Alexis de Tocqueville (1840)
Democracy in America
Volume 1
Written: 1840;
Translated: by Henry Reeve, revised and corrected, 1839;
Source: Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org;
E-text: by David Reed, [email protected], February, 1997;
HTML Mark-up: by Andy Blunden.
Table of Contents
- The Exterior Form of North America
- Origin of the Anglo-Americans, and the Importance of this Origin in Relation to their Future Condition.
- Social Condition of the Anglo-Americans.
- The Principle of the Sovereignty of the People of North America.
- The Necessity of Examining the Condition of the States Before that of the Union at Large.
- Judicial Power in the United States and its Influence on Political Society.
- Political Jurisdiction in The United States.
- The Federal Constitution.
- Preface to Volume I, Part 2.
- How it can be Strictly Said That the People Govern in The United States.
- Liberty of the Press in The United States.
- Political Associations in The United States.
- Government of the Democracy in The United States.
- What are the Advantages which American Society Derives from a
Democratic Government?
- Unlimited Power of the Majority in The United States, and its Consequences.
- Causes which Mitigate the Tyranny of the Majority in The United States.
- Principal Causes which Serve to Maintain the Democratic Republic in The United States.
- The Present and Probably Future Condition of the Three Races that Inhabit the Territory of The United States.
Volume II
Section I: Influence of Democracy on the
Action of Intellect in The United States.
- Philosophical Method of The Americans.
- Of the Principal Source of Belief Among Democratic Nations.
- Why the Americans Show More General Aptitude and Taste for General Ideas that their Forefathers, The English.
- Why the Americans have never been so Eager as the French for General Ideas in Political Affairs.
- How Religion in The United States Avails itself of Democratic Tendencies.
- The Progress of Roman Catholicism in The United States,
- What Causes Democratic Nations to Incline toward Pantheism,
- How Equality Suggests to the Americans the Indefinite Perfectibility of Man.
- The Example of the Americans does not Prove that a Democratic People can have no Aptitude and no Taste for Science, Literature, or Art.
- Why the Americans are more Addicted to Practical rather than Theoretical Science.
- In What Spirit the Americans Cultivate the Arts.
- Why the Americans Raise Some Insignificant Monuments and Others that are Very Grand.
- Literary Characteristics of Democratic Times.
- The Trade of Literature.
- The Study of Greek and Latin Literature is Peculiarly Useful in The United States.
- How American Democracy has Modified the English Language.
- Of Some Sources of Poetry Among Democratic Nations.
- Why American Writers and Orators Use an Inflated Style.
- Some Observations of the Drama among Democratic Nations.
- Some Characteristics of Historians in Democratic Times.
- On Parliamentary Eloquence in The United States.
Section 2: Influence of Democracy on the Feelings of Americans.
- Why Democratic Nations Show a more Ardent and Enduring Love of Equality than of Liberty.
- Of Individualism in Democratic Countries.
- Individualism Strong at the Close of a Democratic Revolution than at Other Periods.
- That the Americans Combat the Effects of Individualism with Free
Institutions.
- Of the Uses which the Americans Make of Public Associations.
- Of the Relation of Public Associations and the Newspapers.
- Relation of Civil to Political Associations.
- How the Americans Combat Individualism by the Principle of Self-Interest Rightly Understood.
- That the Americans Apply the Principle of Self-interest Rightly Understood to Religions Matters.
- Of the Taste for Physical Well-being in America.
- Peculiar Effects of the Love of Physical Gratification in Democratic Times.
- Why Some Americans Manifest a Sort of Spiritual Fanaticism.
- Why the Americans are so Restless in the Midst of their Prosperity.
- How the Taste for Physical Gratification's is United in America to Love of Freedom and Attention to Public Affairs.
- How Religious Belief Sometimes Turns Americans to Immaterial Pleasures.
- How Excessive Care for Worldly Welfare may Impair that Welfare.
- How, When Conditions are Equal and Skepticism is Rife, it is Important to Direct Human Actions to Distant Objects.
- Why Among the Americans All Honest Callings are Considered Honorable.
- What Causes Almost All Americans to Follow an Industrial Calling.
- How an Aristocracy may be Created by Manufactures.
Section 3: Influence of Democracy on Manners Properly so Called.
- How Customs are Softened as Social Conditions become more Equal.
- How Democracy Renders the Social Intercourse of the Americans Free and Easy.
- Why the Americans Show so Little Sensitiveness in their own Country and are so Sensitive in Europe.
- Consequences of the Preceding Three Chapters.
- How Democracy Affects the Relations of Masters and Servants.
- How Democratic Institutions and Manners Tend to Raise Rents and Shorten the Terms of Leases.
- Influence of Democracy on Wages.
- Influence of Democracy on the Family.
- Education of Young Women in The United States.
- The Young Woman in the Character of the Wife.
- How Equality of Condition Contributes in America to Good Morals.
- How Americans Understand the Equality of the Sexes.
- How the Principle of Equality Naturally Divides the Americans into a Multitude of Small Circles.
- Some Reflections on American Manners.
- Of the Gravity of the Americans and why it does not Prevent them from often doing Inconsiderate Things.
- Why the National Vanity of the Americans is more Restless and Captious than that of the English.
- How the Aspect of Society in The United States is at once Excited and Monotonous.
- Of Honor in The United States and in Democratic Communities.
- Why so many Ambitious Men and so Little Lofty Ambition are to be Found in The United States.
- The Trade of Place-hunting in Certain Democratic Societies.
- Why Great Revolutions Will become More Rare.
- Why Democratic Nations Naturally Desire Peace, and Democratic Armies, War.
- Which is the Most Warlike and Revolutionary Class in Democratic Armies.
- Causes Which Render Democratic Armies Weaker than Other Armies at the Outset of a Campaign, and More Formidable in Protracted Warfare.
- Of Discipline in Democratic Armies.
- Some Considerations on War in Democratic Communities.
Section 4: Influence of Democratic Ideas and Feelings on Political Society.
- Influence of Democratic Ideas and Feelings on Political Society.
- That the Opinions of Democratic Nations about Government are Naturally Favorable to the Concentration of Power.
- That the Sentiments of Democratic Nations Accord with their Opinions in Leading them to Concentrate Political Power.
- Of Certain Peculiar and Accidental Causes which either Lead a People to Complete the Centralization of Government or Divert them from it.
- That Among the European Nations of our Time the Sovereign Power is Increasing, Although the Sovereigns are Less Stable.
- What sort of Despotism Democratic Nations have to Fear.
- Continuation of the Preceding Chapters.
- General Survey of the Subject.
Appendices