One of the great rewards of teaching is to see your students succeed. Having attended many a class reunion for former students, I regularly noted how the student, who struggled or to whom you assigned detention, was eager to check in and let me know they turned out well. Indeed, that experience has prompted me to encourage faculty colleagues to participate in the annual alumni gatherings. What has been your experience with catching up with students at reunions?

 

The 2024 annual meeting of the Archaeological Institute of America and the Society for Classical Studies provided two special encounters with former students. I enjoyed chatting with Caitlin Gillespie, who is a classics professor at Brandeis University and shared her delight that her department had been granted another tenure track position! We also chatted about her current book project and the book that she had been commissioned to write. On Sunday, Caitlin brought her dad to the booth to say hello. Alas, packing up the B-C book exhibit kept me from joining Mr. Gillespie in attending his daughter’s SCS presentation, “Magistra Libidinum Neronis: Calvia Crispinilla and the Power of Vice.” Caitlin and I interacted back at Loyola Academy through the Dumbach Scholars Honors Program that I founded and directed. It’s notable that she chose Loyola over the local nationally-ranked public high school because of the Loyola Academy Classics Tour that I established in 1979.

 

Douglas Boin, professor at St. Louis University, stopped by the booth en route to his AIA presentation, “New Geophysical and Archaeological Research on the Urban and Suburban Transformation of Roman Hispellum from the Site of the Villa Fidelia (Umbria, Italy).” Turns out that wordy title described a presentation that was, in fact, a “big reveal.” Slide by slide, Doug recounted this past summer’s exploratory excavations at the Villa Fidelia just outside today’s Spello. The dig revealed the foundations of what the team of Umbrian archaeologists identified as a temple. Indeed, Doug believes this is the site of a temple built to honor Constantine’s ancestors. The significant foundations correlate with an inscription about the temple. The “reveal” has attracted significant coverage in a range of media—see the set of links in this issue’s Teaching Tips & Resources. Here’s one to get you started! For Doug, who studies the interrelationship of religious belief and practice in the late antique world, this architectural find is especially significant.

 

It was my honor and privilege to experience such a significant moment in Doug’s professional life. He considers his time at Loyola Academy, where he took Latin with me and participated in the Loyola Academy Classics Tour that I led in 1993, as an exceptionally formative experience. Doug and I also worked together on the yearbook (I served as adviser for twenty editions of Loyola’s award-winning The Year). Doug worked his way up the yearbook cursus honorum to Editor-in-Chief in 1995, his senior year. In chatting prior to his AIA presentation, Doug averred that his yearbook experience has served him very well in his work as a professor, author, and presenter. Yearbook taught him how to tell a story, how to engage an audience, and how to use visuals effectively. Doug’s AIA presentation showed those skills at work. I was particularly impressed with his slides and their informative captions.

 

Lou Bolchazy, our late founder and president, took great pride in providing materials that encouraged the study of Latin. Thus, the B-C website hosts a page, “Why Latin.” In this eLitterae, we publish the most recent addition to this page—“Latin for Success.” Check it out. Feel free to use it for your recruitment efforts.

 

I’m happy to publish in this issue the first posting of our Spring Webinar Series. Mark your calendar for February 7, when the dynamic Bob Holschuh-Simmons discusses love in ancient Greece and presents a set of examples for you to use in class in a special Valentine’s Day learning activity. You will enjoy Bob’s webinar, “Love Is Love, Ancient Style: Different Models of Happy Love from Ancient Greek Literature, Just in Time for Valentine’s Day.”

 

Don

 

This is the third in a series of five stories to accompany the five review units of Latin for the New Millennium, Level 2. While complementary to LNM, the stories can serve all second-year Latin students.

 

Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) was an important figure in establishing Italian literature. He is best known for his work, Commedia (Divine Comedy), which describes Dante’s journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven. Just as Petrarch wrote letters to the esteemed author Cicero, Dante, in his work, imagines his own literary idol, Vergil, leading him on his journey as he explores morality and the afterlife. As Dante progresses through the underworld, memories of his beloved Beatrice, who fascinated him since their first meeting when he was nine years old and who became his concept of the ideal woman, inspire him to continue on his harrowing journey.

 

 

 

Vocabula Nova
beātus, -a, -um – blessed
bēstia, -ae, f. – wild animal
circulus, -ī, m. – circle
Iēsūs, Iēsū, m. – Jesus, for Christians, the son of God
īnferius (adv.) – deeper, further down
īnscrīptiō, īnscrīptiōnis, f. – inscription
īnspiciō, īnspicere, īnspēxī, īnspectus – to inspect
LASCIATE OGNE SPERANZA, VOI CH’INTRATE – Italian for Abandon all hope, you who enter.
Limbus, -ī, m. – Limbo, a place where some Christians believe the unbaptized reside after death for eternity
Lūcānus, -ī, m. – Lucan, Roman poet, born in Cordoba, Spain, famous for his epic Pharsalia
mīror, mīrārī, mīrātus sum – to marvel at, to wonder at
Orcus, -ī, m. – god of the underworld, also known as Hades
peccāns, peccantis, m. – sinner
perītus, -a, -um – skilled
Pūrgātōrius, -ī, m. – Purgatory, a place where some Christians believe sinners pay for their sins, are cleansed, and then are able to enter heaven
quisque, quaeque, quodque –each
valdē (adv.) – really, very

 

Editor’s Note: Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers is pleased to provide this Latin story for Latin teacher subscribers to use with their own classes only. The PDF version includes a full-color illustration and caption.

About the Author
Emma Vanderpool has taught Latin at the university, middle school, and high school levels—currently at Goffstown High School in New Hampshire. Vanderpool earned her Bachelor of Arts in Latin, Classics, and History from Monmouth College in Illinois and her Master of Arts in Teaching Classical Humanities from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. She serves as a state rep for CANE, as an executive board member of Ascanius, and as an organizer for Our Voices and Lupercal. Vanderpool is the recipient of a Distinguished Teaching Award from UMASS Amherst and was honored as the Lincoln Laureate for Monmouth College. She has self-published ten novellae. Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers is pleased to have had Vanderpool launch our novella series with Explore Latin: Aves and the first three titles for the Encounter Latin series—Augury is for the Birds: Marcus de Avibus Discit, Under His Father's Wing: Marcus de Auguribus Discit, and Princess, Priestess, Mother, Wolf: Fabula de Romulo et Remo (forthcoming).

 

Memories of the last AIA SCS annual meeting in Chicago, a decade ago, still bring shudders to attendees and probably deterred some from attending this year. An extraordinary, historic polar vortex struck Chicago. It not only kept folks from venturing outside into the arctic cold but also trapped many AIA SCS attendees in Chicago for an additional three days. Trains and planes were not running, and automobile rentals were scarce. Fortunately, the gods smiled on AIA SCS 2024 and Father Winter provided fairly mild weather, the kind the Scots call “fresh!”

 

The Chicago Hilton on Michigan Avenue, when opened in 1927 as the Stevens Hotel, was the largest hotel in the world. Its size and beaux-arts splendor still capture the imagination. When moving books and materials from the southern entrance to the exhibit room a full block away, B-C’s Don Sprague and operations manager Rene Vela experienced a special tour of the hotel’s bowels! Rene and Don soon filled the booth’s five tables and two bookcases with an array of B-C titles.

 

For the AIA SCS exhibit, B-C traditionally displays a full complement of titles, giving prominence to the Latin for the New Millennium series, the BC Latin Readers, AP Latin texts, and the Latin novellas. This year, pride of place was given to the new series, New Testament Greek: A Reading Course. Bridget Dean and Don Sprague, B-C representatives for the meeting, enjoyed discussing texts with attendees, chatting with B-C authors, and introducing folks to various learning materials. Bridget especially enjoyed discussing Lumina and its effectiveness in helping students master Latin for the New Millennium, Levels 1 and 2 as well as its success in preparing students for the AP Latin exam. AIA SCS is a great opportunity for folks to connect and catch up. Bridget particularly appreciates catching up with colleagues from doctoral studies at Ohio State.

 

 

Next year, we will see you in Philadelphia for AIA SCS 2025!

In the dynamic landscape of education, the practicality of studying an ancient language like Latin has come under increasing scrutiny. Studying Latin provides a multitude of benefits: refining analytical thinking; providing a linguistic toolkit for professionals; enriching day-to-day understanding of language and culture.

 

One of the foremost advantages of studying Latin is its capacity to refine analytical thinking. The intricacies of Latin grammar and syntax demand a high level of precision and attention to detail. Parsing through complex sentence structures and deciphering nuanced meanings hone cognitive skills, fostering an analytical mindset that proves beneficial across various academic disciplines and professional contexts. Engaging with authentic ancient texts challenges learners to parse not only grammar but the distinct mindset of the ancient author. This mental exercise and discipline extend beyond the confines of language study, contributing to enhanced problem-solving abilities and critical thinking skills that are highly sought after in today's competitive job market. Mastering Latin is akin to optimizing one’s analytical abilities.

 

Latin provides a linguistic toolkit that proves invaluable in a variety of professions. The roots of many English words, especially in fields such as law, medicine, and the sciences, can be traced back to Latin. The study of Latin enhances one's ability to comprehend and utilize specialized terminology, offering a distinct advantage in studying in these fields. Lawyers, scientists, and medical professionals, among others, can benefit significantly from a solid foundation in Latin, as it equips them with a nuanced understanding of the linguistic origins of their respective fields.

 

Beyond its professional utility, studying Latin enriches the day-to-day understanding of language and culture. Latin is the precursor of many modern languages, particularly those in the Romance language family—French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese. By exploring the roots of language, students gain a deeper appreciation for linguistic evolution and the interconnectedness of cultures. This enrichment goes beyond the realm of academia, contributing to a broader and more nuanced understanding of literature, history, and culture. In studying Latin, students are also studying Roman architecture, engineering, art, law, political structures, and more.

 

In conclusion, the benefits of studying Latin are manifold and far-reaching. From refining analytical thinking to providing a versatile linguistic toolkit for various professions and enriching everyday understanding of language and culture, Latin proves to be a worthwhile investment. The study of Latin fosters well-rounded individuals prepared for the challenges of the modern world.

 

 

 

Booths 69/70
Bolchazy-Carducci Representative: Donald Sprague

 

 

  

 By Rose Williams