Latin Prose Composition

Latin 430 Spring 1999 Tuesday, 1:30-4:00 Bennett 300

J.J. O'Donnell

Office: 3401 Walnut, Suite 230A

Phone: 417-5024

The course seeks to assist students in improving their command of the Latin language:

through patient attention to the disciplines of Latin prose as exemplified in a diversity of writers of all periods;
and through regular practice in writing Latin prose, accompanied by discussion of the main points of Latin syntax and style.

No previous experience in writing Latin is expected (apart from what you may have done in beginning Latin courses); students who have studied Latin prose composition previously are unlikely to benefit from this course.

Textbooks:

Bradley's Arnold -- standard text for Latin prose composition;
Allen and Greenough's New Latin Grammar -- basic reference grammar;
John Traupman, Conversational Latin for Oral Proficiency

Course requirements:

1. Weekly attendance (absences noted);
2. Timely submission of written work (late work not accepted);
3. Final examination to be scheduled by registrar.

Tentative outline of assignments:

Date	Topics discussed	Written Assignment due	Latin author for discussion
January 12	Basics of Latin prose		English samples
January 19	Indirect discourse	Exercise 4A	Caesar
January 26	Relative clauses	Exercise 6A	Cicero
February 2	Expressions of purpose and result	Exercise 11A	Sallust
February 9	Independent uses of the subjunctive	Exercises 14A and 15A	Livy
February 16	Indirect questions	Exercise 19A	Tacitus
February 23	Expressions of mood and mode	Exercise 22A	TBA
March 2	Pronouns	Exercise 24A	Apuleius
March 9	SPRING BREAK	---	---
March 16	Participles	Exercises 45A, 46A	Ammianus Marcellinus
March 23	Ablative Absolute	Exercise 52A	Augustine
March 30	Conditional sentences	Exercise 53A	Ennodius
April 6	Causal clauses and expressions	Exercises 57A and 59A	Vulgate Bible
April 13	"Qui clauses"	Exercise 61A	Chancery style
April 20	Review of strategies	Exercises 63A and 64A	Erasmus

Everything you need to know about writing and speaking Latin.