Himmelstein and Kimmel claim to find “Tocquevillian” tendencies within Skocpol's argument, pinning the roots of her theory to “the spirit of Alexis de Tocqueville.” Similarly to Tocqueville, Skocpol “is concerned with the relations between the state as an autonomous institution and society." She sees political centralization as a consequence of revolution. Although less obviously than Tocqueville, Skocpol “presents the irony of revolutions made in the name of freedom but culminating in a much strengthened state.” Himmelstein and Kimmel applaud Skocpol's ability to combine Tocquevillian views of the state to Marxian class based ideology.