In today's world everything from Coca Cola to cars can be called 'classic.' But in its earliest sense this word, Latin in origin, was used to describe the literatures of Greece and Rome because they were 'first-class', the best of their kind. As an academic field today, Classics is the study of these languages and literatures and of the cultures of which they were a part, as well as the study of the continuing impact that antiquity has had on the modern world. Although Latin and ancient Greek are seldom spoken today, they have left an indelible impact on modern languages such as English, Spanish, and French. Furthermore, the ideas given voice in the Greek of Homer or Plato and in the Latin of Ovid or Cicero have shaped the Western tradition from which America emerged.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Upcoming talks sponsored by the
Classics Department!
The Classics Department will host its annual ETA SIGMA PHI Lecture, on
March 8 at 4 pm in the Visitor Center (Turner Hall).
Lecturer: Dr. Daniel Kapust of the University of Wisconsin, a B.A. alumnus of UMCP.
Lecture title: “Naturally Convincing? Cicero and Smith on Why It’s Never Just Rhetoric.”
Dr. Kapust’s talk will follow the annual initiation of new members into the campus chapter of Eta Sigma Phi, the national Classics honor society.
LATIN PEDAGOGY COURSE/WORKSHOPS FOR SPRING 2012
LATN 488P / 640
Instructor: Dr. Judith P. Hallett
jeph@umd.edu Saturdays, 9 AM – 3:30 PM: Jan. 28; Feb. 4, 11, 25; Mar. 3; Apr. 14, 21
Make-up dates in case of inclement weather: Feb. 18, Mar. 10
This course is centered on a series of day-long Saturday workshops (which may be taken individually as well), each featuring distinguished guest faculty members, focused on important issues in the teaching of Latin at the K-12 level and beyond. In connection with its theme of women and gender in Latin pedagogy, it also includes a colloquium on teaching about women and gender in the Latin classroom, and a mentoring project that involves “shadowing” two current Latin teachers and observing at least one of these teachers in the classroom.
Topics include: Learning Styles and Abilities in the Latin Language Classroom; Textbooks and Other Materials for Teaching Latin; Ancient Roman Culture in the Latin Language Classroom; Using Films in Classical Courses; Standards for Certification in Latin and the Latin Praxis Exam; Life upon "The Stage of the Latin Classroom."
On Sunday, April1, 2012, we will be hosting an International Conference on Classical Greek and Roman Literature:
Gendered Perspectives in Reading and Reception.
This conference was organized by Jane Donawerth (English), Caroline Eades (French/SLLC) and Judith P. Hallett (Classics), and honors the work of pioneering classicist Barbara McManus, and features Edith Hall (Royal Holloway/Kings College, London) and Amy Richlin (UCLA) as the keynote speakers. It will also include presentations by UMCP faculty Izumi Ashizawa, Joan Burton, Silvia Carlorosi, Theresa Coletti, Michael Collier, Sandra Cypess, Arthur Eckstein, Melanie Kill, Julie Koser; filmmaker Judith Dwan Hallet; and other distinguished classicists from the UK, France, Switzerland and Canada as well as the US.
Funded by the UMCP ADVANCE Project for Women; a Presidential Initiative Grant from the Classical Association of the Atlantic States;
and the Departments of Classics and English, the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures,
the College of Arts and Humanities, and the Graduate School.
For further information please contact Judith P. Hallett, jeph@umd.edu.
During the January 2011 break, the Classics Department vacated its suite of offices in 2407 Marie Mount Hall.
We are now located at 1210 Marie Mount Hall, on the first floor, one floor down and on the other side of the building. When entering from the mall, proceed to your left past the University Senate offices. We are about halfway down the hall on your left.
If you enter from the rear, or Chapel side proceed to your right to the down staircase. That will bring you directly to the Classics offices.
COME BY AND SEE US IN OUR NEW HOME!!
THE MYTHIC WARRIOR'S HANDBOOK:
Classics M.A. students Erika Carlson ('10) and Heather Day ('09) are co-authors of a new book! click here
