Table of Contents

I. The Ancient World: Foundation of the West to A.D. 500 1. The Ancient Near East: The First Civilizations Prehistory The Rise to Civilization Mesopotamian Civilization Egyptian Civilization Profile: Hatchepsut Empire Builders The Religious Orientation of the Near East Primary Source: Mythical Thinking 2. The Hebrews: A New View of God and the Individual Outline of Hebrew History God: One, Sovereign, Transcendent, Good The Individual and Moral Autonomy The Covenant and the Law The Hebrew Idea of History The Prophets Profile: Jeremiah The Legacy of the Ancient Jews Primary Source: Isaiah and Social Justice 3. The Greek City-State: Democratic Politics Early Aegean Civilizations The Rise of Hellenic Civilization Evolution of the City-State Athenian Greatness The Decline of the Ciry-States The Dilemma of Greek Politics Profile: Demosthenes Primary Source: Pericles on Athenian Greatness 4. Greek Thought: From Myth to Reason Philosophy Art Poetry and Drama Profile: Hesiod History The Greek Achievement: Reason, Freedom, Humanism Primary Source: Euripides: Medea 5. The Hellenistic Age: Cultural Diffusion Alexander the Great Hellenistic Society Hellenistic Culture Profile: Polybius The Hellenistic Legacy Primary Source: Epicureanism: Living Well 6. The Roman Republic: City-State to World Empire Evolution of the Roman Constitution Roman Expansion to 146 B.C. Culture in the Republic Collapse of the Republic Profile: Cleopatra Primary Source: Polybius: The Roman Army 7. The Roman Empire: A World-State Augustus and the Foundations of the Roman Empire The Pax Romana Profile: Epictetus Signs of Trouble The Decline of Rome The Roman Legacy Primary Source: Aelius Aristides: The Blessings of the Pax Romana 8. Early Christianity: A World Religion Origins of Christianity The Spread and Triumph of Christianity Profile: Blandina The Growth of Christian Organization, Doctrine, and Attitudes Saint Augustine: The Christian World-View Christianity and Classical Humanism: Alternative World-Views Primary Source: Saint Benedict of Nursia: The Christian Way of Life II. The Middle Ages: The Christian Centuries, 500-1400 9. The Heirs of Rome: Byzantium, Islam, and Latin Christendom Byzantine Civilization: The Medieval Christian East Islamic Civilization: Its Development and Dissemination Latin Christendom: The Rise of Europe Art Essay