Alexis de Tocquevilleâs Democracy in America, published in two volumes in 1835 and 1840, challenged conventional thinking about democracy when it appearedâand is still cited by leading politicians today.
Having witnessed some negative effects of democratic revolutions in his native France, Tocqueville visited America in 1831 to see what a functioning republic looked like. His main concerns were that democracy could make people too dependent on the state and that minority voices might not be heardâa problem he termed âThe Tyranny of the Majority.â By examining America thoroughly, Tocqueville hoped to show how a democratic system could avoid these pitfalls.
Tocqueville also made a number of accurate predictions about the future of the United States, anticipating that the debate over abolishing slavery would cause conflict and that the US and Russia would emerge as the worldâs two great powers.
The New York Times decided: âNo better study of a nationâs institutions and culture than Tocquevilleâs Democracy in America has ever been written by a foreign observer.â