America 4
- No country has so little independence of mind and freedom of discussion as America
- Religion is the foremost political institution in America though it takes no part in government
Alexis de Tocqueville
French political philosopher and historian (1805 to 1859); author of Democracy in America.
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What Alexis de Tocqueville says most about
government 3
- Centralized government is needed, but centralized administration saps a nation's public spirit
- Religion is the foremost political institution in America though it takes no part in government
religion 3
- Tying religion to political institutions grows more dangerous as society democratizes
- Despotism may govern without faith, but liberty cannot
democracy 2
- The legal profession is the only aristocratic element that blends peacefully with democracy
- Democratic institutions foster envy through a passion for equality they cannot satisfy
education 2
- The civil jury is one of the most effective means of educating the people
- Without the spirit of local institutions a nation cannot have the spirit of liberty
taste 2
- Alongside a healthy passion for equality, a depraved one prefers equality in slavery to unequal freedom
- Religion is the foremost political institution in America though it takes no part in government