France 1660-1815: Enlightenment, Revolution, Napoleon, Fall 2005

Abstract: Examines the origins, course, and consequences of the revolution which arose in France at the end of the eighteenth century and its Napoleonic sequel. Particular attention given to the interplay of politics, culture, and social questions in the period, as well as the impact of the Revolution outside France. A century and a half ago, Alexis de Tocqueville argued that the Revolution of 1789 in France constituted the culmination of long-term administrative and social changes, rather than a rupture with the past. In this class, we will consider that Tocquevillian insight by examining four aspects of French experience from the reign of the Sun King, Louis XIV, to the rule of the Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte: Absolutism, Enlightenment, Revolution, and Empire. Through the study of primary and secondary sources, we will see how the material lives, mental worlds, and individual and communal identities of the French changed over this century and a half.

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