Late Antiquity and its Significance

Late antiquity is a term used to refer to a period of time in the Greco-Roman world that is no longer the same as antiquity, but not yet medieval. The term arose in German scholarship and gained prominence through the work of historian Peter Brown. Late antiquity is characterized by significant changes in political and social organization, including the dominance of Christianity, the rise of Roman military dictatorship, and the decline of the Roman economy. It is also a period of transformation in religious and philosophical thought, with the rise of totalitarianism, the privatization and interiorization of religion, and the emergence of individualistic self-reflection. Late antiquity marks the birth of the modern Western consciousness.