The Lost Arts of Modern Civilization, by Dr. Mitchell Kalpakgian

Description

In a world gone crazy one might wonder if simple acts of civility are worth the trouble. Dressing with dignity, writing letters, and innocent courtship are just some of the lost arts of kindness and integrity that Dr. Michael Kalpakgian tries to dig up and dust off, imploring us to regain the honor and worth our society once had. These noble habits of living fill common life with an abundance of simple pleasures that adorn day to day existence. THE LOST ARTS OF MODERN CIVILIZATION will inspire you to seek out and nourish the simple joys that lift the spirit, rejoice the heart, and enliven the mind.

Dr. Mitchell A. Kalpakgian is a native of New England, the son of Armenian immigrants. He was awarded his Ph.D. by the University of Iowa in 1974.  For thirty-one years he has been a professor at Simpson College in Iowa, teaching courses from Advanced Composition to Shakespeare, Chaucer, The English Novel, The Literature of Western Civilization (Great Books), and The Classics of Children’s Literature.

Professor Kalpakgian is the author of The Marvelous in Fielding’s Novels and The Mysteries of Life in Children’s Literature.  He is a frequent contributor to New Oxford Review, Culture Wars, The Catholic Faith, and Homiletic And Pastoral Review.  Among his most recent articles are “What Manliness Is All About,” “Hospitality,” and “Why the Entertainment Industry is Bad for Children.”  In his article, “The Magnificence of Marriage” Dr. Kalpakgian reviews “Marriage,” a book by Dietrich von Hildebrand about the whole story of love, that is, the “Christian marriage.”

Professor Kalpakgian has been honored with a National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar Fellowship and an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship, and in summer, 1985, he was invited to participate in the National Endowment for the Humanities Institute on Children’s Literature.  In 2007 Dr. Kalpakgian became Professor of Humanities and the Trivium at Wyoming Catholic College.

His favorite activities include writing, long distance running, and coaching soccer.