|
|
Article: A century and a half of French views of the United States.
- Article from:
- The Historian
- Article date:
- June 22, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Phi Alpha Theta, History Honor Society, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
A single visit to the United States does not allow an author fully to understand that vast nation, its complex society, or its unprecedented experiment in self-government. Yet, for a century and a half, French intellectuals have converted brief observations of the United States into bold interpretations of U.S. society. Alexis de Tocqueville saw the future of France in the United States; his Democracy in America remains the most admired and comprehensive study of the country. Although not in the same league as Tocqueville's classic, Jean Baudrillard's less ambitious America is the best-known recent attempt to make sense of the United States. Whether analyzing the ...