Shows / Tocqueville Talks
Tocqueville Talks
Tocqueville Talks delivers sharp, fast interviews from the Tocqueville Center for the Study of Democracy and Society at Furman University. Hosts Brent Nelsen and Elizabeth L’Arrivée talk with top scholars and public thinkers about public affairs in the United States and abroad. Tocqueville asked questions about almost everything, and so do we—in twenty minutes or less.
Episodes
- Tocqueville Talks
36. Has Secularization Made Universities Freer? | Molly Worthen
Has the decline of religion in American higher education produced greater intellectual freedom—or simply replaced one set of orthodoxies with another?…
- Tocqueville Talks
35. What Did Independence Really Mean in 1776? | Student Roundtable
What did the Declaration of Independence actually accomplish—and what did independence mean to the Americans who declared it? As America marks the 250th…
- Tocqueville Talks
34. The Declaration of Independence: France, Slavery & the World | David Armitage
Why did Jefferson include a condemnation of the slave trade in his original draft of the Declaration of Independence—and why was it removed? In Part 2 of…
- Tocqueville Talks
33. What did the Declaration of Independence actually mean in 1776?
As America marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Harvard historian David Armitage joins Tocqueville Talks to recover a dimension of…
- Tocqueville Talks
32. The NSA Director on Special Forces, Cyber, AI & the Threats Ahead
What does a career in Special Forces teach you about the threats America faces today? General Joshua Rudd has spent his career at the intersection of military…
- Tocqueville Talks
31. Finland's President Alexander Stubb on Political Philosophy, Power & a World in Transition
What can political philosophy teach a president about leadership, power, and a changing international order? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Alexander…
- Tocqueville Talks
30. Why College Should Challenge What You Believe | Tocqueville Fellows on Learning to Disagree
What if the purpose of college isn't to confirm what you believe—but to teach you how to question it? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Furman University…
- Tocqueville Talks
29. The Big Questions Facing American Democracy | Tocqueville Talks 2026–27 Preview
What are the biggest questions facing American democracy—and how can universities create spaces where they are seriously debated? In this season-opening…
- Tocqueville Talks
28. Why Americans Are So Patriotic | Tocqueville's Surprising Answer
Why does patriotism seem so powerful in America—and what happens when it begins to disappear? As Americans celebrate the nation's 250th anniversary, Alexis de…
- Tocqueville Talks
27. Why the Old Political Order Is Cracking | Populism, MAGA, and the Future of Democracy
For generations, politics in Europe and America was dominated by large, stable political parties. Today, those old political alignments are breaking down. Why…
- Tocqueville Talks
26. What Swimming Can Teach Us About Democracy | Tocqueville's Forgotten Insight
What can a neighborhood swim league teach us about democracy? More than you might think. When Alexis de Tocqueville visited America in 1831, he was astonished…
- Tocqueville Talks
25. Is the Postwar Order Ending? Europe, Trump, Ukraine, and the Future of the West — Eleanor Beardsley
For eighty years, Europe and the United States built a common political, economic, and military order. Today, many Europeans wonder whether that world is…
- Tocqueville Talks
24. Why Everything Feels Increasingly Unreal — Beth and Rob L'Arrivée
Why does everything feel increasingly unreal? The people most trapped in abstraction are often the people consuming the most information. Tocqueville saw this…
- Tocqueville Talks
23. Can Europe Stay United? The EU, National Identity, and the Future of European Politics — On the Road with Dr. Nelsen
What does it mean to be European in the twenty-first century? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen joins three Tocqueville Fellows—Madison…
- Tocqueville Talks
22. Academic Freedom, Populism, and the Purpose of Higher Education — Reflections on a Year of Tocqueville Talks
What questions defined this year’s biggest conversations at the Tocqueville Center? In this special year-end reflection episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent…
- Tocqueville Talks
21. Why Students Still Read Books — Inside the Tocqueville Fellows Program at Furman University
What does it take to build a community of students who still read books, ask difficult questions, and engage seriously with ideas? In this episode of…
- Tocqueville Talks
20. Faith, Politics, and the Search for Truth: A Year in Review — The Tocqueville Fellows
What happens when a year of serious conversation forces you to rethink what you believe? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen sits down with…
- Tocqueville Talks
19. Morality, Suffering, and Greatness in a Democratic Age — The Tocqueville Fellows React to Nietzsche
What happens when students encounter Friedrich Nietzsche for the first time—and take his ideas seriously? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen…
- Tocqueville Talks
18. Church, State, and Higher Education — Vincent Phillip Muñoz
What does it mean to have a right—and who decides its limits? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen and Beth L’Arrivée sit down with Vincent…
- Tocqueville Talks
17. Democracy, Conformity, and Human Greatness: Tocqueville vs. Nietzsche — The Tocqueville Fellows
What if the purpose of education isn’t knowledge—but the formation of character? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen and Beth L’Arrivée share a…
- Tocqueville Talks
16. Trade Deficits, Tariffs, and the Future of American Industry — Mark DiPlacido
What if globalization didn’t just reshape markets—but quietly reshaped the structure of American life? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen and…
- Tocqueville Talks
15. Who Really Wins in Trade Policy? — Scott Lincicome
What if the policies designed to “protect” American workers are quietly doing the opposite? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelsen and Beth…
- Tocqueville Talks
14. Global Order After 2008: Power, Finance, and the Future of Nation-State Sovereignty — Josef Braml
What happens when the global system still looks stable—but the forces beneath it are shifting? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Brent Nelson speaks with…
- Tocqueville Talks
13. Nation States, Morality, and World Order – The Tocqueville Fellows
What is the role of the nation state in protecting human rights, securing peace, and shaping global order—and where do morality and religion fit into that…
- Tocqueville Talks
12. U.S. Diplomacy from the Inside – Larry Richter
What does a life in diplomacy actually look like from the inside? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Director Brent Nelson speaks with Larry Richter, a…
- Tocqueville Talks
11. How a Free Society Controls Its Military – Peter Feaver
How does a free society maintain a powerful military without allowing it to dominate politics? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Director Brent Nelson and…
- Tocqueville Talks
10. Faith in a Hard World: Christian Ethics and International Affairs – Mark Amstutz
When moral conviction meets the realities of global politics, easy answers disappear. In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Director Brent Nelsen and co-host…
- Tocqueville Talks
9. Can Americans Still Disagree and Act Together? Students Confront the Future of Democracy
What happens when students actually sit down and talk — across disagreement? In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Director Brent Nelson hosts Tocqueville…
- Tocqueville Talks
8. Can the Constitution Still Unite Us? Yuval Levin’s "American Covenant" and the Crisis of Constitutional Unity
After an ice storm prevented Yuval Levin from visiting Furman University, the Tocqueville Fellows carried the conversation forward. In this special student…
- Tocqueville Talks
7. Who Governs Europe in the Age of Trump? – Matthias Matthijs
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, political economist Matthias Matthijs joins Dr. Elizabeth L’Arrivée to examine Europe’s strategic vulnerability following…
- Tocqueville Talks
6. Who Governs Europe? Sovereignty, Federalism, and the Long Experiment – Gary Marks
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, political scientist Gary Marks joins Dr. Elizabeth L’Arrivée for a deep exploration of the European Union as a living…
- Tocqueville Talks
5. Who Really Governs? The Democratic Soul in Europe – Liesbet Hooghe
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, political scientist Liesbet Hooghe joins Dr. Elizabeth L’Arrivée to examine how modern politics is increasingly organized…
- Tocqueville Talks
4. The Warning America Can’t Ignore – Ben Sasse
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, Dr. Ben Sasse joins Dr. Elizabeth L’Arrivée for Part II of our series on The Crisis in American Higher Education. They…
- Tocqueville Talks
3. The Crisis in American Higher Education — John Tomasi
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, co-hosts Brent Nelsen and Elizabeth L’Arrivée welcome political philosopher and Heterodox Academy president John Tomasi…
- Tocqueville Talks
2. Religion in a Pluralistic America — Kaitlyn Schiess
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, co-hosts Brent Nelsen and Elizabeth L’Arrivée welcome public theologian and Holy Post co-host Kaitlyn Schiess for a…
- Tocqueville Talks
1. The Bible and the American Founding — Mark Noll
In this episode of Tocqueville Talks, co-hosts Brent Nelsen and Elizabeth L’Arrivée welcome Notre Dame historian Mark Noll for a conversation on how the Bible…