Temple of Apollo, Corinth, with temple of Aphrodite on the acropolis behind. Thanks to Laura de Jong for filling in for me last time. I

Last time I wrote about the centennial of the birth of my father. Today I’m reflecting on the death last month of one of my

Yesterday was the 100th anniversary of my father’s birth: April 17, 1919. Centennials naturally call for reminiscence and reflection, and some of this, especially in

My last post—about books that fundamentally shaped us—brought out a nice range of responses, showing the different mentalities and life-stories operating out there among The

Let’s talk about books again, only this time as a doorway into history—your own history, I mean. Which five books were most influential in forming

Here’s an invitation to join in on a fun challenge—help design a new course. Fun for me, anyway. No, it’s not fun devising all the

In one of the lesser-studied chapters of his renowned Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville reflects on the “spirit” in which democratic nations such as

I haven’t gone to many academic conferences the last few years, having been out of the country, so it was good to return to the