The announced purpose of his trip was to collaborate with his colleague and friend Gustave de Beaumont on a study of penal reform in the United States.Īs is well documented in letters exchanged between the two men, their real purpose was a much larger project - a study of the new American republic. In May 1831, de Tocqueville arrived in the United States from France for a visit that would last until February 1832. Tocqueville visited America to study democracy He was particularly impressed by the role of freedom of association in underpinning collective action, freedom of the press in serving as a watchdog for the people, and religious freedom in sustaining the beliefs that define the American character. (Image via Wikimedia Commons, 1850 by Theodore Chasseriau, public domain)Īlexis de Tocqueville (1805–1859) authored one of the most profound discussions of American democracy in the 19th century. He was especially intrigued by the effect First Amendment freedoms had on American democracy. Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America analyzed the development of democracy in the New World.
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