Who We Are, and Why We Do What We Do
I. Who We Are:
We are a number of scholars who are dedicated to spreading the Great Ideas of
the Western Canon in the tradition of the Sophists. Rather than going from
town to town, we bring the information to you via the Internet. We hope to
serve as a clearinghouse of scholarly information and studies.
II. A Word About What We Do:
We hope to facilitate. Having said that, it is our hope not to
establish teachers/students dichotomies here. We are all at the same
level. We all help. We all contribute to the Great Dialogue.
III. How to Enroll:
While the website is in REORGANIZATION mode, we hope you come back and visit
as the materials are posted. Please send us an e-mail at _________ if you
would like to "enroll." Most of the question/answer sessions will be done
through the chat room. We will schedule the discussions and let you know
the date, time and what the topic is, what to read to inform yourself, etc.
Join the chat and contribute!
IV. A Word About 'politics' and Politics:
We are not Liberal or Conservative, Republican or Democrat. It is our
hope to stay away from those political correctness arguments that aim to exclude
rather than include. More details to follow.
V. Biographies:
Prof. Bertrand "Zippo" Dupuis: A graduate of the
prestigious Univeriste Paris Sorbonne, Prof. Dupuis has had a long and fruitful
career in all aspects of the French Academy. Tracing his roots back to
early France, the Dupuis family began with a military legacy, with heroes in all
of the French conflicts from the 100 Year War to World War II resistance
activities. It is for this reason that Prof. Dupuis found his passion for
history (military and other) in the vast fields of his native land. He has
taught at Cambridge, Tel Aviv University and most recently at Christ College in
Oxford. He does nothing in his spare time because he has none.
Presently, he divides time between Paris and New York, with sporadic stays in
Toronto.
Prof. Aristides "Orville" Redenbacker: A committed
life-long learner, Prof. Redenbacker's life has been varied and colorful.
He attended the prestigious Free School of the Performing Arts in Hato Rey,
Puerto Rico in the early 1980s where he excelled as a cellist and played varsity
baseball. Prof. Redenbacker obtained both liberal arts and music
performance degrees, graduating with High Honors in 1985. Young
Redenbacker was a member of the U.N. World Youth Symphony Orchestra in 1982-83,
traveling throughout Europe and Asia, in addition to giving numerous recitals
between 1983 and 1985. Returning home, he worked a number of fast food
jobs through high school, while teaching himself computer languages Cobol,
Pascal, Assembly, RPG II & III, among others. This lead to his first
"real" job as a part-time computer programmer in the fall of 1985, a job he
didn't particularly enjoy. The music life called again, but not before
Prof. Redenbacker joined the United States Marine Corps, while attending school
part-time. He served honorably as an infantry man during Operation Desert
Shield/Storm. In 1991, after receiving an honorable discharge from the
military, Prof. Redenbacker worked briefly as a computer programmer/staff
accountant for a CPA firm in downtown Cleveland, Ohio; again, it was a job he
didn't particularly enjoy. It was then that he returned to school and
committed himself to a life of study, completing another liberal arts degree in
English, History and Philosophy. While attending graduate school at
Georgetown University, Redenbacker landed a position as a cellist with the
Washington Symphony Orchestra, a position which he held for four and a half
years. His thesis on William James' Pragmatism as Interpretative Literary
Theory received accolades earning him a Master of Arts degree with distinction.
He returned to the Midwest in 2000 and has been teaching since while pursuing
the "Great Ideas." He is the author of two novels, "The Silence of This
Wall," and "Errors of Truth," and numerous short stories. Prof. Redenbacker is a lover of Moleskine notebooks and strong coffee. His
preferences are Bach, Scott Fitzgerald, Mozart, Nietzsche, Hemingway, Umberto
Eco, boxing, ice cream and cats. He admits to talking to himself from time
to time, but only of philosophical matters (the other times he's been accused of
such a thing are plain goddamn lies).
Prof. Aristides "Orville" Redenbacker: A committed
life-long learner, Prof. Redenbacker's life has been varied and colorful.
He attended the prestigious Free School of the Performing Arts in Hato Rey,
Puerto Rico in the early 1980s where he excelled as a cellist and played varsity
baseball. Prof. Redenbacker obtained both liberal arts and music
performance degrees, graduating with High Honors in 1985. Young
Redenbacker was a member of the U.N. World Youth Symphony Orchestra in 1982-83,
traveling throughout Europe and Asia, in addition to giving numerous recitals
between 1983 and 1985. Returning home, he worked a number of fast food
jobs through high school, while teaching himself computer languages Cobol,
Pascal, Assembly, RPG II & III, among others. This lead to his first
"real" job as a part-time computer programmer in the fall of 1985, a job he
didn't particularly enjoy. The music life called again, but not before
Prof. Redenbacker joined the United States Marine Corps, while attending school
part-time. He served honorably as an infantry man during Operation Desert
Shield/Storm. In 1991, after receiving an honorable discharge from the
military, Prof. Redenbacker worked briefly as a computer programmer/staff
accountant for a CPA firm in downtown Cleveland, Ohio; again, it was a job he
didn't particularly enjoy. It was then that he returned to school and
committed himself to a life of study, completing another liberal arts degree in
English, History and Philosophy. While attending graduate school at
Georgetown University, Redenbacker landed a position as a cellist with the
Washington Symphony Orchestra, a position which he held for four and a half
years. His thesis on William James' Pragmatism as Interpretative Literary
Theory received accolades earning him a Master of Arts degree with distinction.
He returned to the Midwest in 2000 and has been teaching since while pursuing
the "Great Ideas." He is the author of two novels, "The Silence of This
Wall," and "Errors of Truth," and numerous short stories. Prof. Redenbacker is a lover of Moleskine notebooks and strong coffee. His
preferences are Bach, Scott Fitzgerald, Mozart, Nietzsche, Hemingway, Umberto
Eco, boxing, ice cream and cats. He admits to talking to himself from time
to time, but only of philosophical matters (the other times he's been accused of
such a thing are plain goddamn lies).