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One is sorely tempted to allow the marvelously lucid prose in Alan S. Kahan's new translation of Alexis de Tocqueville's study of the French Revolution speak for itself: "In 1789 the French made the greatest effort ever undertaken by any people to disassociate themselves from their past, and to put an abyss between what they had been and what they wished to become." But as Tocqueville found out when--with the hindsight of half a century--he examined the historical records, the revolution was really not so radical a turn of events. "True, it took the world by surprise, and yet it was the result of a very long process, the sudden and violent climax of a task to which ten generations had contributed." Thus the first volume of
The Old Regime and the Revolution concerns itself with the state of affairs before 1798, getting beyond the "confused and often mistaken notions" of his contemporaries "about the manner in which business was conducted, the real practices of institutions ... the real basis of ideas and mores." Although many historians have taken on the French Revolution in the years since Tocqueville's analysis was first published, few have addressed the subject with as effective a combination of insight and clarity.
--Ron Hogan
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
This is a new translation of Tocqueville's last masterpiece, written in 1851. Best known as the author of Democracy in America, Tocqueville focuses here on the meaning and origin of the French Revolution. This volume is organized into three major subjects. First, it looks at the nature of the French Revolution. Second, it examines the origins of the revolution in an absolutist and aristocratic society. Finally, it considers the reasons for the sudden outbreak at the end of the 18th century. Tocqueville discusses the continuity of French political behavior in relation to persistent class hostility, government centralization, and the preservation of individual and political freedom. This book surpasses older editions of English translations because of its readability and because it is based on the French critical edition that includes the author's sources and materials from his drafts and revisions. Kahan (Florida International Univ.) is also translating the work's second volume, which is to be published in 1999 by the University of Chicago. Recommended for academic libraries.?Mary F. Salony, West Virginia Northern Community Coll. Lib., Wheeling
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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