I recently had the privilege to visit Ralston College where I had a wonderful discussion with Gregg Hurwitz about meaning, art, and the future of culture. We also gave advice to the young students at Ralston College about navigating the life of an artist.
RALSTON COLLEGE: A revival and reinvention of the traditional university. A fellowship for anyone, anywhere who seeks the truth with courage.
While the review of applications for the 2025-26 year of their fully-funded Master's in the Humanities program has already begun, a small number of spaces remain for extraordinary candidates. Apply now:
https://www.ralston.ac/humanities-maYouTube version:
https://youtu.be/5Zyv3z4VT_Y=====================
NEW COURSE: The Symbolic World Goes to Middle-Earth
Join us for an in-depth study of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Legendarium, where we'll explore his masterful use of medieval literary genres, Christian storytelling traditions, and hidden philology. This course, presented by Richard Rohlin, will guide you through Tolkien's vision for a "Mythology for England," examining his work as a complex tapestry of Universal History. Through this journey, we’ll also examine Tolkien’s use of epic poems, chronicles, and literary devices to craft a truly legendary vision of the past, present, and future. Thereafter, we'll look at how his work has inspired later authors of fantasy, shaped the genre more generally, and continues to aid our recovery of deeper, cosmological storytelling.
- Dates: Live classes are on Mondays at 1 PM Central starting March 3, 2025
- Course length: 5 weeks, 10 hours of lectures
- Cost: $150
- 10% Discount for all patrons at the Involved tier or higher, apply your discount code at checkout
- Participants will be given access to lesson recordings with downloadable audio
- You’ll also have the opportunity to apply these ideas to contemporary authors and your own mythopoeic writing!
- The course is hosted on the Symbolic World Circle Community platform. Sign up as a free member at https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/join-community before making your purchase.
Register today:
https://www.thesymbolicworld.com/courses/tolkien-and-universal-history =====================
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My intro was arranged and recorded by Matthew Wilkinson: https://matthewwilkinson.net/
Timestamps:
00:00 - Coming up
00:41 - Intro music
01:06 - Introduction
06:40 - What they like about each other
13:03 - Dramatizing Genesis
17:01 - On writing and being an artist
22:41 - Ralston College students
25:37 - Advice to artists
28:09 - Why are you compelled to tell stories?
33:09 - Form and function
42:32 - Looking back on your 20s, what did you do well, and what did you learn from?
49:19 - What's been your experience being public figures?
59:03 - Do you ever wish you hadn't entered the public eye?
01:04:39 - How to keep the fire going without desperation?
01:09:30 - How to navigate the political?
01:19:22 - How to choose your priorities and commitments?
01:23:11 - How to go from an idea to a larger project?
01:26:36 - Should an artist cater to an audience?
01:34:43 - What does Ralston mean to you?
The Symbolic World