American Government

Using your class notes and readings, answer the following question. Your essay should have an introduction, where you identify what you will be
arguing, the main argument, and a conclusion. Be sure to completely and coherently answer each question. Do not think that you have finished
because you have written 5 or 10 or 15 pages. Your essay is complete only when you have fully answered the question
In our class readings so far, a number of authors have attempted to explain something about American politics by looking to cultural and economic
factors. Namely, Tocqueville attempted to explain why democracy developed in the United States; Lipset attempted to explain how the United States
was able to legitimize political power and establish a national identity; and Greenberg attempted to explain why the United States is such a liberal
society. All three also argued that the United States was/is exceptional, that the cultural and economic conditions here were so unique that the
political system that has developed is very distinct from those that exist in other societies.
Identify what the key cultural and economic factors are for each reading/argument and explain what exactly it is that they help us understand and why
the author is emphasizing them. What are the factors that seem to be central to all three arguments? Do you agree with the idea that the United State
is exceptional, that the political system here developed in ways that make it very different from the political systems in other countries?