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Alexis de TocquevilleA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Summary
Volume 1, Part 1, Introduction
Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 1-2
Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 3-4
Volume 1, Part 1, Chapter 5
Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 6-7
Volume 1, Part 1, Chapter 8
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 1-2
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 3-4
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 5
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 6
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 7
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 8
Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 9-10
Volume 2, Notice
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 1-2
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 3-5
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 6-8
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 9-10
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 11-12
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 13-15
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 16-19
Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 20-21
Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 1-3
Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 4-7
Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 8-12
Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 13-17
Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 18-20
Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 1-4
Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 5-7
Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 8-12
Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 13-16
Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 17-20
Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 21-26
Volume 2, Part 4, Chapters 1-3
Volume 2, Part 4, Chapters 4-6
Volume 2, Part 4, Chapters 7-8
Key Figures
Themes
Index of Terms
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
Tocqueville first cites English acquaintances who complain that Americans introduce many new expressions, combinations of words, or commercial terms into their speech. He argues that language in democracies will reflect the increasingly mobile and fluid character of social life, including the increased interest in business and politics: “In the midst of this general agitation and combination of all minds, a great number of new ideas are formed; old ideas are lost or reappear; or else they are subdivided into infinitely small nuances” (453). Like the laws of a democracy, democratic language will reflect the interests of the majority. Word use is less divided between classes, and there is less regard for prescriptive style rules. The democratic preference for generalities extends to verbal and written expression: “Democratic peoples passionately love generic terms and abstract words because these expressions enlarge thought, and, by permitting the inclusion of many objects in a small space, they aid the work of the intellect” (456).
Tocqueville defines poetry as “the search for and depiction of the ideal” (458). Tocqueville asserts that on the whole democratic people will be less drawn to poetry, as their culture is distinct. He asserts that in democracies, “Imagination is not extinguished, but it is given over almost exclusively to conceiving the useful and representing the real” (459).
By Alexis de Tocqueville