Rhetoric and Moral Philosophy

(Intended to be a year long course that fulfills 1 Carnegie credit for college transcripts as a Humanities Elective).

The goal of this course is to enable students to perceive the connection between truthful speech, virtuous living, and flourishing communities. In the 1st Century AD Quintilian taught that “the orator must be a good man speaking well,” linking rhetoric directly to moral virtue. In this course, students will discover how this enduring theme has been preserved, deepened, and passed down through the Great Western Tradition by reading works that span from the Bible and other ancient texts to modern classics such as C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man. In his book Standing by Words Wendell Berry argues that there is a direct connection between the breakdown of community with the breakdown of language. In an age of artificial intelligence and diminishing trust in language, this course teaches students that truthful speech is the fruit of wisdom, virtue, and an ordered soul, and the foundation of authentic community.

The Bible, Wendell Berry Standing By Words, C.S. Lewis The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis Till We Have Faces

Supplementary texts that will be provided by the tutor include excerpts from: Plato’s Apology and Phaedrus, Quintilian’s Institutes of Oratory, and St. Augustine’s Confessions and On Christian Doctrine, Neil Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death

Chris Wilson

Chris Wilson has devoted his life to the evangelization and education of children for over twenty years. He received his BA from St. Joseph’s Seminary College in 2002 and his MTS from the John Paul II Institute at the Catholic University of America in 2007. A fire was lit in Chris’ heart for Catholic classical education in 2012 and has steadily grown stronger with each passing year. In 2022 he completed CiRCE Institute’s three year Latin Apprenticeship and is currently in his second year of CiRCE’s Lost Tools of Writing Apprenticeship. Chris lives in Carencro, LA with his wife Becky and their five beautiful children.