Alexis de Tocqueville was a French diplomat, political philosopher, and historian who lived from 1805 to 1859. He is best known for his works Democracy in America and The Old Regime and the Revolution, published in 1856. Both works examined the living standards and social conditions of individuals, as well as their relationship to the market and state in Western societies. Democracy in America emerged from Tocqueville's travels in the United States and remains influential in the fields of sociology and political science. Through his observations and analysis, Tocqueville provided an early systematic study of American democratic institutions and society that continues to be widely read and cited.