The Primacy of Mores and Practical Experience in Sustaining Democracy

Key Insight

American enlightenment is less about theoretical or literary depth than practical application. The United States has produced few remarkable writers, historians, or poets, and its mind avoids general ideas, preferring shrewd applications of European inventions over cultivating the science of industry (e.g., Fulton had to find recognition abroad). Americans offer examples rather than lessons in law and politics.

However, enlightenment is widespread and practical. In New England, citizens receive fundamental instruction in knowledge, religion, history, and the Constitution, with ignorance being rare. Although education levels decrease moving west or south, no county is 'mired in ignorance.' Americans were already civilized upon arrival, and pioneers, though in primitive surroundings, are 'highly civilized men' who bring their knowledge and newspapers into the wilderness, ensuring rapid propagation of thought.

The most critical aspect of American enlightenment is its foundation in 'experience.' Americans learn law by participating in its creation and government by governing, integrating public life habits into private life (e.g., juries in school games, parliamentary forms at banquets). The author concludes that while physical causes, laws, and mores all contribute to American democracy's success, mores are the most influential factor, followed by laws, and then physical causes. Mores can overcome unfavorable circumstances and laws, making them indispensable for a stable constitution and the central focus of the author's work.