Part one of term paper
Thomas Cahill opens his story describing Rome's fall, “For as the Roman Empire fell, as all through Europe matted, unwashed barbarians descended on the Roman cities, looting artifacts and burning books, the Irish who were just learning to read and write, took up the just labor of copying all of western literature - everything they could ge ...

Part two of term paper
... they saved civilization, not the masses of people, but literature, the content of “classical civilization.” (Cahill, p. 58) One reads of the time from Rome's fall to medieval times learning through the stories of the characters, most notable Augustine and Patrick. Augustine, his faith based on Roman Chrisitanity, “looked into his own heart and found the anguish of each individual.” (Cahill, p. 115) Patrick, the slave turned Christian, escapes only to return to convert the Irish. He wa ...