Read the passage and then answer the question.
When people think about the Medieval period in Europe, also known as the Middle Ages or Dark Ages, they often conjure up images of war, plague and famine. Many imagine people living in squalor—with dirty houses and little personal hygiene—and believe that scientific and intellectual progress came to a standstill during this time. There is a popular tendency to discount the Medieval era as an inferior period between the glory of the Roman Empire and the splendour of the Renaissance.
This conception of the Middle Ages is largely inaccurate, however. The Medieval period saw the founding of the first universities in Europe as well as the construction of impressive cathedrals such as the Notre-Dame of Paris. A number of scientific inventions, such as glasses and mechanical clocks, improved everyday life considerably during this time. The use of heavy ploughs, horse collars and water mills also increased agricultural productivity. There was no paucity of literary genius, either; many poetic masterpieces, such as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and Dante’s Divine Comedy, were written during the Middle Ages. Perhaps we should think twice, then, before using the term ‘Middle Ages’ pejoratively to describe anything that is perceived as backwards, unsophisticated or ignorant.
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