Dr. Elise Bouley
Visiting Assistant Professor of French
Dr. Elise Bouley is a visiting assistant professor of French in the Department of World Languages and Cultures at Mercer University. She earned her Ph.D. from Brown University in 2025 and holds an M.A. in French studies from North Carolina State University (2019) as well as a B.A. in literature from the University of Burgundy (2016). Her research interests include 19th century literature, visual and material culture, the Decadent movement, fashion, art history, and cinema.
Education
- Ph.D., Brown University
- M.A., North Carolina State University
- Master 1, University of Burgundy, France
- B.A., University of Burgundy, France
Specialty
Nineteenth-century French literature and culture; Decadence; fashion studies; visual arts; ethics and literature; language pedagogy.
Professional Interests
Dr. Bouley specializes in late 19th century French culture, focusing on the intersections of fashion, literature, and ethics. Her research explores how fashion — through silhouettes, accessories, and color — functions as a performative and symbolic practice that reveals questions of identity, morality, and social critique. Combining literary analysis with art historical and cultural perspectives, her work highlights how fashion challenges aesthetic and ethical norms. Dr. Bouley’s teaching encourages interactive learning and introduces students to interdisciplinary approaches connecting language, literature, and visual culture.
Recent Publications
Instructional material
- Arsène Lupin de Maurice Leblanc (1905) et Lupin dans l’ombre d’Arsène (Saison 1) de Louis Leterrier (2021), in collaboration with Katherine Clark and Stéphanie Ravillon (Brown University), French Review, 97.4, May 2024.
Articles
- “Finishing Touches: Fashion Accessories as Tokens of Evil in Rachilde and Barbey d’Aurevilly.” Volupté: Interdisciplinary Journal of Decadence Studies, Goldsmiths: University of London, 2023.
- Invited article: “Tristes chaires: la vieillesse prématurée de la mondaine et la modiste chez Edgar Degas.” L’Esprit Créateur, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024.
Contact Dr. Elise Bouley
(478) 301-2896
bouley_e@mercer.edu
Office: Knight Hall, Room 112