Democracy in America Audiobook By Alexis de Tocqueville cover art

Democracy in America

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Democracy in America

By: Alexis de Tocqueville
Narrated by: John Pruden
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In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville, a young French aristocrat and civil servant, made a nine-month journey through the eastern United States. The result was Democracy in America, a monumental study of the strengths and weaknesses of the nation’s evolving politics. Tocqueville looked to the flourishing democratic system in America as a possible model for post-revolutionary France, believing its egalitarian ideals reflected the spirit of the age - even that they were the will of God. His insightful work has become one of the most influential political texts ever written on America and an indispensable authority for anyone interested in the future of democracy.

Public Domain (P)2010 Tantor Americas Classics Democracy Essays Ideologies & Doctrines Politics & Government United States World Nonfiction Thought-Provoking Socialism
Insightful Analysis • Historical Relevance • Excellent Narration • Prophetic Observations • Comprehensive Examination
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Would you listen to Democracy in America again? Why?

De Tocqueville explains what is unique and wonderful about America. Yes, I have listened twice.

What other book might you compare Democracy in America to and why?

Many British authors and journalists came to America in the early 1800's and wrote memoirs of their visits. De Tocqueville "gets it" about the United States. There is no other book like it.

Have you listened to any of John Pruden’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listed to other performances of John Pruden, but his reading of Democracy of America was excellent.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The great experiment in democratic government explained

So Insightful Even After 150 Years!

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I should have read this at 18, but I was not as ready as I am today at 60. This book explains so much about people, our country and the world, today as much as when written in the 1830s. I'm not so sure I read (listened to) this books as much as studied it. Now having finished it I will revisit my many bookmarks of incredible points, I will reread some chapters and look at respected opinions on this book to further understand it. Thankfully the content overlaps a lot, because it was tough for this layperson to fully understand all of it upon first explanation. Wow!!! I just can't believe how amazing this author was and the great gift this book is.

Amazing

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If you could sum up Democracy in America in three words, what would they be?

Important, Provocative, Essential

Any additional comments?

I have been a fan of audiobooks for over twenty-five years and some aren't so well done. This one is not on that list. This recording is first-rate, and de Tocqueville's book should be required reading in every education institution. Although history does not enjoy the same attention as, say, Twitter, it is important if we are going to continue to understand and govern ourselves. Essential to that process Democracy in America is on-point, revelatory, very well-written, and excellently translated.

This is a "must read" for every American

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Alexis de Tocqueville was nothing less than a political genius. This might be the most important work on the American system and people ever written.

Genius

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I am not a historian and this book is not my typical fare. So the fact that I enjoyed it is something to note. For the uninitiated, imagine being a French academic right before the start of the Civil War and coming to America to study its unique brand of democracy. This is helpful from our current perspective as it reminds the reader of what was and is still, unique about the American Experiment. The author takes you through all topics. The author talks about the economic, social, religious, and political aspects of what is occurring in America and seems to be meant for like-minded and curious academics around the world. It was especially noteworthy how the author covered the topics of racial tension and how women were different in America.

The author is exhaustive in his coverage of the topic and tends to run topics "to ground". This is especially true of what is one of his recurring themes, "democracy will inevitably lead to a self-interested, less cohesive populace here an aristocracy would necessarily have to be cohesive." Of course, that is only my miserable rendering of this theme. If you want to hear it from the horse's mouth - read on, dear listener.

Props from the Peanut Gallery

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LONG book, but worth it. It's amazing how many things are still relevant and applicable today.

Must read

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This was a great listen. However, to get through it, I feel like you need to enjoy history, otherwise you may struggle.

A Great (but long) Listen

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Forget Nastradamus. This is a thick compendium of very acute observations and analysis that accurately assessed the world and predicted the long-term future. Tocqueville leaves no stones unturned in life, and (amazingly) this back in 1831. His generalizations are still accurate (I noted the plight of thought-innovators in a large democracy, which is still true), and his predictions have born themselves out years into the future (Andrew Jackson's likely actions, the Mexican War) and decades into the future (the American Civil War, Thomas Edison), and centuries into the future (the rise of America and Russia).

His acute observations not only cover government and politics, but also society and the individual.

On the downside, he gives strained lip service to the usefulness of religions (which I've seen many times by thinkers throughout history who rightly feared them, and which I termed, 'giving lip service to the powers-that-be'), and some of his generalized conclusions were not quite right concerning factory workers and women (he simply did not spend enough time with them, and who can understand women?) So he paints an admirable idealized portrait of the American woman - you might as well flatter them if you can't understand them, I thought), but you can still appreciate his mental effort and what he was striving for (to identify general rules).

Being so accurate on so many other points, nearly all of his observations still stand today. and it could have been written by someone today. I was surprised by all the notions that are considered 'modern' that were already obvious back then.

My favorite? How his observations on the general character of 'the smaller' political party accurately described today's Democrat Party (with a Republican in the White House):
1. "Their egotism is revealed in their actions;"
2. "They glow with a fictitious zeal;"
3. "Their language is vehement, but their conduct is timid and irresolute;" and
4. "The means that they employ are as deplorable as the ends that they seek.(today the deplorable means would be
a. the Democrat Party calling to end the electoral system - but only when it suits them;
b. cynical vote-whoring to the more numerous poor (promises of freebies for 'more' votes); and
c. destroying the country just to win one election (beginning with the Constitution and ending with slandering Capitalism)
and all for the deplorable end goal of blind Socialism (that will not work when philosophical cluelessness still reigns, since philosophy, and not politics, is the core problem with humanity - see the Philosophy of Broader Survival for the details).

So the book is acute throughout. You will see much of the modern world through the eyes of 1831.

The Modern World Thru Eyes of 1831

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There is a reason this book is quoted so much. From politics to slavery to native tribes, this book covers so many important details about the United States. Very readable.
Recording is good.

Excellent work.

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What I find most amazing about this work is how much this foreigner attributes to destiny, fate and providence as if he were lulled in by the very arguments of many of the founding fathers who also believed divine intervention shaped the United States.
While clearly dated, the perceptions in this book have been repeatedly touted as amazingly insightful -- very possibly because he mirrors at us collectively what we wish we were more than the actual facts of the moment. Nonetheless, even if the overarching statements are far reaching, the actual elements of daily life are an amazing slice of life that we can no longer reach into. We own Alexis a great debt for capturing this moment in time.
As an audiobook, this is a great read. It is smooth, fluid and makes a great narrative. I loved it.

God did It -- A Foreign View Mirrors US Perception

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