All football fans know that last week PSG suffered an historic defeat and were knocked out of the elite Champions League. No club has spent more money on some of the most exciting players in the world, yet a third-string Manchester United side defeated them. One curiosity: Man U invited old players and the…
Aurel Kolnai observed that hierarchy is ineliminable from our moral psychology, and since hierarchy is also manifested in privilege, certain aristocratic tones in our shared life are ineradicable. It is unsurprising, therefore, that the passing of Karl Lagerfeld has seen him cast as an aristocrat, a Baroque glittering returning us to the salons of…
Here’s a new piece by my good friend Chris Wojtulewicz. It’s a fascinating inquiry into the tastes and meaning of rock icon, David Bowie. V&R is delighted to host another guest blog by Chris. ~~~~~~~~~~~ David Bowie’s Creed Fragrance, Change, God David Bowie used to like wearing Silver Mountain Water by Creed, as you will…
This is an exceptionally good article: http://www.anothermag.com/fashion-beauty/11476/cover-story-riccardo-tisci-burberry-interview-susannah-frankel-2019. Fashion pages often celebrate iconoclasm and there is a pretty steady drumbeat of distaste for established order and old things. I have noted before how bizarre this attitude is since mostly what people love are heritage brands, typically with national tones. There is also a surprising…
Erich Przywara and Post-Modern Natural Law: A History of the Metaphysics of Morals Graham James McAleer Graham McAleer’s Erich Przywara and Post-Modern Natural Law is the first work to translate the thinking of Erich Przywara (1889-1972) for an English-speaking audience. Przywara’s work remains little-known to the English world, however it had a major impact on many of the…
Here’s the info announcing the lecture: I am writing to let you know about an upcoming event at The Shrine of the Sacred Heart (my parish) that may be of interest. On Sunday, February 24, Graham McAleer, Professor of Philosophy at Loyola University of Baltimore, will give an address about how great stories can…
V&R Chapter 6 uses the play theory of Huizinga to explore the ethics of fashion. When I published V&R in 2016, I had never delved in detail into Lacan and his French contemporary, Roger Caillois. Since then, I have been reading both intently. Blog posts lately have shown the power of their thinking for reflecting…
Raf Simons is one of the most famous and talented people in fashion. Apart from his own original work, he has headed Dior and Calvin Klein. This article (https://www.latimes.com/fashion/la-ig-raf-simons-calvin-klein-breakup-20190204-story.html) draws out reasons why Calvin Klein fired him. The article is written by the excellent veteran fashion journalist, Christina Binkley: I have used many of…
Smith explores the relationship between religion, justice, and the economy. To do so, I show the great moral and economic theorist made use of anthropology. It would be fascinating to tease out his sources and his influence as there is an uncanny similarity between his ideas and twentieth century French anthropology: Contracts and Solemnities in…
Regular readers of V&R know that the site is a huge fan of Andy Warhol. Him starring as the stand out ad of the night is so great. Each year Loyola’s Committee on Catholic Social Thought hosts the Annual Andy Warhol Lecture. This year, Brian Murray, Professor of Writing at Loyola, will speak on…