The World of Late Antiquity by Peter Brown

The World of Late Antiquity is organized into two parts titled the Late Roman Revolution and Divergent Legacies. His thesis centers around social and cultural changes and specifically states: 'I hope that the reader will put it down with some idea of how, and even why, the Late Antique world came to differ from 'classical' civilization, and of how the headlong changes of this period, in turn, determined the varying evolution of western Europe, of eastern Europe and of the Near East' (p.7).

Brown also wanted to show that the Late Antique period defined the far-reaching impact of both Christianity on Europe, and Islam on the Near East. He believed there were too many books concerning just the downfalls of the era, and wanted people to know that the period was also one of outstanding new beginnings. By doing so, Brown is able to show his purpose for writing the book. What makes Brown unique in his portrayal of the era is that instead of studying just the cause and effect of the civilization's downfall, he examines the changes that occurred and men's reaction to them. By 476, the Roman Empire had vanished from Western Europe, and by 655, the Persian Empire had disappeared from the Near East. Instead of focusing merely on the declines of empires, like many of his contemporaries, Brown goes deeper with his research to describe the Late Antique period as an 'era in which the most deep rooted of ancient institutions disappeared for all time' (p.9). Brown saw the Late Antique period as a study of social and cultural changes. For many historians, the central focus of this era revolves around decline and fall however, this is not the case for Peter Brown, author of 1971's The World of Late Antiquity. The Late Antique period is recognized from AD 150 to 750.

Peter Brown's The World of Late Antiquity

The World of Late Antiquity by Peter Brown