What is Western Civilization?

What is Western Civilization? (Or, 'Who are we?') Is Western Culture somehow special, even unique, in World History? Does it contain recognizable, noteworthy characteristics? Or should it be included as simply one more of the many cultures of the world, as does the 'comparative' approach in the study of World History? Is Western culture withering away? How has it changed over time? Is Western Civilization better than other civilizations? Is it worse? Are such considerations to be rejected as ethnocentric?
In other words, what is Western Civ, and why should we study it?

In regard to the "what" of education, classical educators have always made one thing the focus of their educational endeavor: Western Civilization. There are a number of reasons for this, most importantly, that we are all products of Western culture. But we live in a troubled and confused time, not only in regard to our attitude toward Western civilization, but in regard to our basic knowledge of it. Even if we have an opinion about Western civilization, we don’t always know exactly what it is we have an opinion about. So let’s ask a further question, “What is Western civilization?”

The answer is that Western Civilization is made up of three things: Athens, Jerusalem, and Rome. Why is Western civilization important? Why should we want to study it? Most of us know why we would want to study the culture of the Hebrews; their history is a fascinating account of how God deals with men and nations. But what’s so great about Greece and Rome?
The Greeks were philosophical and speculative. Almost every great philosophical and literary idea, good and bad, can be traced back to some Greek thinker. The Romans were practical and political. Unlike the Greeks, they knew how to organize and govern. Many of our political beliefs and practices have a Roman origin. We may not agree with a particular Greek or Roman thinker, but they are the wellspring and foundation of Western Civilization. We have to know them to know ourselves.

A textbook definition:
There are three major themes whose development and interplay have shaped the distinctive characteristics that set Western civilization apart from the other great historic cultures. They are the growth of a tradition of rational scientific inquiry, the persistence of a tension between Judaeo-Christian religious ideals and social realities, the emergence of constitutional forms of government.
-- Joint statement of introduction by Brian Tierney, Donald Kagan and L. Pearce Williams (Great Issues in Western Civilization, 2 vols., N.Y.: McGraw-Hill, 1992), p. xi.


These three unique, defining characteristics of Western Civilization (rationality, tensions between religious and socio-political realities, constitutionalism) encompass other related features:
growth of rational inquiry
Classical Legacy of study, education and presentation in the areas of philosophy, history, literature, communication skills, poetry, sciences like biology, astronomy, medicine, geometry, mathematics, music, politics, logic, grammar, Just War Theory,
the continuing desire to inquire and to question: critical thinking
Pluralism (social, economic, political and intellectual)
Liberalism (a growing and changing concept)
Tolerance and Discernment rationally concerning non-tolerance
ethics and/or morality not directly tied to religion, tradition or authority
exploration of the relationship between human and divine, faith and reason
individualism (which has drawn sustenance from all three of these W Civ characteristics yet has had, and still has, an uneven existence)
freedom within higher education
technology improving the material standard of living across the social spectrum
human realism in art, along with innumerable explorations into various (and often opposed) genres of art, music, architecture, sculpture
explicit study and use of both deductive and inductive reasoning
the Greek alphabet and/or Greek language
concepts of progress and/or regress in all these themes and in terms of change itself
tension between Judaeo-Christian religious ideals and social-political realities
Nathan vs David
Jesus, on giving to Caesar what is Caesar and to God what is God's
Bishop Ambrose vs Emperor Theodosius
Investiture Conflict through to the U.S. First Amendment
Linked with #1, rational: exploration of the relationship between human and divine, faith and reason
Separation of religious and secular life in government
Religion and secular government as checks-and-balances on each other
Guarantees of individuals' rights to free speech in these areas
Academic freedom from Abelard onward
constitutional forms of government
democracy
republic
oligarchy
absolutisms (qualified or justified on constitutional grounds)
rule of law
equality before the law
concept of a citizen rather than a subject
freedom of citizens
equality
limited government, and codifying those limitations as law
free scrutiny and questioning of these and any other position
representative government
individual liberty
concepts of human rights
politics as a shared endeavor
free market/enterprise concepts
commune-type government
Becket from the church (#2 above) side & Magna Carta from the lay side placeed limits on arbitrary power, provided protections for citizens
These above themes or characteristics can provide footholds for research, for further inquiries that may help to sort out the questions about Western Civilization -- its uniqueness or not, its admirable qualities as Herodotos saw, and/or those qualities we need to see and avoid, as Thucydides tried to show.
This approach -- questioning the definition and worth of the West -- will help to structure our study and research into this topic -- a topic often accepted as worthy on little more than tradition -- and sometimes rejected on equally thoughtless grounds.
A better approach to studying Western Civilization will follow a great [in my mind] western thinker of the 12th century, Abelard, who wrote in his Sic et Non: "By doubting we come to inquiry, and by inquiry, we grasp truth."
Various answers will result, no doubt. There is no absolute answer, no sure way to respond to these questions. Discussions will result. Evidence will emerge. Reasons for supporting this and that position will arise. Opposed arguments will destroy some positions only to be challenged in turn. Passions may arise. Reading and thinking may result. Minds will change, and change again over time. And change again....
When we are done, we might know better who we were and what we did, who we are now (Are we the jumble implied in the collage below, or are there cultural themes that unite us?), and finally, perhaps gain a better idea about who we will become. Dare to Know!

The purpose of this study is for the student to learn about the primary themes, ideas and events in Western civilization. The study does not focus on many details, like dates, battles, etc, but instead stresses the examination of how ideas and events grew upon each other and influenced each other. The study examines what makes Western civilization unique; what concepts distinguish Western civilization from other civilizations.

The key question we study is "What is Western Civilization?" By the end of this course, students should be able to ask questions about the origins and characteristics of the civilization in which we live. To answer such questions does require some accurate information (or "facts"), but as you move into a college environment you will find that the study of human history has little to do with the tedious memorization of facts, and everything to do with discussion of different ways in which we can interpret the past.

As such, this course is designed to give every student the chance to learn some of the "facts" about European Civilization, while also providing the chance to discuss the past and how things, ideas and people of the past shape the world in which we live.