By Caitlin Filep There are few things that soothe me more during the crush of finals week than going down to one of the stacks in Purgatory and just sitting on the floor among the books. Most times it’s the children’s section for the nostalgia–I’ll often crack open an illustrated Harry Potter or a Percy Jackson book and lose track of time–but sometimes I’ll venture … Continue reading Libraries and Why You Should Care About Them
By Charlie Cheng I am somewhat confident that this is the first ever Forum article about Chinese prophecies. It’s a bold move, I know, to be both pagan and unscientific at the same time in Hillsdale, but you will still want to find out how the pro-life movement is involved. I am not writing with the presumption that Chinese prophesying is legitimate. It has lasted … Continue reading How Ancient Chinese Fortune-Telling Aligns With the Pro-Life Movement
By Fred Woodward In the archetypal consciousness of the people of France and in the West broadly considered, there is arguably no building more prominent than Notre-Dame cathedral. A few other buildings may vie with the cathedral’s status, such as St. Peter’s basilica and Westminster abbey, but none can excel its grandeur and national prominence. More than an impressive architectural phenomenon (though this label can … Continue reading What Notre Dame Can Symbolize to America
As something of an enthusiast for the Latin language, I am often subjected to that fearful question: why? Like many others, I have learned the typical responses: I learn Latin because it helps with my grammar skills and it teaches me to think logically. In addition, it improves my writing skill and reading comprehension in English. All these reasons may be offered and more could … Continue reading Why do we Study Latin?
The story of Echo and Narcissus in the Metamorphoses begins when Narcissus’ mother visits a sage and inquires if her son will live to a “ripe old age.” She receives an ambiguous response: Narcissus will live to a ripe old age “if he knows himself—not” (3.449). The anapest meter of the line emphasizes two key terms of the prophecy: “knows” and “not.” The strong syllables … Continue reading History, an Antidote to Narcissim
In 2019, Sohrab Ahmari and David French engaged in an infamous debate that culminated in a discussion of drag queen story hours. Both men agreed that exposing children to drag queens is immoral; however, while French argued that the First Amendment protects drag queen story hours, Ahmari argued that such activities are harmful to society and ought to be suppressed by the government. Whatever your … Continue reading Nineteenth Century French Catholics’ Challenge to Integralism
Ire is often directed at younger generations – those darn kids, blasting hip-hop out of their speakers, refusing to watch black and white TV shows from when men were men and women were women, and burning down every statue they see. I don’t think these complaints are entirely unfounded, but what I find bizarre and want to focus on is the flip side of this … Continue reading Nostalgia, Sequelitis, and the Past
(Spoiler warning follows for The Searchers, Sunset Boulevard, and Strangers on a Train) Because of Hollywood’s influence on America, to understand our current cultural context it is important to understand Hollywood’s Golden Age. Despite the significance of the topic, most people have a faulty view of this time. Classic Hollywood is often seen as an era that either moralized or simply refused to tackle mature … Continue reading Understanding the Golden Age of Hollywood
… for earth without heaven cannot find the path of its orbit, nor the influences that give it fruitfulness. —A.G. Sertillanges, O.P., The Intellectual Life Have you ever wondered what art actually is? Our instinctive answer might be something like “self-expression;” and according to our venerable OED, we’d be on the right track: Art, it says, is the “expression or application of creative skill … Continue reading Imitation, Graced: Ovid on Fine Art
We live in a culture of prescribed opinions. We are so set on our beliefs that we have already decided we do not agree with someone even before they have had a chance to defend themselves. That is like declaring the accused guilty before the trial has even started. These behaviors are not necessarily universal, but they are highly prevalent in our society and need … Continue reading Talk Less, Listen More: A Re-evaluation of Our Conversational Life
Hillsdale Forum 