Rising from the past like an avenging angel, The Tarpeian Rock is back after a hiatus of five years. You may remember the The Tarpeian Rock as the bane of post-modernists, profligates, and purveyors of literary and artistic stultiloquy everywhere. For too long, mediocrity, absurdity, and obscenity have dominated the worlds of art and literature. Inspired by a satanic vocation, the enlightened expe
rts have spent the last hundred years or so declaring the beautiful trite, and the ugly transcendent. And what do we have to show for this century of confusion? Piles of rusting metal that some consider sculpture; Meaningless novels which celebrate moral and cultural relativism; Poetry that is nothing but flaccid prose with bad line breaks; The expurgation of God from public discourse except as an object of criticism. The finest galleries house art that could easily be replicated by a troubled five year-old. Everywhere there is an infantile obsession with pornographic titillation. In this milieu, The Tarpeian Rock provides a welcome counter-punch. This is a magazine that discerning readers enjoy and yet feel comfortable leaving on the coffee table where their kids might see it. Called "the work of a coterie of committed and practiced writers" by Literary Magazine Review, The Tarpeian Rock includes works both sober and humorous. Clever short stories are featured alongside insightful opinion pieces with the main theme being an appreciation for God, country, and traditional values. Pieces that extol a particular virtue, like faith, courage, loyalty, honesty, love, hope, or compassion are particularly welcomed. Also satirical pieces that really take the gloves off in attacking relativism, nihilism, pseudoscience, political correctness, or cultural vulgarity are given pride of place.
