本书为“新世纪高等院校英语专业本科生系列教材”之一。本书旨在向中国学生和一般读者介绍西方文化的全貌，为读者了解西方文化提供一个重要的基础。本书注重从历史和心智意义上去陈述西方文化，着重介绍了西方人文思想传统的发展情况，有选择地推介了一大批在不同历史时期，活跃在西方文化前沿阵地的知识精英。涉及的领域涵盖了社会学、哲学、经济学、心理学、生物学、人类学、文学和艺术等门类或学科。

General Survey

Chapter 1 Culture in Ancient Greece

Chapter 2 Culture in Ancient Rome

Chapter 3 Jewish Culture and The Old Testament

Chapter 4 Christianity and The New Testament

Chapter 5 The Middle Ages and Germanic Culture

Chapter 6 Culture during the Renaissance

Chapter 7 Culture during the Enlightenment

Chapter 8 Romanticism,Realism and Naturalism

Chapter 9 Ideology and Philosophy during the 18th and 19th Centuries

Chapter 10 The Modernist Movement and Literary Achievement

Chapter 11 Ideology Developments of the Modern Age

Chapter 12 Artistic Development in the 20th Century

Appendix 1 Questions for Comprehension and Discussion

Appendix 2 Chronological Order of Major Events/Figures in Western Culture

Appendix 3 Bibliography

Epilogue