Western Civilization: An Introduction

The origin of what is referred to as Western civilization is characterized by a particular geography and 'bundle of ideas' that has rendered (among other realities) freedom, material prosperity, and peace. While most acknowledge this generally, there are few who can give an account of its origins and meaning to world history. This is important, Patterson argues, because this way of life is threatened by cultural and ideological forces that aim to eliminate these and other realities inherited from Judeo-Christian and Greco-Roman institutions. Patterson provides a wide ranging audience an antidote to the “oikophobic miasma in which we generally live.” Patterson presents the West as awe-inspiring and still filled with wonders in present-day. With precision and clarity he succeeds in allowing the subject matter to, in a sense, speak for itself. Readers at any stage of life are universally refreshed by Patterson's concise tour through history that reminds us of how far we've come and why the way we live now is worth defending.