in the days of the Federalists and the Republicans, and is likely so in other times. What is this question? Does it apply to our political parties today?
How do the wealthy stand in relation to parties and politics in America?
Class lecture on this topic lays out some reasons for and advantages to political parties in America. Are these in agreement with Tocqueville?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 8: The War of 1812

· Chapter 51: Some Considerations on War in Democratic Communities

In the War of 1812 the American democracy took up arms against Britain and British possessions in North America. This was not a glorious triumph for the U.S. It was at best a draw, and one reason for American difficulties in the war was dissent and division over whether and how it should be fought. Tocqueville gives us some considerations about democracies fighting wars.

If Tocqueville is right on p. 283, then how do we explain the success of the War Hawks in promoting war with Britain?
How does democracy change the practice of war, according to Tocqueville?
Dissent, and motivation, were important factors in the prosecution of the War of 1812. What does Tocqueville tell us about these factors?
Tocqueville is often credited as a great prophet, seeing important events far in the future. Sometimes, though, he misses badly. Can you see an example of that in this chapter?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 9: Democracy

· Chapter 11: Advantages of Democracy in the United States

This chapter on the advantages of democracy seems particularly appropriate for study in relation to the time of President Andrew Jackson, the Era of the Common Man. Many Americans lionized Jackson, who epitomized the democratization of American public affairs. Others said he would be the ruin of the country. And about that time, Tocqueville arrived in the U.S.

In matters of government, what things do aristocracies do well? What things do democracies do well?
Consider the relation of the last full paragraph on p. 101 to the presidency of Andrew Jackson.
What are the two types of patriotism? And why are Americans, as Tocqueville sees them, so darned patriotic?
OK, here's a challenge to one of you Business majors. Can you take Tocqueville's comments on patriotism, particularly p. 104, and relate them to management theory?
This chapter shows Tocqueville at his rhetorical best. Check out his ode to liberty in the middle of p. 106; also his two paragraphs measuring and comparing aristocracy and democracy on pp. 110-111. And don't miss his use of humor! This guy can be really droll.
Tocqueville describes Americans' all-consuming interest in politics. Is that the way Americans are today?
Who enforces the law in a democracy?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 10: The Mexican War

· Chapter 15: Future Prospects of the United States

Tocqueville is a profound commentator on the nature of democratic societies; he also is frequently a prophet. Yes, I know, he misses on some of his calls, but prophecy is a high-risk profession, and as prophets go, he's got a pretty good slugging percentage. This chapter is a great example.

Why is it that the Anglo-Americans are to possess all of North America?
What will be the nature and characteristics of the Anglo-American civilization?
Comment on Tocqueville's prophecies about Anglo-American expansion and Anglo- American dominance of the continent in the light of--

the northward migration of Hispanic cultures.
the North American Free Trade Agreement.

What do the futures of the United States and Russia have in common? How do they differ? What is the cause or force behind their common destiny?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 11: Crossing the Plains

· Chapter 41: How Americans Understand Equality of the Sexes

In lecture on the overland trails, I'll be discussing gender relations on the trail, and even considering "Sweet Betsy from Pike" as an example of such. That's why you're reading Tocqueville on women in a democracy at this point.

What are the assumptions underlying gender relations in America, according to Tocqueville?
Clearly discernable in Tocqueville's remarks are the lines of what later historians would call "separate spheres." What are the "spheres" of authority, responsibility, and competence of men and women as here outlined?
Are the gender relations described by Tocqueville characterized by equality?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 12: Slavery

· Chapter 9: Liberty of the Press in the United States

In the lecture on slavery we encounter a peculiar example of reform journalism--the abolitionist press. By reading Tocqueville's remarks on the press in general, you will come to see how remarkable the abolitionist press was.

Journalists sometimes do irresponsible things and print things they shouldn't. (Many southerners said this was the case with the abolitionist press.) According to Tocqueville, is there any way to regulate this sort of behavior?
With so many newspapers, why wasn't the press in Tocqueville's America powerful and dangerous?
Many people today are concerned with the abuse of free speech on the Internet. Can you apply Tocqueville's observations to this later situation?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 13: Bleeding Kansas

· Chapter 5: Decentralization in America--Its Effects

This is a meaty chapter for its own sake, full of good counsel about governance and leadership in a democratic society. Its subject is decentralization of government--the vesting of power in local authorities. This was the opposite of the situation in France, where unitary, centralized government prevailed. We're reading this chapter in conjunction with a lecture that tells the story of decentralized democracy run riot under the name of "popular sovereignty."

In what things does centralized administration excel? In what things does decentralized administration excel?
What is the effect of decentralization on the American attitude? (This is what Tocqueville calls "the political effect of decentralization.")
How is it that in such a disorganized country as the United States, the laws are well enforced? And given what Tocqueville says on this subject, how would you go about lowering the high crime rate in America today?
Are you management material? If so, comment on what this chapter teaches you about organization and leadership in America.

Readings to Accompany Lecture 14: The Civil War

· Chapter 20: Why the Americans Are More Addicted to Practical than to Theoretical Science

It happens that in the middle of the Civil War, in 1862, Congress passed the Morrill Act, creating land-grant colleges across the United States. That's why we're reading this chapter of Tocqueville now.

In higher learning we speak of "pure research," done simply to expand knowledge, without regard to practical use; of "applied research," done to address some problem in society (say, wheat scab in North Dakota); and "technology," meaning taking the knowledge into practice. Can you find the origins of these categories in Tocqueville?
What sort of science flourishes in a democracy? How can you explain the eventual scientific supremacy of the United States?
Land-grant universities such as NDSU have been called "democracy's colleges." How does the type of research and learning done here match up with Tocqueville's sense of science in a democracy?

Readings to Accompany Lecture 15: Reconstruction

· Chapter 25: Some Characteristics of Historians in Democratic Times

We read this chapter at the close of the course as a means of reflecting back and thinking about how History is done.

The main concept in this chapter has to do with what historians call "causation," that is, how to explain why things happened as they did. What sort of explanations do aristocratic historians offer? What sort of explanations do democratic historians offer?
Based on what you have heard in class, and on the ideas in this chapter of Tocqueville, is the instructor of this course an aristocratic historian or a democratic historian?

Prof. Isern's Bibliography for the Study of Tocqueville

Adams, Percy G. Travel Literature and the Evolution of the Novel. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1983.

Jardin, Andre. Tocqueville: A Biography. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1988.

Kramnick, Isaac, Ed. Democracy in America, by Alexis de Tocqueville. New York: Norton, 2007. This authoritative edition includes excellent scholarly essays commenting on the text.

Pierson, George Wilson. Tocqueville and Beaumont in America. New York: Oxford University Press, 1938. A landmark work that traces the two Frenchmen’s travels and explains how Democracy in America came to be.

Schleifer, James T. The Making of Tocqueville's Democracy in America. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1980.

Stout, Janis P. The Travel Narrative in American Literature: Patterns and Departures. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1983.

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