Culture, Language and Stories

I chose Laocoon and his Sons as my image for this page because the art represents Western civilization’s grandness. The scene, the father, desperate to save his sons, whilst the sons struggle for their lives,  breaks the viewer’s heart.  We cannot miss the skill it took to convey these emotions.

Many people with fantastic skills created Western Civilization.  It took engineers, scientists, inventors, artists,  kings, religious leaders and philosophers to get us where we are today.

One of those philosophers was Socrates. He voiced my own thoughts, when he said, some 2500 years back, “I am not an Athenian or Greek. I am a citizen of the world.”

It irks many people, angers some, that the West changed the world. True, we didn’t always put our best foot forward. Nonetheless, the facts are the world enjoys many advantages because we bothered to explore. 

With that statement, Socrates predicted our own world today. Westerners set out to explore the world, and in doing so, became citizens of the world. 

The parallels to the West are the Phoenicians, and the Romans. Both explored and conquered, and moved the wheel of human development forward. Before them were the ancients, who began it all, exploring and looking for new places to live. How it happened, that the Sapiens decided to set down roots, farm and build edifices is something we will never know. It was they who started building roads, breeding cattle, digging canals, and building buildings that reached for the sky. Blame them if you want to be angry with Western Civ. They started us on this road to inventive, complex cities and nations. 

There are many theories as to why the West was so successful.  We can explore them in the classes I lead. That aside, the fact that 1.5 billion people now speak English is a fact we cannot walk away from. 

My role is to teach the culture. That’s why English language courses are a part of what I do. From the language, one passes on the concepts, stories, and a way of life, which means traditions.  

I teach because I love doing so. I love this civilization.  I make the classes intriguing and fun. Because cultural pursuits are never dull. That is why our stories are shared everywhere.  Indeed, Western Civilizations is for everyone. 

I have been teaching these subjects for 40 years. I know my stuff. 

Contact me about my classes, books, videos, and in-person talks.