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Christine Dunn Henderson is an internationally recognized political theorist whose scholarship bridges classical and modern thought, with a particular focus on Tocqueville, democracy, and the intersections of politics, literature, and social inclusion.
Renowned for bridging classical and contemporary political theory with literary analysis; significant editorial and translation contributions to Tocqueville scholarship; recognized for advancing debates on democracy, inclusion, and the role of women and minorities; awarded for teaching excellence and leadership in academic service; active in international scholarly networks and editorial boards.
Focused research areas include Tocqueville’s thought and its relevance to contemporary liberal democracy; race, gender, and inclusion in democratic societies; intersections of political theory and literature; comparative perspectives on freedom, exclusion, and multiculturalism; the legacy of 19th-century political philosophy.
Renowned for bridging classical and contemporary political theory with literary analysis; significant editorial and translation contributions to Tocqueville scholarship; recognized for advancing debates on democracy, inclusion, and the role of women and minorities; awarded for teaching excellence and leadership in academic service; active in international scholarly networks and editorial boards.
Focused research areas include Tocqueville’s thought and its relevance to contemporary liberal democracy; race, gender, and inclusion in democratic societies; intersections of political theory and literature; comparative perspectives on freedom, exclusion, and multiculturalism; the legacy of 19th-century political philosophy.
Areas of Expertise
Tocqueville's thoughtLiberal democratic theoryRace and democracy in AmericaStatus of women in Democracy in AmericaNative Americans and democratic theoryDemocratic exclusion and cosmopolitanismFreedom and the loss of freedom in the modern age
Past Awarded Grant
- Graduate School Summer Research Award, Marshall University, 1999
Christine Dunn Henderson joined SMU in 2019. She is a political theorist who has published extensively on Alexis de Tocqueville, Gustave de Beaumont, French liberalism, and politics and literature. Her edition, as editor and translator, of Tocqueville’s Memoirs on Pauperism and Other Writings (University of Notre Dame Press, 2021) opens a window into Tocqueville’s thinking about economic inequality and the social question. Her most recent publications have focused on Tocqueville and race, the literary structure of Democracy in America, and Tocqueville and gender. She is presently writing a book about the dangers to freedom in the democratic age.
Qualifications
- PhD (Political Science), Boston College, 1997
- A.B. with Honors (Government and French Studies), Smith College, 1989
Research Interests
- Political Theory
- Ancient Political Theory
- Early Modern Political Theory
- Late Modern Political Theory
- Politics and Literature
- American Politics
- The Founding and American Political Thought
Course(s) Taught in SMU
- Big Questions
- Tocqueville's Democracy in America and Beyond
- Fashioning a Nation
- Finding Home in a Globalized World
- Political Theory