Unit information: Latin Language Level B2 in 2011/12

Unit name	Latin Language Level B2
Unit code	CLASM0035
Credit points	20
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. O'Gorman
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	Department of Classics & Ancient History
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

This course introduces students to a range of skills in independent reading and analysis of Latin literature. We will be looking at extracts from the first book of Livy’s Ab urbe condita, concentrating on the different resources available to us for interpretation. Emphasis will be on close analysis of specific passages, exploring the different links between our grammatical understanding of the text and our literary appreciation of the narrative. The extracts we will read direct our attention to the representation of ideal rulers and tyrants in Roman history, to the theme of good and bad foreigners at Rome, and to the historical text’s interaction with the genre of tragedy.

Aims:

To develop students’ knowledge of the Latin language through the reading of classical Latin prose; to introduce students to techniques of independent reading of Latin, such as use of dictionaries and commentaries; to introduce students to issues of translation and interpretation of Latin literature.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will have developed and consolidated their knowledge of the Latin language and will have developed their skills of advanced independent reading of Latin texts. They will have acquired knowledge in the use of dictionaries and commentaries, and will be able to relate this knowledge to their understanding and interpretation of a Latin text. In addition, second year students will be expected to have developed more sophisticated analytical skills, as demonstrated in their formal assessments and in their participation in seminar discussions.

Teaching Information

Lectures, seminars and reading classes, grammatical instruction classes; 30 contact hours; 170 hours independent learning

Assessment Information

• 2 practical criticism exercises on a designated passage of 35-40 lines of set text, with guidance questions; weighted equally to count for 50%.

• 2 class tests of 45 minutes each:

• 1 on sight translation and grammatical analysis, undertaken with use of a dictionary;

• 1 on set text translation and literary comments, undertaken without reference books;

weighted equally to count for 50%.

Reading and References

• C.T. Lewis Elementary Latin Dictionary Oxford

• J. Morwood Latin Grammar Oxford

• J. Wilson and C. Parsons A Basic Latin Vocabulary Bristol