The middle ages was the dividing line between the classic and early modern eras in history, so it would be technically accurate to refer to this period of time as the middle ages. With todays accumulated knowledge of the past some might argue that historical landmarks such as the Roman Empire, in all its brilliance, overshadowed the achievements of the middle ages. Thats not to say there weren't any to date. Many remarkable figures were conceived in this era, Fibonacci and Oresme shed their light on mathematics, Thomas aquinas made his contributions to philosophy which has influenced much of Western thought, the writings of Dante and Chaucer have even been preserved to the present day and are still widely studied. The stunning architecture of gothic cathedrals is also notable. It is understandable that some might refer to this age as "dark", this is probably the case because this era is renowned for some of its moral injustice and lack of groundbreaking progression in the sciences, but we must not forget that the middle ages had the unfortunate timing of taking place subsequent to the insightful and affluent existence of the Roman Empire. Really, the middle ages were a milestone that paved the way to an even more prosperous time: the Renaissance.