Alexis de Tocqueville Who was Alexis de Tocqueville

Alexis de Tocqueville Who was Alexis de Tocqueville? An aristocratic Frenchman who came to the U. S. in 1831 -- when he was only 25 years old -- and later wrote Democracy in America, a two-volume study of the American people and their political institutions. The book is frequently quoted by journalists and politicians. What books did he write? The U. S. Penitentiary System and its Application in France with Gustave de Beaumont (1833) Democracy in America (Volume I, 1835 and Volume II, 1840) The Old Regime and the Revolution (1856) Recollections (1893, published posthumously) Why is his book, Democracy in America, so popular? The book deals with issues like religion, the press, money, class structure, racism, the role of government, the judicial system, etc. -- issues that are just as relevant today as they were then. Democracy in America has undergone several periods of popularity throughout the century, but it's never been as popular as it is now. Scores of colleges around the country use the text in political science and history courses, and historians consider it one of the most comprehensive and insightful books ever written about the U. S.

de Tocqueville’s American Value Liberty Egalitarianism Define The state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life. a belief in human equality especially with respect to social, political, and economic affairs Individualism a theory maintaining the political and economic independence of the individual and stressing individual initiative, action, and interests Populism the political doctrine that supports the rights and powers of the common people in their struggle with the privileged elite Laissez-faire a doctrine opposing governmental interference in economic affairs beyond the minimum necessary for the maintenance of peace and property rights

Important People in History Paper doll Activity: Work in Groups to Read about one person and draw a picture of them on the poster. Put important information on the poster and present to the class

� Benjamin Rush (Pennsylvania) Against the slave trade and the institution of slavery Signer of the Declaration of Independence and favored a federal constitution. � John Hancock (Massachusetts) Revolutionary financier and public critic of British rule Known for his large and flamboyant signature on the Declaration of Independence � John Jay First Chief Justice of the United States � John Witherspoon (New Jersey) President – College of New Jersey (Princeton) Elected to the Continental Congress and voted for the Declaration of Independence. � John Peter Muhlenberg (Pennsylvania) General in the Continental Army Member of both the U. S. House and Senate

� Charles Carroll (Maryland) Wrote a series of newspaper articles protesting the right of the British government to tax the colonies without representation Signer of the Declaration of Independence � Jonathon Trumbull, Sr. (Connecticut) Governor of Connecticut as a colony and state Only colonial governor that supported the Revolutionary War � George Washington Commander of the Continental Army 1 st president of the United States � John Adams 2 nd President of the United States � Thomas Jefferson Made the Louisiana Purchase Wrote the Declaration of Independence