Description
Americans generally acknowledge French help in winning our independence from Great Britain, but are unaware of the significant benefits to American culture from France, specifically Paris, in the nineteenth century.
This class will first explore the presence of Franklin, Jefferson, Adams and John Paul Jones in Paris in the late 18th century, then learn about numerous Americans who benefited from the education, training and cultural opportunities available in Paris in the decades before our Civil War. These include: Charles Sumner, Samuel F. B. Morse, James Fenimore Cooper, Emma Willard, George Healy and Oliver Wendell Holmes.
After the Civil War, American diplomat Elihu Washburne paid back some of the debt owed to Paris while serving as American minister to France during The Siege and The Commune. A safer Paris followed and attracted such significant American artists as Mary Cassatt, John Singer Sargent and Augustus Saint-Gaudens.
Our visits to art museums as well as our perusal of American literature show our indebtedness to the French just as does our study of the American Revolution.
