This course covers the history, cultures and values of western society from the the prehistoric period to the Enlightenment. It examines the development of early civilizations in the ancient Near East; the rise of classical civilization in Greece and Rome; the influence of early Christianity and Islam on Europe; the development of European society, religion and politics during the Middle Ages; the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment; and western contacts with the Americas and Asia in the 15th through 18th centuries.