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

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.