HST 542: "Napoleon"Professor Doina Pasca Harsanyi
Tuesday-Thursday, 2:00-3:15
Spring 2008
The short period dominated by Napoleon Bonaparte (1795-1815) brought together a beginning and an end: it concluded the eighteenth century era of Enlightenment and Revolution while opening the modern age of nationalism and mass politics. Napoleon used to assure his contemporaries that the "gains of the Revolution were safe" with him but boasted of founding an empire like no other in history. This course will examine the historical significance of various aspects of Napoleon's rule -- famous military expeditions, social and political motivations, artistic representations -- and attempt to uncover the ambiguities behind the myth.
