by Leo Damrosch
First published 2010
Leo Damrosch follows Alexis de Tocqueville during his nine-month American journey in 1831-1832. The French aristocrat arrives in Jacksonian America as a curious young observer, not yet the political oracle later generations would claim him to be. Damrosch traces how Tocqueville's famous insights about American democracy emerged from direct encounters with citizens across the expanding nation. The author reveals Tocqueville's admiration for American social energy and equality alongside his disgust at widespread materialism. Tocqueville grows convinced that slavery will tear the country apart in civil war. Using previously untranslated documents and letters, Damrosch reconstructs both the intellectual development of Democracy in America and the vibrant, changing society that inspired it. The book shows how Tocqueville's enduring observations grew from genuine dialogue with Americans rather than abstract theorizing.
Genres: biography, history, 19th-century, academic, american-history
Vibes: intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water
Setting: America, United States
Period: 1831-1832
304 pages · Hardcover · Farrar, Straus and Giroux