Is Democracy Anti-intellectual? Tocqueville on the Life of the Mind in Modern Democracy

Abstract

Democracy is admired for fostering deliberation, debate and innovation. Yet there is also the persistent suspicion that it is anti-intellectual. This article turns to one of the foremost theorists of modern democracy, Alexis de Tocqueville, to assess his contribution to the debate on democratic anti-intellectualism. It argues that Tocqueville denies democracy is anti-intellectual, yet he also claims democracy favours a distinctive intellectual life, informed theoretically by a Cartesian scepticism and practically by the dominance of a practical and commercial perspective in the sciences, arts and literature. The article concludes by examining the technocratic implications of this form of intellectualism for democratic stability and legitimacy.