欧洲中世纪文学背景(一个概括) ----西方文学与文化之三十八 The collapse ofWestern R
ome in 476 AD marked the ending
of European slavery society and the beginning of European feudalist
society. The history entered the period of Medieval Ages. Medieval
Age, also called Middle Age, is a very special historic period in
Western history, a transition between the ancient world and
modernEurope. It began
with the collapse of theRoman EmpireinWestern
Europeand ended with
the discovery of theWestern Hemisphere, the invention of printing press, the consolidation of
strong national states, and renewal of contact with Greek art,
thought and literature after a lapse of nearly a thousand
years. In the fifth century, the
barbarian invasions shattered the oldRoman Empire. The emperor inConstantinoplestill claimed to be the rightful ruler ofRomeand the West. Many in that region continued to
recognize his rule, although from the fifth century on he did not
have any effective control in the area. The real power was in the
hands of the leaders of various Germanic groups. In the seventh and
eighth centuries, the Muslims took control ofPersia,Palestine,North
Africa, and portions of
southernEurope. These
conquests divided the oldRoman Empireinto three large sections: theByzantine Empire,Western Europe,
and Islamic Empire. The Barbarians here mainly refers to Germans
(Teutons), Celts, and Slavs. Roughly, the Medieval Age can
be divided into three stages: the first stage (5-11 AD), the second
stage (12-15 AD) and the third stage (16-17 AD). The first stage is
the (1) The collapse
ofWestern Roman
Empireand the
rise ofByzantine
Empire The Medieval age is a
transition between Ancient world and modernEurope. After the collapse ofWestern Roman Empire, theEastern
Roman Empireexisted for
almost a thousand years. The name ofByzantine Empirecomes from Bazantium, the ancient city that became
the site for Costantinople. Justinian (527-562) was one of the
people who was responsible for the creation of Byzantine culture.
When he became emperor in 527, he set out to restore the
fallingRoman
Empire. (2) Tribes and
nations Among many tribal group
leaders, Chalerogne (Charles the Great) was one of them. He was an
extremely successful military leader and diplomat, who carved out a
large stable Frankish Empire. After his death, the empire was
divided into three kingdoms, Western Frank (France), Eastern Frank
(Germany),
andItaly. And these
kingdoms began their feudalization. The Slavic tribes began their
feudalization in the 9th century. Scandinavian nations,
their feudalization was much later. In a word, around 900, the
feudal system became the dominant form of political and social
organization in much ofWestern Europe. European feudalism was a kind
of manor-centred social system. In the system, lesser lords swore
alliance to greater lords in return for protection. So hierarchy
was formed. 本博客文章链接: 近代科学与基督教----西方文学与文化之三十七 泰戈尔写的是诗,还是散文?