A common presentation of the period extending from the fall of Rome  until the Renaissance is that of the 'dark ages'.  But were the entire  Middle Ages actually characterized by oppression, ignorance, and  backwardness in areas like human rights, science, health, and the arts?  We take issue with the popular misrepresentation of the era.  While we  do see a dark age following the destruction of the Western Roman Empire,  what light remained in it was salvaged by Christians in the monastic  movement, which eventually led to the establishment of the university, a  medieval Christian institution.