Jeffrey Freedman

Jeffrey Freedman is Professor of History at Yeshiva University, with primary offices on both the Beren campus (215 Lexington Ave, Room 228) and the Wilf campus (Furst Hall, Room 413E). A leading historian of the long eighteenth century, he specializes in French- and German-speaking Europe, focusing on the transnational history of the book, media and mediation, the history of emotions, Enlightenment philosophy, and the legacies of the Enlightenment into the twentieth century.

Education

• BA, University of Rochester
• MA, Princeton University
• PhD, Princeton University, under the direction of Robert Darnton and Natalie Zemon Davis

Research Interests
Freedman’s scholarship interrogates how ideas, emotions, and material texts moved across borders in eighteenth-century Europe. He explores the intersection of print culture, policing, and affect, asking how Enlightenment thinkers and ordinary people alike experienced fear, anger, and hope in an age of revolution. His current project examines the policing of emotions in eighteenth-century Paris, extending his long-standing engagement with archives in France, Switzerland, and Germany.

Publications Trajectory
Across his monographs and recent articles, a clear pattern emerges: Freedman uses micro-historical cases—whether a cathedral poisoning in Zurich or the business records of a Swiss publisher—to illuminate broader Enlightenment debates about religion, morality, and social order. His work consistently bridges cultural, legal, and intellectual history while foregrounding the emotional dimensions of historical experience.

Honors & Fellowships

• Shelby Cullom Davis Center Fellowship, Princeton University (Fall 2017)
• Center for Advanced Study Fellowship, University of Munich (Summer 2016)
• Annenberg Foundation Fellowship, University of Pennsylvania (Fall 1997)
• National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Stipend (Summer 1994)

Grants & Advising
While no specific grant amounts or student lists are provided, Freedman’s record of external fellowships and visiting appointments demonstrates sustained research support. His mentorship at Yeshiva University complements prior teaching posts at Princeton and Franklin & Marshall College, where he has guided undergraduate and graduate work in early-modern European history and historiography.

Labs & Research Teams
No dedicated laboratory is mentioned, but Freedman maintains active archival research across European repositories and collaborates within international networks of book historians and Enlightenment scholars, evidenced by his invited contributions to major edited volumes and journals.