Class Time: Mondays and Wednesdays, 2:30-3:45PM

Description of the Course: By common consent, historians agree that the two centuries between 1789 and 1989 constitute the modern era in European history. Starting with the French Revolution and concluding with the disintegration of the Communist system in Eastern Europe, we will study the characteristics that define modernity while tracing their emergence. As we shall see, modernity is not merely a matter of technological progress, it is also a frame of mind. At the same time, we will also explore the paradoxes and tensions associated with modern ideas and developments. It is only through this type of investigation that we can understand why, for instance, French revolutionaries guillotined people in the name of liberty, British political economists opposed help for the poor in the name of prosperity, or Europeans initially embraced World War I in the name of progress.

This course is taught by: Professor Hugh Dubrulle

Saint Anselm College, a Benedictine, Catholic, Liberal Arts College
100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester, New Hampshire 03102

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Copyrighted by the History Department, Saint Anselm College, 2006.