Democracy in America: Abridged with an Introduction by Michael Kammen

Alexis de Tocqueville

Oct 2018 · Sold by Macmillan Higher Education

About this ebook

This new edition of Democracy in America makes Tocqueville’s classic nineteenth-century study of American politics, society, and culture available — finally! — in a brief and accessible version. Designed for instructors who are eager to teach the work but reluctant to assign all 700 plus pages, Kammen’s careful abridgment features the most well-known chapters that by scholarly consensus are most representative of Tocqueville’s thinking on a wide variety of issues. A comprehensive introduction provides historical and intellectual background, traces the author’s journey in America, helps students unpack the meaning behind key Tocquevillian concepts like individualism, equality, and tyranny of the majority, and discusses the work’s reception and legacy. Newly translated, this edition offers instructors a convenient and affordable option for exploring this essential work with their students. Useful pedagogic features include a chronology, questions for consideration, a selected bibliography, illustrations, and an index.

About the author

Michael Kammen (Ph.D., Harvard University) is the Newton C. Farr Professor of American History and Culture at Cornell University, where he has taught since 1965. He is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and served in 1995-96 as President of the Organization of American Historians. His books include People of Paradox: An Inquiry Concerning the Origins of American Civilization (1972), awarded the Pulitzer Prize for History; A Machine That Would Go of Itself: The Constitution in American Culture (1986), awarded the Francis Parkman Prize and the Henry Adams Prize; Mystic Chords of Memory: The Transformation of Tradition in American Culture (1991); and Visual Shock: A History of Art Controversies in American Culture (2006).