Eugen Weber clearly believes “Dark Ages” is an accurate term to describe the years 500 and 950 A.D. of Western civilization’s history. His reasoning is extremely simple. These centuries were Dark Ages because, he says, “We don’t know much about it,” and, “it was dark and bloody” (Weber). In spite of his claim that little is known about the period, he presents a great deal of information about the years following the fracturing of the Roman Empire and Charlemagne’s crowning.
Today’s historians have largely replaced Dark Ages with the term Middle Ages. Anthropology Professor Peter Wells says, “That image of the Dark Ages as a time when nothing significant happened and barbarians ran wild comes to us from a few Rome-friendly writers of the time” (Morrison 2010). Instead, this period was “dominated by artisans and tradesmen who may not have written much, but produced a culture rich in material wealth” (Morrison 2010). The murder, rape, heavy hand of the Roman Church, fracturing of the Roman Empire and consequential warfare that Weber mentions led to great change, but these truths are “often over-elaborated and emphasized, such as the incidents of leprosy, medieval warfare, and torture” (Chasin 4).
The vast amount of art from the so-called Dark Ages displayed in Weber’s videos contradicts the idea that the only things happening during the centuries before Charlemagne were chaos and backwardness. A large amount of commerce was happening, and one Swedish scholar argues “there must have been political stability throughout Europe to support such . . . wide trade . . . not to mention the large numbers of shops and crafts workers” (Morrison 2010). Weber presents the breakup of the Roman Empire as a stall in progress, while other researchers see it as a time brewing much progress more evident in archaeology than any writing from the time reveals.
The Middle Ages is a much more appropriate term for this period of hidden progress, and researchers continually learn more about how these centuries brewed the upcoming Renaissance. Today, many people enjoy celebrating the lighter aspects of this period through events like Mediaeval Fairs where they dress as commoners, nobility, and trades people of the Middle Ages. Many fantasy role playing games fondly incorporate the myths, legends, and fashion of those times. Atrocities occurred during the centuries 500 and 950 A.D., yet atrocities occur today and people do not consider this to be a Dark Age. Perhaps one day, historians will refer to the 21st Century as “The Dark Ages,” in comparison to future progress and enlightenment.
Works Cited
Chasin, Benjamin Aaron. Richard III and the Dark Age Myth. Texas State University-San Marco, Dec. 2010. Web.
Coffin, Judith G., Stacey, Robert C., Cole, Joshua & Symes Carol. Western Civilizations: Their History and Their Culture (17th ed.). New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2011.
Morrison, Deane. A Fresh Look at the Dark Ages. University of Minnesota: UM News, 7 Jan. 2010. Web.
Weber, Eugene. The Dark Ages [video].
