Audiobook1 hour
A Macat Analysis of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America
Written by Elizabeth Morrow
Narrated by Macat.com
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5/5
()
About this audiobook
Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, published in two volumes in 1835 and 1840, challenged conventional thinking about democracy when it appeared—and 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 heard—a problem he termed “The Tyranny of the Majority.” 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 world’s two great powers.
The New York Times decided: “No better study of a nation’s institutions and culture than Tocqueville’s Democracy in America has ever been written by a foreign observer.”
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 heard—a problem he termed “The Tyranny of the Majority.” 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 world’s two great powers.
The New York Times decided: “No better study of a nation’s institutions and culture than Tocqueville’s Democracy in America has ever been written by a foreign observer.”
More audiobooks from Elizabeth Morrow
A Macat Analysis of Robert Dahl's Democracy and Its Critics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Macat Analysis of Robert D. Putman's Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Related to A Macat Analysis of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America
Related audiobooks
Democracy in America — Volume 1 (Unabridged) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDemocracy in America Vol. I Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Understanding Democracy in America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/550 Politics Classics: Freedom, Equality, Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5100 Quotes by Alexis de Tocqueville Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSUMMARY - Democracy In America By Alexis De Tocqueville Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDemocracy in America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5On the Duty of Civil Disobedience (Version 3) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Changing World: Patriotism Against a Globalist Agenda Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Empire of Democracy: The Remaking of the West Since the Cold War, 1971–2017 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5All the People: Book 10 (1945-2001) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Real Lincoln: A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Spirit of Laws (Volume 1) Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Political Philosophy: An audio course on Western Political Theory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Deep State: The Fall of the Constitution and the Rise of a Shadow Government Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Revolutions: How They Changed History and What They Mean Today Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Our Own Worst Enemy: The Assault from within on Modern Democracy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5America's Great Debate: Henry Clay, Stephen A. Douglas, and the Compromise That Preserved the Union Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sovereign of a Free People: Abraham Lincoln, Majority Rule, and Slavery Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe People vs. Democracy: Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All Against All: The Long Winter of 1933 and the Origins of the Second World War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Churchill's Trial: Winston Churchill and the Salvation of Free Government Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Utopia of Rules: On Technology, Stupidity, and the Secret Joys of Bureaucracy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ameritopia: The Unmaking of America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Light That Failed: Why the West Is Losing the Fight for Democracy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Nation So Conceived: Abraham Lincoln and the Paradox of Democratic Sovereignty Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDemocracy: A Guided Tour Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHitler's Girl: The British Aristocracy and the Third Reich on the Eve of WWII Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5
American Government For You
Romney: A Reckoning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Courage to Be Free: Florida’s Blueprint for America’s Revival Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Enough Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The White House Plumbers: The Seven Weeks That Led to Watergate and Doomed Nixon's Presidency Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5UFO: The Inside Story of the US Government's Search for Alien Life Here—and Out There Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Democrat Party Hates America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5American Marxism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Capitalist Punishment: How Wall Street Is Using Your Money to Create a Country You Didn't Vote For Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Leadership Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You Have the Right to Remain Innocent Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fear: Trump in the White House Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Corruptible: Who Gets Power and How It Changes Us Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Nine Black Robes: Inside the Supreme Court's Drive to the Right and Its Historic Consequences Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5To Make Men Free: A History of the Republican Party Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unhinged: An Insider's Account of the Trump White House Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why We're Polarized Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Peril Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Puppeteers: The People Who Control the People Who Control America Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Unbroken Bonds of Battle: A Modern Warriors Book of Heroism, Patriotism, and Friendship Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blood Money: Why the Powerful Turn a Blind Eye While China Kills Americans Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Crimes and Cover-ups in American Politics: 1776-1963 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Watergate Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hatemonger: Stephen Miller, Donald Trump, and the White Nationalist Agenda Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Anti-Intellectualism in American Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On Account of Race: The Supreme Court, White Supremacy, and the Ravaging of African American Voting Rights Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Untouchable: How Powerful People Get Away With It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for A Macat Analysis of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America
Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars
4.5/5
4 ratings1 review
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Macat Analysis series is very uneven, but this analysis of Toqueville's Democracy in America is one of the better ones. Elizabeth Morrow, a political scientist at King's College in London, draws out some of the main themes and concepts (e.g. equality vs. liberty, tyranny of majority, democratic despotism, social capital, civil society as counterbalance to centralized state power) and shows how they are still prominent in contemporary debates. In particular, she draws attention to the work of Robert Putnam (Bowling Alone), who draws on Tocqueville in researching the allegedly positive affects of voluntary associations in civil society on a vibrant and healthy democracy. She also focuses some attention on those who reject such views by pointing out that voluntary associations in civil society can just as easily promote bigotry and intolerance which may threaten or undermine Liberal Democracy.
Unfortunately, as with other audiobooks on Scribd, this one ends abruptly before concluding (I wish Scribd would work out such kinks). Another negative factor is the clumsy format that Macat employs for all its Analysis books in the series. It forces the author to keep circling around the same points with only slight modifications in some cases. The result is a truncated and repetitive presentation in most cases. To the credit of this author, this book at least manages to avoid some such excessive repetition while developing concepts and ideas in reasonable depth. Still, the Macat format is a drawback making more natural prose nearly impossible.
All things considered, a reasonably good and accessible way to learn not only about Toqueville, but his legacy with particular attention to debates between Putman and his detractors today. Recommended with above-mentioned caveats.