Picture of the painting _School of Athens_ by Raphael.
School of Athens by Raphael. Image credit: Wikimedia

Oc·ci·dent

/ˈäksədnt/
noun, literary: the countries of the West, especially Europe and America.

Welcome to The Occidental Tourist!


Reading deeply. Thinking imaginatively. Pursuing what matters.

Welcome. I’m

, and is where I write about the stories and ideas that have shaped Western civilization. Drawing from the Great Books tradition—Homer, Plato, Augustine, Dante and their heirs—I explore the human and cosmic dramas at the heart of these works, convinced that thoughtful engagement with the West’s best literature can help us see the world and ourselves anew.

Just a girl with a passion for books!

This publication is for readers who desire to get beneath the surface of things, who believe that serious reading still has the power to order our loves and form our souls. In an age of noise and disenchantment, I look to the symbolic, sacramental, and mythic imagination of the classical and Christian tradition—not to escape the modern world, but to re-enchant it.

I'm not writing as an intellectual authority—and certainly not as an "influencer"—but as a fellow reader and seeker. My newsletter offers reflections, study guides, and curated reading paths for those who want to think more deeply, read more carefully, and rediscover the moral and intellectual architecture of the West.

If that sounds like your kind of journey, I invite you to subscribe—free or paid—and come along on our tour!

Part of my personal Great Books collection.

Disclaimers:

To find out more about the company that provides the tech for this newsletter, visit Substack.com.

As an Amazon Associate, I earn a very small commission (at no additional cost to the buyer) from qualifying purchases made through links on my site. It mostly just supports my own reading habit! 🤓

User's avatar

Subscribe to The Occidental Tourist

Exploring the stories and ideas of Western Civilization, one Great Book at a time.

People

Awakening the Moral Imagination in a Disenchanted Age: Retired Navy Commander exploring the Western literary canon. I consider my writing a call to recover beauty, meaning, and myth through the Great Tradition.