Louisa Foroughi is excited to join the History Department next fall as the new Professor of Medieval and Early Modern History! She is currently based in Paris, where she is putting the finishing touches on her dissertation. Her research focuses on a little-studied group of wealthy farmers who began calling themselves “yeomen” in late fourteenth-century England. The yeomen expressed their new identity by investing in a more comfortable standard of living, worshipping piously, and taking on local offices. Scholars have rarely examined how medieval peasants thought about and expressed themselves, and so Foroughi’s work casts new light on their agency and creativity.
Foroughi will offer two new courses at Lafayette College next semester. In “Race and Material Culture in Early Modern Europe,” students will explore how concepts about race and racism developed from 1492-1800 by examining images, commodities, and material artifacts, including porcelain, drums, and chocolate. For their final project, they will create their own online museum exhibit! In “The History of Medieval Europe,” students will analyze major events and themes in European history, c. 500-1500, such as the decline of the Roman Empire, the crusades, and the Black Death. Their readings will focus in particular on the experiences of peasants, women, and religious minorities. Foroughi is looking forward to the spirited discussions and exciting research topics that Lafayette students will bring to the classroom!
You can also check out Professor Foroughi’s department profile here.