Support a claim
Weekly essays and longer papers required an argument and textual support. Revision was a chance to make the reasoning clearer.
Selected reading
Great Books, writing, and discussion.
I completed a six-part Great Books reading and writing program, from ancient texts to contemporary works. Weekly essays, longer papers, and seminar discussion gave me practice in explaining a claim and supporting it from a text.
Explore selected worksHabits behind the reading
Read closely. Explain clearly. Reconsider.
Consider another reading
Seminar discussion and oral examination required listening, explaining an interpretation, and answering questions from the text.
Make an explanation useful
These habits carry into teaching and tutoring: organize an idea, explain the next step, and respond to what someone has understood.
Mathematics and writing tutoringA point of entry
Constitutional government and civic thought.
The selected reading includes the United States Constitution, Federalist and Anti-Federalist writings, Tocqueville, and King. Reading differing positions was part of understanding their arguments.
Selected completed reading
A selection across six periods.
This is a curated selection from the program. The scope appears beside each title where relevant; a listed selection does not imply I read the entire work.
Ancient and Old Testament World
- RepublicPlatoBooks 1–10
- Nicomachean EthicsAristotleBooks 1–10
Roman and Early Christian Worlds
- ConfessionsAugustineBooks 1–10
- Consolation of PhilosophyBoethius
Medieval, Renaissance, and Reformation Worlds
- Divine ComedyDanteInferno, Purgatory, Paradise
- The PrinceNiccolò Machiavelli
Enlightenment World
- United States Constitution and AmendmentsAmerican foundingSelected edition pages
- Federalist and Anti-Federalist PapersFederalist and Anti-Federalist authorsSelected writings
Modern World
- Democracy in AmericaAlexis de TocquevilleSelections from volumes 1 and 2
- The Gulag Archipelago; Harvard AddressAleksandr SolzhenitsynSelections from The Solzhenitsyn Reader
- Letter from Birmingham Jail; Strength to LoveMartin Luther King Jr.Letter; preface and selected chapters of Strength to Love
Contemporary World
- The Brothers KaramazovFyodor DostoevskyParts 1–4
- Les MisérablesVictor HugoPart I only
From study to practical work.
See how explanation and review inform my teaching and technical projects.