Editor’s note: I blame myself. We use the Latin version on FB, and when we introduced it we met with A TON of discussion – which wound up (I love it when social media actually does good) in the hands of two (2) (more than one believe it or not) actual (real) Latin scholars, and Classica Omnibus Sunt won consensus. Of course there are different ways to say the same thing in any language so there is no right answer, but I defer to the pros here. During that discussion I did say something though that saved us all a lot of time: Google Translate is the Mapquest of Languages. – JB
Welcome to our new logo. There are two ways to steward the style, and lifestyle, we love. The first is to preach to the choir. As the choir dwindles, so does the aesthetic. The second, which has the added benefit of not being off-putting, is to open the doors to everyone, show them how it is done, and see what they do with it. Curate the hell out of it, always use dignity, and at the end of the day not have to look at flannel PJ’s in the grocery store.
Sermon aside, this isn’t only the right thing to do, it is the only thing that will work.
Carry on – JB
Latin is a good choice for language for the motto. According to Wikipedia:
“The word classics is derived from the Latin adjective classicus, meaning “belonging to the highest class of citizens.” The word was originally used to describe the members of the Patricians, the highest class in ancient Rome. By the 2nd century AD the word was used in literary criticism to describe writers of the highest quality.[1] For example, Aulus Gellius, in his Attic Nights, contrasts “classicus” and “proletarius” writers.[2] By the 6th century AD, the word had acquired a second meaning, referring to pupils at a school.[1] Thus, the two modern meanings of the word, referring both to literature considered to be of the highest quality, and to the standard texts used as part of a curriculum, both derive from Roman use.”
I like the revised logo and the thinking behind it.
Best Regards,
Heinz-Ulrich
Rectum non bustus!
Will
Gotta admit I had to look this one up – JB
Patres conscripti took a boat, and went to Philippi;
Boatum est upsettum, magno cum grandine venti.
Omnes drownderunt qui swim away non potuerunt.
Trumpeter unus erat, qui coatum scarlet habebat;
Et magnum periwig, tied about with the tail of a dead pig.
It’s all a bunch of mumbus jumbus to me. As a Texan, I already have a hard enough time with English. But hey, you write good.
If you’re genuinely serious about spreading the gospel of this style, I would (politely) suggest dropping the phrase “Ivy” altogether. Consider the likely audience for your mission work. Nobody under the age of 65 understands the once-upon-a-time connection (“‘Ivy’? Like poison Ivy?!?”) , and few people (who’ve worn it) ever cared — at all. It was the perfectly sensible invention of clever advertisers/marketers of certain brands and campus stores, but the affiliations with yesteryear Old Nassau and Old Eli are gone, gone, gone with the wind. In the age of specificity, far more accurate collegiate affiliations include “Sewanee style” or “Furman style” or “HSC style” or “Boston College style” or “Holy Cross style.”* But why bother with all of that when “American Traditional” (“American Trad”) works beautifully.
Among traditionalists who would/will be drawn to this style for reasons galore, the affiliation with Ivy League schools is probably negative— damaging to the cause of evangelizing this particular gospel. Even the politically and culturally “progressives” who favor this style must admit that, at heart, they are old-fashioned Burkean traditionalists— sentimental and nostalgic, “standing athwart history, yelling ‘Stop!’” There are reasons why, among a myriad of options, 21st century people will choose this style. It’s not to look like an Ivy League school alum, St. Grottlesex alum, a hedge fund manager, or a trust fund preppy. No matter what Ralph Lauren thinks.
It has far more to do with the (admittedly mysterious) attraction to American traditionalism in all of its many manifestations— cultural and… aesthetic. We are, all of us, fogeys and throwbacks.
I’ve lately been thinking along the same lines, S.E. I do like some of the connotations of the “ivy” descriptor, but in general find myself put off by its attendant cultural baggage. But if “ivy” is more than just a mode of dress — if it’s an all-encompassing appreciation of classicism (NOT classism), the humanities, the arts, and beyond, it may be that calling it “American trad” is too limiting in another way: Yes, the clothes are of a uniquely American cut and drape, (though Japan seems to be better at that than we are anymore,) but the other elements are far more worldly, and, in many cases, much older than this country. I can go with “American trad” to describe the clothes, but as for the rest of it, I don’t have any ideas just yet.