Spanish or Latin???

terenc
Thu, 05 Jul 2012 21:24:15 +0000

I will be the skeptic here.



It is the “listening” rather than the “communicating” nature of Latin study that makes it so valuable within the classical curriculum. One learns Latin, not to speak with Cicero or with Augustine, but to sit at their feet, to receive and understand their thoughts. Because of conversational emphasis, the study of a modern language falls somewhat short of this “receptive ideal.”

The author is arguing, essentially, that “listening” is educationally superior is conversing, that a language that forces you to “listen” is a superior language to learn. This is a claim that merits deep skepticism. Firstly, the author does not really provide any reasons to support that idea. Using vague words like the “receptive ideal,” the author seems to employ a classic technique in the humanities: an idea that is presented eloquently must be true, by sole virtue of its eloquence.



The student is presented with a thought contained in a puzzle; he extracts the meaning, and then reinterprets and represents the thought. This can be a difficult process, but only in this way may the student learn to “own” ideas.

The author seems to make the claim that in struggling to puzzle out the meaning of a text that is written in a foreign language, the translator gains a deeper understanding of the text. I would agree that this is true. But this is not something exclusive to Latin. This also applies to a language like Spanish. By this logic, one should learn Arabic or Chinese instead of Latin, since those languages are so much more difficult to translate than Latin.



he is presented with the opportunity to practice the newly-acquired art of translation on the philosophy of Cicero, the history of Caesar, and the sublime poetry of Virgil. This provides an exciting contact with the ancient world; the world into which Christianity was born, a world which it conquered and eventually adopted.

This “advantage” is not exclusive to Latin. You can read translations of Latin works in English.