In his latest book, “In Search of Civilization” (2009), his views on art, love, literature and philosophy come together in a humanistic statement about what it means to be civilised – and indeed human – in the modern world. In a paper published earlier this year, “Reformation and Renaissance” (April 2011), he calls for educational reform from within the humanities, urging modern scholars to re-evaluate their own practices and regain the sense of wonder and purpose that comes from knowing the past for the sake of a better future.