Harrison Middleton University

Today's blog has a question generated by one of our recent Quarterly Discussions on Erasmus. Why did Erasmus use the voice of the Greek goddess Folly in order to criticize religion? Find the full blog on our website at hmu.edu.

Erasmus and the Quarterly Discussion - HMU August 16, 2024 Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post. The Summer Quarterly Discussion on Erasmus covered a lot of territory. Participants brought a wealth of knowledge which we used to explore Erasmus’ language, satire, use of myth and religion, and social critique. One of the que...

How we frame our questions really does matter. Céline Henne helps us understand how our own lens, our own frame, might affect the questions that we ask. An open mind really helps when reading, and awareness of enquiry types really helps when we frame our own thesis statements and essays. Becoming aware of bias and our own lens is a lifelong pursuit!

The realist vs the pragmatist view of epistemology | Aeon Essays Knowledge is often a matter of discovery. But when the nature of an enquiry itself is at question, it is an act of creation

Many paths will lead the thinker, the ponderer, the questioner, toward a better understanding of the great mysteries of life....one of them is the sea.

The Ocean and the Meaning of Life “Contemplating the teeming life of the shore, we have an uneasy sense of the communication of some universal truth that lies just beyond our grasp… the ultimate mystery of Life itself.&…

"I teach argumentation at UCLA, and I realized early on that if I didn’t invest in my own intellectual humility—and didn’t model it—I’d do both myself and my students a grave disservice. If I’m unwilling to examine and admit things about which I’ve been wrong before, entertain the possibility that I might be wrong about some things now, and be open to being persuaded by others’ ideas (even in my area of expertise), I’d be a know-it-all, sending students the message that being an expert means being dogmatic about your beliefs." -- Rob Carpenter

9 Ways to Create an “Intellectually Humble” Classroom - JSTOR Daily A university faculty member offers practical pedagogical steps to incorporate in the classroom to foster an intellectually humble environment.

"My doctoral studies at HMU expanded my worldview and approach to my pursuit of the true, the good, and the beautiful. Before this unique initiation into the Great Conversation and the liberal arts tradition, I was unusually specialized in one field and one subtopic of that field. Now I have a greater love for all disciplines and their unity, and a love for the broader Great Conversation. HMU changed me. I am a very different person because of the HMU experience. My degree was not the end of one journey, but a beginning with new possibilities. I continue to read Great Books, and reread others, and to use daily the skills I received at HMU. This has allowed me to better serve my university students and has allowed me to uniquely contribute to the university’s mission because I am no longer unusually specialized but more broadly formed by the liberal arts tradition. Due to this, I have been named assistant director of liberal arts programs at my university. I am eternally grateful for the man I am today because of HMU." - Dr. Harvey, Doctor of Arts Graduate

In "The Courage to Create," Rollo May combines art, theory, emotion, culture, and reason in an interesting, easy to read philosophical exploration of why we all should participate in creative acts. Today's blog offers a few quotes and snippets from May's book. Check it out at hmu.edu.

Courage to Create - HMU August 9, 2024 Thanks to Alissa Simon, HMU Tutor, for today’s post. Typically, I write a blog about my intended summer reading. Though I did not get around to writing that blog this year, I would like to share some of the great findings from the books on my summer reading list. As a child, fiction...

Libraries are a great place to beat the summer heat....even on vacation! Here are a few interesting libraries to discover in case you find yourself in a new city. https://dailypassport.com/coolest-libraries-america

In this translation of Catullus, Christopher Childers explores the difference between love poems in Latin and Greek. Childers explains: "if the first three stanzas express, even as a kind of shadow meaning, a passion for or envy of Sappho and her poem, the anxiety of the fourth, which is original to Catullus, is rooted in the internalized voice of conventional Roman morality. Here Catullus berates himself with the attitude of those 'wrinkled old moralists' (senes severiores) he thumbs his nose at in poem 5. It’s 'free time' (otium)–all this mooning around with love and poetry and the Lord knows what–that’s gnawing on Catullus’ nerves. It isn’t Roman! He needs to get serious..."

Catullus 51 - Chris Childers - Literary Matters On Literary Matters

Why not start the day with Sappho?

Sappho 31 - Chris Childers - Literary Matters On Literary Matters

This article explores the prevalence of love songs in a society that doesn't always show much love. There's a bit about Sappho, a bit about culture, a bit about love, all with a bit of analysis thanks to music critic Ted Gioia.

Why Love Songs Are Badass And how to read Sappho

Interested in art, language, literature, poetry, aesthetics, translation, or semiotics? Check out asemic writing, which reflects ideas from Roland Barthes, among others.

A Recent Book Explores What It Means to Write without Meaning Review of Peter Schwenger's book 'Asemic: The Art of Writing,' a study of how artists like Cy Twombly have explored language without meaning

We love featuring HMU graduates! Message or e-mail us a photo of you with your diploma or wearing your regalia and tell us what your degree means to you.

"Choosing to pursue the doctorate program at HMU was the wisest decision I've made for my education and personal goals." -Dr. Teilhard, Doctor of Arts Graduate

Today's blog, written by former Fellow in Ideas Chad Greene, connects Spike Lee, David Byrne, the idea of utopia, a unique understanding of nowhere, and past presidential speeches. Find his blog (and more) at hmu.edu.

“Road to Nowhere” Unexpectedly Leads to Shared Inquiry into Great Books and Historic Speeches - HMU August 2, 2024 Thanks to 2023 HMU Fellow in Ideas Chad Greene for today’s post. “We’re on a road to nowhere”? Why was that line – seemingly depressing on a surface level – so inspiring to me that I unexpectedly found myself on my feet in front of the TV in my living room, dancing, singin...

This article by Anna Badkhen is an international perspective about the ever-shifting boundaries of borders and story and language and poetry and humanity and futures and hope.

Another Way to Begin, by Anna Badkhen Can we tell stories, the author asks, “in a way that makes more breathing room, that does not crush humans, not even one, not even a little girl?”

Sometimes self-published books are not very helpful for the researcher because they lack authority or contain errors. Knowing when to use a self-published book or a book without publisher is helpful. As the tech world changes, we have to adapt, so pay attention to this advice from the MLA:

"Keep in mind, though, that a source whose publisher is unknown may not be reliable. Established publishers generally ensure that the texts they publish are accurate versions of the author’s work. A source from an unknown publisher could be missing text or contain inaccurate text, so if a version of the source is available from an established publisher, consider using that version instead."

How do I cite a book for which no organization is named as the publisher? | MLA Style Center As noted on page 42 of the MLA Handbook, if the book is published by its author or editor, omit the publisher’s name from the works-cited-list entry: Hocking, Amanda. Fate. 2010. If the publisher is unknown—as in the example below—follow the guidelines on page 20 of the handbook: “An element...

"Brave boatmen come, they go, they die, the voyage flows on forever. We are all canyoneers. We are all passengers on this little living mossy ship, this delicate dory sailing round the sun that humans call Earth. Joy, shipmates, joy." - Edward Abbey, The Hidden Canyon: A River Journey

What does your degree mean to you?

"Since my enrollment in the Harrison Middleton University (HMU) Doctor of Arts program occurred more than a year after my retirement from State service, my attainment of the degree was the fulfillment of an aspiration I developed during my first year of community college in 1975, rather than a career decision. I reflect fondly on my experience at HMU, particularly the sense of accomplishment and the satisfaction I received from my Capstone Project." - Dr. Pew, Harrison Middleton University Doctor of Arts Graduate

Oboist James Austin Smith offers an affirmation for artists: "Rather than starting from a place of trying to prove yourself through your work, start from a place of value. You are one of an extremely small number of people who works with extraordinary art on a daily basis. You are valuable. You do not need to prove yourself or your success to anyone." - Quoted near 45 minute of the first hour on Performance Today

James Austin Smith Pianists and violinists can make a living as professional classical music freelancers, but an oboist? That's a real rarity. James Austin Smith is a pioneering oboist in so many ways. On today's show, we'll hear James Austin Smith in concert at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina.

Do you ever think about randomness? How will we continue to believe in secure passwords, for example? Random numbers actually affect a lot of things in our lives.

The search for the random numbers that run our lives Our world runs on randomly generated numbers and without them a surprising proportion of modern life would break down. So, why are they so hard to find?

Today's blog includes a short introduction to Erasmus, which may help us better understand his humor in Praise of Folly. We'll continue that discussion into next week. If Erasmus intrigues you, consider joining the Quarterly Discussion. You'll find more information on the Events page of hmu.edu.

Blog - HMU HMU Blog We’re excited that you’ve joined the conversation! At HMU, we want to continue the great authors’ conversations in a contemporary context, and this blog will help us do that. We look back to Aristotle and the early philosophers who used reason and discourse to gain wisdom and now we e...

This is a great discussion of Aristotle. The two participants analyze the various methods used by Aristotle (and Plato, as a sidenote). There's also a fairly robust discussion of what constitutes knowledge.

37 - Hugh Benson on Aristotelian Method | History of Philosophy without any gaps Hugh Benson of the University of Oklahoma chats to Peter about Aristotle's views on philosophical method, and whether he practices what he preaches.

OMG ... you'll never believe the history of OMG.

Oh My God! Winston Churchill Received the First Ever Letter Containing “O.M.G.” (1917) Winston Churchill is one of those preposterously outsized historical figures who seemed to be in the middle of every major event.

"I don't know what lies around the bend, but I'm going to believe that the best does. It has a fascination of its own, that bend." - Lucy Maud Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables, Book I

Visit today's blog for a brief discussion of humor, Aristophanes, and The Wasps. We will continue the discussion of humor into next week too. hmu.edu

Blog - HMU HMU Blog We’re excited that you’ve joined the conversation! At HMU, we want to continue the great authors’ conversations in a contemporary context, and this blog will help us do that. We look back to Aristotle and the early philosophers who used reason and discourse to gain wisdom and now we e...

"You must understand the Globe of the Moon has likewise an attractive Power, yet so much weaker than the Earth, that if a Man do but spring upward with all his Strength… he will be able to mount fifty or sixty Foot high… being then above all Attraction from the Moon’s Earth, he falls down no more, but by the help of these Fans, as with Wings, they convey themselves in the Air." - Bishop Godwin’s "The Man in the Moone", 1638

The Seventeenth-Century Space Race (for the Soul) - JSTOR Daily The astronomical discoveries of the 1600s—such as Saturn’s rings—prompted new questions about the structure of the cosmos and humans’ place in it.

In truth, loneliness may be a necessary evil. As Carl Phillips explores this emotion, he reveals that it may also be a force that connects as much as distances us from one another.

On Loneliness: To You by Carl Phillips | Poetry Magazine Loneliness, then, means understanding—and accepting, though some days this is only slightly easier than others—that no one knows me.

"Paradoxes, where puzzling contradictions emerge, are of fascination to physicists because they highlight flaws in thinking and can pave the way for deeper insights. Over many decades, Hawking would struggle with one puzzling implication of his equation that became known as the ‘black hole information paradox’. This remains one of the greatest mysteries facing theoretical physicists today." - Roger Highfield

A brief history of Stephen Hawking’s greatest equation | Aeon Essays Stephen Hawking’s greatest legacy – a simple little equation now 50 years old – revealed a shocking aspect of black holes

Welcome back! We hope you are enjoying summer and getting ready for some fun fall reading. We have upcoming discussions of Erasmus and Melville. Visit our "Upcoming Events" page at hmu.edu.

Harrison Middleton University - HMU Harrison Middleton University is a private distance-learning university offering Master of Arts, Doctor of Arts, and Doctor of Education programs in the humanities. Harrison Middleton University focuses its scope on the Great Books.

We hope you enjoyed a safe and colorful Fourth of July. Did you know that one of the university's namesakes signed the Declaration of Independence? Arthur Middleton was a South Carolina plantation owner who also happened into politics. Visit the National Archives for more information on the signers.

Signers of the Declaration of Independence [get-content name="print-page-left" include-tag="false" /] Download this Information in PDF Format Name State Rep.