"The Republican Experiment, 1848-1852" by Maurice Agulhon is a great read for history buffs interested in the events that shaped modern day French politics. The book delves into the bold attempt by the Second Republic to combine liberty with democracy for the first time in French history. Agulhon examines the social conditions and psychological mindset of the masses of new citizens which led to the Republic's temporary failure. This book is recommended for anyone interested in the history of popular culture and thought in France.

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Before 1848, France had been ruled by the 'July Monarchy', a liberal regime without democratic participation. After 1852, France was to be ruled by the Second Empire, an anti-liberal regime with some democratic participation. In the intervening period, the Second Republic boldly attempted to combine liberty with democracy for the first time in French history. Despite the Republic's failure of 1851–2, its aims were of great significance and marked the beginning of the modern era of republican the starting-point of what we nowadays consider the normal standard of politics in civilised countries. The reasons for the Republic's temporary failure are no less instructive, and in explaining them Professor Agulhon considers the problems of social conditions and the psychological 'apprenticeship' of the masses of new citizens. Thus his book has a special purpose, beyond the narrative treatment of to emphasise the relationship between the political history of France 1848–52 and the history of popular culture and thought.

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