Elaine Kruse, Ph.D.
Professor of History
Office: Old Main 311
Email: emk@nebrwesleyan.edu
Phone: 402.465.2443

Elaine Kruse spent the 2007-2008 academic year on sabatical in Paris, France, where she researched the divorces in Paris during the French Revolution. She teaches courses in early modern Europe, modern Europe, French Revolution, and women's history, as well as surveys in Western

Civilization and World History.

History 116 – Western Civilization through Literature: 1500 to Present
A chronological survey of Western Civilization from 1500 to the present, focusing on the literary record which exemplifies changing societies; artistic and literary styles; and philosophical, religious, and political patterns. The course will include a reexamination of Biblical texts in the Reformation, the revival and imitation of classical texts in the Renaissance, absolutism and its critics, the revolutionary and Romantic movements, ethnic minorities, colonialism, the crisis of Western thought in the twentieth century, and the impact of totalitarianism.
(Normally offered each spring semester.)

History 131 – Women in Western Culture
A survey of the philosophical and religious traditions affecting the position of women in Western Civilization, juxtaposing the images of women with the realities of their lives. This course will center on traditions which begin with the Greeks; their development in Judeo-Christian thought; the reformulations of those traditions during the Reformation, Renaissance, and Enlightenment periods; and the movement towards a more egalitarian tradition in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The course will focus on the reading and discussion of primary texts and key scholarly articles which illuminate the traditions.

History 225 – Early Modern Europe
A seminar on early modern European culture up to the French Revolution, with emphasis on changing family relations, political structures, religious and scientific thought, and social and economic conditions, culminating in the Enlightenment and religious revivals.Prerequisite(s): History 116.
                                                
History 226 – Nineteenth-Century Europe
An examination of European history in the nineteenth century from the fall of Napoleon through the Victorian age. Topics include the Congress of Vienna, Romanticism and realism, nationalism, and the impact of the Industrial Revolution on society and politics.Prerequisite(s): History 116.

History 233 – The French Revolution
An examination of the period from 1789 to 1815 as a watershed in Western history. Topics will include the crisis of French absolutism and the social and economic causes and consequences of the Revolution, the Terror, and Napoleon. Prerequisite(s): History 116.

History 243 - Modern France
An examination of French civilization and culture since 1815 with special emphasis on the period from 1870 to the present. The course will focus on the ideological legacies of the French Revolution, the distinctive social and economic characteristics of French society, the impact of two world wars, and the achievements of French artists and intellectuals. Prerequisite(s): History 116.

History 251 – Victorian Women
A study of myths and realities of women’s lives in Victorian England, France, and the United States. Emphasis will be placed on the “woman question” of the nineteenth century: What is the nature of women and their role in society? Topics will include sexuality and prostitution, marriage and family life, work and philanthropy, education, and the suffrage movement in light of the contrast between rich and poor women. Prerequisite(s): History 116.

History 252 – Visionaries, Witches, and Madwomen
A study of social control of women from the 13th century to the present. The course will emphasize the women visionaries of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, witch-hunting in sixteenth and seventeenth century Europe and America, and the treatment of women and madness in nineteenth and twentieth century literature, medical theory and society. Prerequisite(s): History 131 or permission of the instructor.