De La Démocratie en Amérique, published in two volumes, the first in 1835 and the second in 1840, is a classic French text by Alexis de Tocqueville. Its title translates as On Democracy in America, but English translations are usually simply entitled Democracy in America. In the book, Tocqueville examines the democratic revolution that he believed had been occurring over the previous several hundred years. In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont were sent by the French government to study the American prison system. In his later letters Tocqueville indicates that he and Beaumont used their official business as a pretext to study American society instead. They arrived in New York City in May of that year and spent nine months traveling the United States, studying the prisons, and collecting information on American society, including its religious, political, and economic character. Democracy in America was written in France after the Great Revolution. At that time, the kingship had been overthrown, but the French society was in turmoil. Although the demands of democracy have been temporarily suppressed, Tocqueville, who has a strong political acumen, has realized that democracy is an unstoppable historical trend. Sooner or later, the old hierarchical system will enter the "legacy pile" of history. The new era of equal status for all is coming, and democracy will inevitably and universally arrive all over the world. For the writing of Democracy in America, Tocqueville seldom relied on the written materials of the past and the same time, but through interviews with people from all walks of life in the United States, direct inspections of society, and personal experience of the American social system, human rights, Religious beliefs, economics and other aspects. -Adapted from Wikipedia