精编版的《西方文明史》是根据美国学者马克•凯什兰斯基、帕特里克•杰尔里、帕特里夏•奥布莱恩著、我社2008年出版的第五版改编而成的。改编后的《西方文明史》总字数为45万字内，在时间上跨度上，历时两千多年，覆盖了古代、中世纪、近代、现代和当代；主要的历史时段包括：古希腊时期、古罗马时期；拜占庭时期和伊斯兰文明；中世纪；文艺复兴；欧洲帝国；宗教改革；现代欧洲；18世纪欧洲；19世纪欧洲；20世纪欧洲与世界文明；第一次和第二次世界大战；冷战与战后经济重建；后冷战时期的全球挑战，为读者提供西方文明史的整体轮廓。从地域上，覆盖了欧洲、北美洲、大洋洲。内容上，紧扣文明发展史，兼顾政治、经济等多领域，多角度、多层次地展示西方文明的起源、发生、发展、演进、更新的整体历史进程，囊括了历史、地理、政治、经济、宗教、文化、艺术、社会生活等诸多方面。

马克·凯什岚斯基,哈佛大学小弗兰克·B·拜尔德讲座教授，哈佛大学历史系副主任，教授英国和欧洲历史。他在纽约州立大学斯托尼·布鲁克分校接受大学教育，1977年获布朗大学博士学位。之后在芝加哥大学从事教学工作十六年，期间一直是学校西方文明教研组的成员。目前，他在哈佛大学开设讲座教授西方文明史。凯什岚斯基教授是17世纪英国政治史专家，著作包括《转型的君主制：1603—1714年的不列颠》、《议会文件选集：近代英国的社会和政治的选择》等。他于1984年至1991年担任《英国研究》学刊编辑，目前是《历史指南》主编。此外，他还是佩尔森风俗出版公司文献与注释材料数据库的主编。 　　

帕特里克·吉尔里,获耶鲁大学中世纪研究博士学位，加州大学知名历史学教授，加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶分校中世纪与文艺复兴研究中心主任，兼任圣母大学中世纪研究所所长。

INTRODUCTION THE IDEA OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION 
CHAPTER 1 THE FIRST CIVILIZATIONS 
CHAPTER 2 GREEK PERIOD 
CHAPTER 3 THE ROMAN PERIOD 
CHAPTER 4 THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE CLASSICAL WORLD, 192–500 
CHAPTER 5 THE CLAS S ICAL L EGACY IN THE EAST:BYZANTIUM AND ISLAM 
CHAPTER 6 THE WEST IN THE MIDDLE AGES 
CHAPTER 7 THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE 
CHAPTER 8 THE REFORM OF RELIGION 
CHAPTER 9 THE PERIOD OF MODERN EUROPE 
CHAPTER 10 THE ENLIGHTENMENT, FRENCH REVOLUTION AND NAPOLEONIC ERA 
CHAPTER 11 EUROPE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 
CHAPTER 12 EUROPE AND THE WORLD, 1870–1914 
CHAPTER 13 WAR AND REVOLUTION, 1914–1920 
CHAPTER 14 THE SECOND WORLD WAR 
CHAPTER 15 THE COLD WAR AND POS-COLD WAR PERIOD, 1945 TO THE PRESENT 

 Preface  
When we set out to write Civilization in the West, we tried to write, first of all, a book that students would want to read. Throughout many years of planning, writing, revising, rewriting, and numerous meetings together, this was our constant overriding concern. Would the text work across the variety of Western civilization courses, with the different levels and formats that make up this fundamental course? We also solicited the reactions of scores of reviewers to this single question: “Would students want to read these chapters?” Whenever we received a resounding “No!” we began again—not just rewriting, but rethinking how to present material that might be complex in argument or detail or that might simply seem too remote to engage the contemporary student. Though all three of us were putting in long hours in front of computers, we quickly learned that we were engaged in a teaching rather than a writing exercise. And though the work was demanding, it was not unrewarding. We enjoyed writing this book, and we wanted students to enjoy reading it. We have been gratified to learn that our book successfully accomplished our objectives. It stimulated student interest and motivated students to want to learn about European history. Civilization in the West was successful beyond our expectations.
The text was so well received, in fact, that we decided to publish this alternative, brief version: A Brief History of Western Civilization: The Unfinished Legacy. In an era of rapidly changing educational materials, alternative formats and models should be available. We believe that students and general readers alike will enjoy a conveniently sized book that offers them a coherent, well-told story. In this edition of the brief text, we have enlarged and added detail to many of the full-color maps so that they are easier to see and use. We have also added a new feature, “Map Discovery,” that teaches students to think critically about maps, have included new essays to give students a feel for the cultural exchanges that have taken place between the West and the non-West entitled “The West and the Wider World,” and have replaced several of the chapter-opening “Visual Record” narratives.