"Democracy in America"

Paper Summary:

The paper describes how "Democracy in America" discusses the features of American political culture that help balance democracy and elitism in the United States. The paper further discusses how these features include a deep love for equality, even more than liberty or freedom; an absence of tradition; individualism; the pressure to accept majority opinion; and the importance of free association.

From the Paper:

"Equality, writes Tocqueville, is a uniquely American concept, and one that American citizens hold especially dear, sometimes even at the expense of liberty: "No novelty in the United States struck me more vividly during my stay there than the equality of conditions. It was easy to see the immense influence of this basic fact on the whole course of society. . . . [I]t creates opinions, gives birth to feelings, suggests customs, and modifies whatever it does not create" (Tocqueville, Democracy in America, p. 9)
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Sample of Sources Used:

• "Democracy in America." Wikipedia. February 11, 2006. Retrieved March 4, 2006, from: < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_in_America.html>.
• Tocqueville, Alexis de. Democracy in America, Volume II. (G. Lawrence (Trans.) New York: Anchor, 1969. 9.
• Tocqueville, Alexis de. Democracy in America, Volumes I and 2 [full online text]. Retrieve4d March 4, 2006, from: http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/DETOC/toc_indx.html>.

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