Shedding Light on a Dark Age: Britain in the Fourth and Fifth Centuries
Humanities
His 195B Thesis Writing
I opted to write a Senior Thesis for the fulfillment of my BA in History in order to further my understanding of one of the most fascinating periods in Western history, as well as to push myself academically and to evaluate my own preparedness for graduate school.
My thesis details both the fourth and fifth centuries in Britain in depth, in an effort to dispel some of the most commonly held myths and preconceptions of the era, and to present as accurate a portrait as possible of Britain's peoples and cultures during this tumultuous period. In particular, I examined the state of Britain during its last century of Roman rule in order to determine the strength of Roman culture and government, before discussing some of the social developments which occurred in the century following the withdrawal of the Roman state. By assessing the extent to which Britain can be said to have been "Roman" in the fourth century, the nature and depth of its cultural transformation in the fifth century can be better understood, and a murky period in history can therefore be seen in a clearer light.
