Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
8-2009
Abstract
Tocqueville describes the spirit of enterprise—along with the taste for material well-being—as “the distinctive characteristic” of the American people. This paper explores the American spirit of innovation and enterprise, beginning with the centrality of this spirit for America's commercial greatness. Tocqueville observes that the taste for innovation is a part of American national character, and its roots can be traced to the equality of conditions which characterizes democratic life. But the same equality of conditions which promotes the spirit of innovation also can also threaten it, for equality of conditions paradoxically encourages individuals both to rely upon their own judgment and to defer to the majority's. Although the effects of the spirit of innovation in the commercial realm are positive, its effects on other aspects of American life are more ambiguous.
Keywords
Public enterprise, American history, Commercial markets, Innovations, Tocqueville
Discipline
American Studies | Technology and Innovation
Research Areas
Political Science
Publication
Review of Politics
Volume
67
Issue
4
First Page
753
Last Page
774
ISSN
0034-6705
Publisher
University of Notre Dame
Embargo Period
3-30-2021
Citation
HENDERSON, Christine Dunn.(2009). Plus ça Change: Innovation and the spirit of enterprise in Tocqueville’s America. Review of Politics, 67(4), 753-774.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/3293
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0034670500035701