nonevahed:mir-nicht: “There is not, I think, a single country in the civilized world where less atte
nonevahed:mir-nicht: “There is not, I think, a single country in the civilized world where less attention is paid to philosophy than in the United States” - Alexis de Tocqueville. I was under the impression that Democracy in America was more influential in the US than France, to be fair. Democracy in America is read by people in polisci Bachelor’s programs, and essentially no one else. I’m wracking my brain, but there is essentially no book that you can assume most Americans to have read. Most American Christians haven’t read the bible! Most Americans who make references to Harry Potter just saw the movies. The curriculum of American schools varies city to city, so you can’t count on anything from that. Oh, wait, I thought of one: I would be willing to bet money than over 90% of Americans have read at least one book by Dr. Seuss. That’s the grand unifying literary canon of America. Children’s books. Fun children’s books, but children’s books. -- source link