Democracy in America

Tocqueville then turns to the family as a social institution, pointing out that the “domestic dictatorship” of unlimited paternal authority does not last long in American families (558). American fathers treat their children’s maturation and independence as natural and do not find it threatening. Tocqueville calls fathers in democracies “an older and richer citizen than his sons” (559). In aristocracies fathers are not only political figures; they are also “listened to with deference, approached only with respect; and the love one bears for him is always tempered by fear” (560). In democracies fathers have more personal and emotional relationships with their children, which is apparent when one compares personal correspondence there with those of aristocracy. These social changes accord less automatic economic power for eldest sons as heirs of family fortune. This also produces emotional bonds, as “it divides their inheritance, but it permits their souls to intermingle” (562). Aristocrats may envy these family habits, but Tocqueville argues that they are achievable only through democratic social and legal systems. As in earlier chapters, Tocqueville remains convinced that political changes have strong influences on social customs and cultural norms. He asserts that while democracy destroys many old social conventions, others it merely alters: “it rings relative together at the same time that it separates citizens” (562).