Democracy in America

De la démocratie en Amérique (published in two volumes, the first in 1835 and the second in 1840) is a classic French text by Alexis de Tocqueville on the United States in the 1830s and its strengths and weaknesses. A literal translation of its title is On Democracy in America, but the common translation of the title is Democracy in America.

Tocqueville's visit to the Americas

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont, both French aristocrats, were sent by the French government to study the American prison system. They arrived in New York City in May of that year and spent nine months traveling around the United States, taking notes not only on prisons, but on all aspects of American society, including the nation's economy and its political system. The pair of men also briefly visited Canada, spending a few days in the summer of 1831 in what was then Lower Canada (modern-day Quebec) and Upper Canada (modern-day Ontario).

Related Topics:
1831 - Gustave de Beaumont - Aristocrats - French - Prison - New York City - Lower Canada - Quebec - Upper Canada - Ontario

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After they returned to France in February 1832, the two men submitted their penal report, entitled Du système pénitentaire aux États-Unis et de son application en France, in 1833. Beaumont would soon write a novel about race relations in the United States. Tocqueville, on the other hand, who was fascinated by American politics, wrote an analytical political and social tract, Democracy in America, which would become the far more influential work.

Related Topics:
1832 - 1833 - Novel

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