本书介绍了漫长的西方文明史的各个发展阶段，从几千年前肇始于古代近东河谷地带的农业村落一直到现代社会。本书广泛介绍了历史学家所使用的材料、他们解释历史证据的方法以及他们在研究长达六千多年的西方文明演进中所面临的挑战。作者精心挑选了政治、经济、社会、思想、宗教和文化史的各种资料和图像，给读者提供了有价值的背景，并使其更容易理解所选材料的历史意义，以此作为进一步探究历史和历史学家训练的敲门砖。

Concise and engaging, A Brief History of Western Civilization, Fifth Edition, brings the study of Western Civilization alive with balanced coverage of a wide array of historical figures and events. Fully integrated coverage of social--as well as economic, religious, and cultural history within a traditional, political framework makes this text stand apart from others in the field. Accessible and well written, this balanced text explores everyday events and ordinary people as well as momentous affairs and powerful elites.