Democracy in America

Tocqueville first cites English acquaintances who complain that Americans introduce many new expressions, combinations of words, or commercial terms into their speech. He argues that language in democracies will reflect the increasingly mobile and fluid character of social life, including the increased interest in business and politics: “In the midst of this general agitation and combination of all minds, a great number of new ideas are formed; old ideas are lost or reappear; or else they are subdivided into infinitely small nuances” (453). Like the laws of a democracy, democratic language will reflect the interests of the majority. Word use is less divided between classes, and there is less regard for prescriptive style rules. The democratic preference for generalities extends to verbal and written expression: “Democratic peoples passionately love generic terms and abstract words because these expressions enlarge thought, and, by permitting the inclusion of many objects in a small space, they aid the work of the intellect” (456).

Tocqueville defines poetry as “the search for and depiction of the ideal” (458). Tocqueville asserts that on the whole democratic people will be less drawn to poetry, as their culture is distinct. He asserts that in democracies, “Imagination is not extinguished, but it is given over almost exclusively to conceiving the useful and representing the real” (459).