Volume II, Book IV, Chapter VII: Continuation of the Preceding Chapters
Alexis de Tocqueville
To Tocqueville, freedom was more than a political preference; it was an ideal elevated to near-religious status in his time. Observing America's democratic experiment revealed both its potential and its fragility, as he saw how liberty could be both a source of strength and a vulnerability. In the tumult of 1840, with revolutions and political upheavals stirring Europe, embracing freedom became a fervent, almost sacred act, rather than mere intellectual assent.