The Not-So-Dark Ages

I have been fascinated with the “Dark Ages” since I was a teenager, and if I could remember everything I’ve read and studied, I’d be an expert on the subject, but my memory works like a sieve. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the money to go after a degree in Medieval History. I would have loved that. Anyway, it’s always fascinating to see this dark period illuminated—no pun intended—through closer study. The Christian Church, in my opinion, took enormous advantage of the fall, or rather the slow crumble, of the Roman Empire, and in the ensuing void and chaos, took control and imposed some authority over the people of Europe and Britain. There was already a network in place, established by the Catholic Church, of monasteries and churches, as well as officials. The church was the main source of literary resources, and very few people outside of it could read or write. Also, the church, and in particular the adventuresome Irish monks, managed to salvage some of--- was it Constantine’s?—library. If not for them, we would probably have little or nothing left from the Roman ages of glory. Nothing in writing anyway. If it hadn’t been for very strong rulers like Afred, Charlemange, and dozens of others that I can’t think of, the church would probably be all powerful today, but these rulers contributed greatly to the literacy of the period in their own ways, without bowing down to the church's authority. During the dark ages, however, it was the only steady source of authority. The big question, as far as I can tell from our readings, was how to interpret the ancients, and whether their work could be used at all when those who wrote it were pagan. Augustine, interestingly, found great value in the work of Cicero and others, but he saw them as perhaps happening on their knowledge by happy accident, or by God’s mysterious grace to undeserving pagans. At any rate, he was very influential in bringing the wisdom of ancient Greece and Rome into the church.
I also find Saint Patrick’s adventures fascinating, and I’d like to learn more about Bothius. Who was the church figure who developed the Cistercian abbeys? Was he the one who had monks flagellating themselves?
The developing, newborn universities are a subject for study too. They remind me a great deal of the way the Sophists taught, without formal buildings for students to gather in. Dialectic seems to have held onto its pride of place for quite some time.
I’m looking forward to the lecture, because it’s very difficult to make sense of so many centuries in just the brief space in this introduction. And certainly, reading the intro to Augustine doesn’t give us more than the smallest taste of what he was about.