Quiz for America Compared: Letter to Louis de Kergorlay, June 29, 1831

Question

1. What, according to Toqueville, is the legal basis of American social equality and political democracy?

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B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is c. Toqueville’s letter describes America’s adoption of equitable inheritance laws in place of the English system of primogeniture, which had resulted in a wider distribution of land among Americans and the “complete triumph of democratic principles.”
Incorrect. The answer is c. Toqueville’s letter describes America’s adoption of equitable inheritance laws in place of the English system of primogeniture, which had resulted in a wider distribution of land among Americans and the “complete triumph of democratic principles.”

Question

2. What was Alexis de Toqueville’s view of democratic government in the United States?

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B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is d. Toqueville argued in this letter that democratic government deprived societies of the benefits of aristocracy (such as family pride, high tone, and statesmanship) and created an immense and mediocre middle class.
Incorrect. The answer is d. Toqueville argued in this letter that democratic government deprived societies of the benefits of aristocracy (such as family pride, high tone, and statesmanship) and created an immense and mediocre middle class.

Question

3. Which of the following individuals would most likely have been sympathetic toward Toqueville’s point of view?

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B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is b. Although he supported democratic government, John Quincy Adams was a member of an old American family that had enjoyed considerable social and political prestige. As the last “notable” president, he would have been sympathetic to Toqueville’s suggestion that the elite were more qualified to govern than the masses.
Incorrect. The answer is b. Although he supported democratic government, John Quincy Adams was a member of an old American family that had enjoyed considerable social and political prestige. As the last “notable” president, he would have been sympathetic to Toqueville’s suggestion that the elite were more qualified to govern than the masses.