Hugh Brogan (1936–2019)

I knew Alexis de Tocqueville had written Democracy in America, but little else about him. This extensively researched book by Hugh Brogan examines his subject's personal life, public life, and his political philosophy. It seems that, in his public life, de Tocqueville was always slightly out of step. He believed in the equalization of status based on hard work and effort, yet was an aristocrat. He believed that the culture of a people was more important than the specific institutions they built to govern themselves yet was part of many of those institutions. He was at his best when he traveled, speaking to people, learning about their culture and ways of governance.

The book was, at times, hard to follow...it was hard to keep track of who was who. Often, the book read more like a history and M. de Tocqueville wasn't a robust enough frame on which to hang a history of France. At other times, it read like a biography, but the author then introduced names and events assumed to be known to the reader, which wasn't necessarily the case.

And it ended with references to a Moliere play I've never read (I've read others). What a disappointment after 644 pages! It would have been better to end with some analysis of why M. de Tocqueville and his writing remain important today. There's a reason why I studied his writing in 1982 at university on the Canadian Prairies. That kind of conclusion would have been much more satisfying.

So, a mixed bag for me. Best to know some French history before reading this one.… (més)

A great biography of the famed French author and politician, renowned for his observations of America and his native France. Brogan writes in a lively fashion, with plenty of great quotes and witty asides, many applicable two centuries later. Since Brogan's writing about a famous author, significant portions of this book are devoted to analyzing Tocqueville's writings, so readers who are familiar with Democracy In America or L'Ancien Régime will perhaps get more out of this, but even those who aren't but have an interest in this period of history will enjoy this.… (més)