Put the world today into context by learning about the past through this brief, best-selling Western Civilization text that has helped thousands of students succeed in the course. Jack Spielvogel's engaging style of writing weaves the political, economic, social, religious, intellectual, cultural, and military aspects of history into a gripping story that is as memorable as it is instructive. You will also be exposed to primary source documents--actual historical documents that are the foundation for the historical analysis you read in the chapter. These documents include letters, poems, and songs through history--documents that actually enliven the past. Throughout the book there are also helpful tools to help you digest the reading including outlines, focus questions, chronologies, numerous maps and boldface key terms with definitions.