Tocqueville's Political and Moral Thought: New Liberalism (Routledge Studies in Social and Political Thought)

This book is an interpretation of Alexis de Tocqueville's moral and political thought and sheds new light on his ideas concerning the relationship between liberalism and democracy. This study is highly innovative as it portrays Tocqueville's liberalism as a synthesis between modern thought and Christian apology. Tocqueville remains an important figure sociology, politics, and philosophy, and the themes addressed in his work — religion, the press, racism, the role of government — are highly relevant today.This book discusses a wide range of Tocqueville's writings, including many that are unavailable or not readily available in English thus providing a new, much-needed understanding of the centrality of religion in Tocqueville's work. First Published in 2004. The nineteenth-century French statesman and political thinker Alexis de Tocqueville described himself as a ‘liberal of a new kind'. This book is a significant contribution to a better understanding of liberalism and of the distinctive character of Tocqueville's liberalism in particular. The main focus of the book is the nature of Tocqueville's liberalism. The author argues that Tocqueville seeks to reconcile the Christian and the citizen in the context of modernity and explores the question of how Tocqueville's work synthesizes religion and politics. Key themes discussed include: the relationship between faith and reason; the individual and community; patriotism and religion; history and nature. An overall picture of Tocqueville's idea of civilization is also presented. This is the first book that seeks to penetrate the set of principles that have shaped the distinctive character of Tocqueville's liberalism. The author shows that the consequences that are derived from these principles generate interesting and significant insights into the nature of liberalism. Tocqueville's Moral and Political Thought will be essential reading for advanced students and academics of political theory, philosophy and those interested in liberalism and the work of Alexis de Tocqueville. Book Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 4 Contents......Page 5 Foreword......Page 11 Introduction......Page 14 New liberalism......Page 27 The new science of politics......Page 65 Liberties......Page 96 Democracy and history......Page 129 Progress......Page 157 Bibliography......Page 189 Index......Page 197 Humanities Book Cover 1 Title 4 Contents 5 Foreword 11 Introduction 14 New liberalism 27 The new science of politics 65 Liberties 96 Democracy and history 129 Progress 157 Bibliography 189 Index 197