Late Antiquity: A Very Short Introduction

Very Short Introductions #258

by Gillian Clark

Late antiquity saw the barbarian invasions overrun the western Roman empire and Persian and Arab armies end Roman rule over the eastern and southern coasts of the Mediterranean. Was late antiquity therefore merely a time of decline? In this vibrant and compact introduction, Gillian Clark sheds light on the concept of late antiquity and the events of its time, showing that this was in fact a period of great transformation. Late antiquity saw Roman law codified, Christian creeds formulated, the Talmud compiled, and the Qur'an composed. If the Goths sacked the city of Rome, the Vandals built churches in Africa and Attila the Hun received an embassy from Constantinople. Anthony of Egypt and Simeon Stylites offered spectacular new models of holiness, while Augustine and Basil and Benedict devised rules for monastic communities. Late antique artists produced the mosaics of Ravenna and the first dome of Hagia Sophia. And it was also the period when emperors Diocletian in the third
century and Justinian in the sixth enacted extensive and much-needed reforms of government.

Genres: History, Ancient History, Nonfiction, Ancient, Classics, European History, Ebooks

128 pages, Paperback

First published February 24, 2011

About the author

Gillian Clark is a Professor of Ancient History at the University of Bristol.

Professor Clark’s research field is the relationship of inherited classical culture and late antique Christianity. She works especially on Augustine and on the late Platonist philosophers Porphyry and Iamblichus, and also has a longstanding interest in women’s history and the history of gender. She directs an international collaborative and interdisciplinary project, funded for its first five years by the AHRC, for a commentary on Augustine City of God (De Civitate Dei) to be published in print and electronic versions. Professor Clark is co-editor, with Professor Andrew Louth (Durham), of the monograph series Oxford Early Christian Studies and Oxford Early Christian Texts (OUP). She is also a co-editor of Translated Texts for Historians 300-800 (Liverpool UP) and is on the editorial board of the Journal of Roman Studies. She is Chair of Directors for the Oxford Patristic Conference 2011.

Reviews

[فؤاد · Rating 3 out of 5]

اینم مثل کتاب امپراتوری روم روایت نداشت و از اینجا به اونجا می پرید، اما با این حال بهتر توضیح داده بود و تهش آدم یه کم چیز یاد می گرفت.
دوران باستان متأخر، دوران بلافاصله قبل از قرون وسطاست. از زمانی که مسیحیت دین رسمی امپراتوری روم شد تا وقتی که روم به کلی اهمیتش رو از دست داد و حکومتهای پراکندۀ بربر به اروپا مسلط شدن و قرون وسطا آغاز شد. البته راجع به زمان دقیق شروع و پایان این دوران بحث و نزاع هست که کتاب بهش اشاره می کنه.
ادیان مهم ابراهیمی، مسیحیت و اسلام و یهودیت تلمودی، محصول این دورانن، و کتاب عصر ایمان از تاریخ تمدن ویل دورانت راجع به این دورانه. خواستم تا وقتی که فرصت کنم کتاب مفصل ویل دورانت رو بخونم، علی الحساب یه معرفی مختصر بخونم، یه مقدار فضا دستم بیاد.

[Grady · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've found the Very Short Introductions uneven; some do a great job of introducing a complicated field concisely; others have structures that feel largely random. This volume, a survey of 'late antiquity', is very good. Its approach is thematic rather than either chronological or explicitly historiographical. Chapters address the definition of the period; the structure of power in the Roman Empire, law; religious institutions; personal religion; contemporary and revisionist perspectives on barbarians; change and continuity from a pagan to Christian empire; and change and continuity from pre- to post-Islamic expansion. For most themes, the author avoids sweeping statements, and instead offers micro-narratives that reflect several broader realities of the period. This approach can give the book a disjointed feel; but when it is read as a kind of open-ended essay, the accumulation of nuanced detail brings the era to life. A short but well-organized bibliography offers suggestions for further reading.

[Jason Ray Carney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting introduction to the concept of “late antiquity,” otherwise described as the transition of the classical world to the medieval world (from a European perspective). It challenges traditional notions of the “fall of Rome” as described by writers like Gibbon, i.e. the idea that philosophy gave way to orthodoxy, that culture gave way to barbarism, and that a “dark age” in Europe ensued until the Renaissance; instead, it suggests, soberly, that late antiquity is merely a part of the same historical stream that consists of humans attempting to adapt to our perennial spiritual and material needs (something of a thin gruel argument and more of a course correction than an autonomous argument). It’s only an introduction, of course, and wonderfully, even lyrically, written, particularly at the introduction and conclusion. For someone with a basic “Western Civilization” view of European history, this will be an intellectually stimulating introduction to a new perspective on the decline of Rome and the rise of the Goths.

[Jacabaeus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic introduction to one of my favourite periods. Covers everything you need to know to grasp the basics of this period and delve in to further scholarship.

[Derek Frasure · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really interesting volume on late antiquity, but the volume is heavily focused on the Christianization and resistance to it, perhaps at the expense of other interesting subjects. Clark does touch on the main things one would want to know about the area, and she remains engaging throughout.

[Melissa Barbosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed it.

[Kylie Gambrill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clark has a great sense of humor. Learned a lot of late antiquity buzz words.

[Zoe Honeycutt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly interesting, but I agree with those who point out that it's too focused on religion to be a good general overview. I guess that's always going to be an issue though, since the Christian sources are the ones that survive most often.

[Colin Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit too focused on Christianity to be the general survey I was looking for.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Piquant, funny, informative, and relevant even to the present world: "Students want reading-lists with clear indications of content and usefulness and level of difficulty. They like summaries, and they are much more likely to do the reading if it consists of relevant excerpts in a single volume, easy to locate, with a pleasing cover and a contents list."

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think A Very Short Introduction is the perfect title for this little pamphlet. I didn't even really know when/what late antiquity was before I read this. It was easy to digest, kind of like an extended wikipedia article, and I learned a lot. I've got to read more of these. Thanks to Justin from Triumphal Reads for introducing me to them.

[Daniel Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chapter 1: What and when is late antiquity?
Chapter 2: Running the empire
Chapter 3: Law and welfare
Chapter 4: Religion
Chapter 5: What shall we do to be saved?
Chapter 6: Barbarism
Chapter 7: Bronze elephants: classical and Christian culture
Chapter 8: Decisive change?

[Taylor Swift Scholar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a solid Very Short Introduction. I have a better idea of how the shift from the Roman Empire to medieval times happened, and particularly, how the power dynamics of various religions shifted during this time period.

[Jonathan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not well-organized, hard to follow.

[Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Scattershot

[shamaya]

read for MA

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finished this one just so I could write a review. Every section involves Augustine, the Christian writer. There is also a large focus on Christianity. I can't suggest this book as an introduction to Late Antiquity or Augustine.

[Mike_dangerous · Rating 4 out of 5]

What the heck is Late Antiquity? Whatever it is, it is a mess, and it centers on the Roman empire and its changes from perhaps the 3rd century AD to perhaps all the way up to the 15th century AD when Constantinople was relieved of its duties as the eastern Roman capital by non-Romans. It is probably pretty easy to write a book about Late Antiquity, because it is such a big ball of wax, and you could expound on almost anything. To write a Short Introduction is probably pretty hard. So, four stars!

Here is what I was told in school: Rome, Jesus, decline, fall, darkness, Charlemagne, the sword in the stone (?), Islam, middle, some crusades, and then renaissance.

This book doesn't bother attacking the above decline and fall view -- the book is too busy treating Late Aniquity as a region in space and time worthy of basic historical analysis.

[Allan Aksiim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty OK overview. Read a second time to remind me of the main cast. For a more thorough overview I would reccomend the Yale open course The Early Middle Ages, 284--1000 (HIST 210) which can be found on YouTube.

[Ella]

Read for Aspects in Ancient History: The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; highly recommended to just about everyone.