The majority's capacity to govern carries significant power, particularly highlighted in American society, which is marked by materialism and a tendency toward mediocrity. This materialistic culture, characterized by a strong desire for wealth and self-interest, poses risks to the fabric of societal virtue. Unlike the historical foundations of republics rooted in virtue, the current motivations driving America are largely economic, raising concerns about the long-term cohesion and moral direction of the society.
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859) and his examination of the American democratic system. He wrote De La Démocratie en Amérique in two parts, published in 1835 and 1840, when France was ruled by the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe. Tocqueville was interested in how aspects of American democracy, in the age of President Andrew Jackson, could be applied to Europe as it moved away from rule by monarchs and aristocrats. His work has been revisited by politicians ever since, particularly in America, with its analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of direct democracy and its warnings of mediocrity and the tyranny of the majority.
With
Robert Gildea
Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford
Susan-Mary Grant
Professor of American History at Newcastle University
and
Jeremy Jennings
Professor of Political Theory and Head of the School of Politics & Economics at King's College London
Producer: Simon Tillotson
In Our Time is a BBC Sounds Audio Production