THE DARK AGES Todays Title Dark Ages Document

THE “DARK AGES” Today’s Title: Dark Ages Document Analysis Today’s Date: February 26 th, 2019 Today’s Page Number: 92 Today’s EQ: Were the Dark Ages really “dark” for Europe? What is “cultural decay”?

BACKGROUND • THE TIME PERIOD FOLLOWING THE FALL OFROME IN EUROPE IS SOMETIMES KNOWN AS THE “DARK AGES. ” • THE TERM IMPLIES THAT THE TIME BETWEEN THE FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE AND THE EUROPEAN RENAISSANCE WAS A PERIOD OF DECLINE FOR EUROPE. • THIS TIME IS ALSO CALLED THEMIDDLE AGES BECAUSE IT FALLS IN THE MIDDLE OF 2 IMPORTANT TIME PERIODSC : LASSICAL PERIOD (GREECE & ROME) AND THE EUROPEAN RENAISSANCE.

WHY “DARK”? • THE METAPHOR OF “DARK” AND “LIGHT” WAS ORIGINALLY USED BY CHRISTIANS TO DESCRIBE THE “DARKNESS” PEOPLE LIVED IN BEFOREGOD SENT JESUS CHRIST TO BRING “LIGHT” TO THE WORLD. • PETRARCH WAS AN ITALIAN SCHOLAR DURING THE 1300 S WHO LOVED GREEK AND ROMAN WRITING. • HE USED THE TERMS “DARK” AND “LIGHT” TO DESCRIBE LEARNING INSTEAD OF RELIGION. HE BELIEVED THAT EUROPE WAS IN THE “DARK” AFTER THE “LIGHT” OF THE GREEK AND ROMAN EMPIRES WERE GONE.

WHY “DARK”? THEY ARGUED THAT DURING THE CENTURIES FOLLOWING THE FALL OF THEROMAN EMPIRE, EUROPE WAS IN A STATE OF CULTURAL WHERE. A TIME THAT: • • • DID NOT SUPPORT LEARNING CREATED VERY LITTLE CULTURE (ART, LITERATURE, ARCHITECTURE, ETC. ) WAS REPEATEDLY INVADED HAD NO CENTRAL GOVERNMENT HAD A BAD ECONOMY WAS BASICALLY A MISERABLE PLACE TO LIVE

“THE DARK AGES IS A TERM APPLIED IN ITS WIDEST SENSE TO THAT PERIOD OF INTELLECTUAL DEPRESSION IN THE HISTORY OF EUROPE FROM THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BARBARIAN SUPREMACY IN THE FIFTH CENTURY (400 AD) TO THE REVIVAL OF LEARNING AT ABOUT THE BEGINNING OF THE FIFTEENTH (1400 AD), THUS NEARLY CORRESPONDING IN EXTENT WITH THE MIDDLE AGES. ” - THE AMERICAN CYCLOPAEDIA: A POPULAR DICTIONARY OF GENERAL KNOWLEDGE, 1883

• Intellectual Depression • When learning was less successful, not as important, less people were “intelligent” • Barbarian Supremacy • When unintelligent, “barbarians” were supreme, or in charge • Revival of learning • When learning came back to being important • How long did the Dark Ages last, according to that document? • From 400 – 1400 AD 6

TODAY • TODAY MANY HISTORIANS DISAGREE WITH THIS TERM. • THEY THINK IT IS NOT THE PROPER WAY TO DESCRIBE THIS PERIOD OF TIME. • BUT, PEOPLE CONTINUE TO USE TERM D “ ARK AGES. ” • WHAT DO YOU THINK: WAS EUROPE REALLY IN A “DARK AGE” FOR ALMOST 900 YEARS?

CULTURAL DECAY WHAT IS IT? WHAT IS CULTURE? THE BELIEFS, ATTITUDES, LANGUAGE, AND CUSTOMS PEOPLE OF A SPECIFIC GROUP SHARE. HOWEVER! IN THIS CONTEXT, CULTURE IS “THE ARTS AND OTHER THINGS RELATED TO HUMAN INTELLECTUAL ACHIEVEMENT” EXAMPLES? ? WHAT IS DECAY? TO DIE, TO LOSE QUALITY OR IMPORTANCE

SO CULTURAL DECAY IS… WHEN THE ARTS AND OTHER THINGS RELATED TO HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT DIE OFF AND LOSE QUALITY OR IMPORTANCE.

QUESTION 1: WHAT EMPEROR MOVED THE CAPITAL OF THEROMAN EMPIRE FROM ROME TO CONSTANTINOPLE? QUESTION 2 WHAT ARE THE FOUR FACTORS THAT CAN CAUSE AN EMPIRE TO FALL?

QUESTION 3 WHAT IS CULTURAL DIFFUSION? GIVE AN EXAMPLE? QUESTION 4 WHO WAS THE FIRST “HUMAN-LIKE HOMINID”? QUESTION 5 GIVE FOUR FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

QUESTION 6 WHAT WAS THE FIRST SET OF ANCIENT WRITTEN LAWS CALLED? QUESTION 7 WHICH TWO RIVERS WAS MESOPOTAMIA LOCATED BETWEEN? QUESTION 8 WHICH TRADE ROUTE WAS MOST IMPORTANT TO THE IDEA OF “CULTURAL DIFFUSION”?

Central Historical Question Was the time period between 400 AD and 1400 AD a “Dark Age” for Europe? Why or why not? Was this a time of cultural decay/ decline?