You Might as Well Learn to Love Aristotle

By Randee Baty, our AP Lit., Shakespeare, College Comp, and College Research instructor at The Lukeion Project

It doesn’t matter what field or discipline you study, he will pop up. It doesn’t matter if you are studying in 322 BC or 2019 AD, he will pop up. And it pretty much doesn’t matter what class you take here at The Lukeion Project, he will pop up. You’ve probably guessed it.  Aristotle, the ultimate know-it-all.  Don’t think that by avoiding a philosophy class you will avoid Aristotle. Whatever you study, he will be there.
Just to make sure everyone is familiar with the vital statistics, Aristotle was born in northern Greece in 384 BC and died in 322 BC. His father, the physician to the king of Macedonia, died when he was young, and he was raised by a guardian. He joined Plato’s school when he was 17 or 18 and stayed there for approximately 20 years. 
After leaving Plato’s school, Aristotle traveled to Assos in present-day Turkey and became a friend of the ruler there, eventually marrying the ruler’s ward, Pythias. She and Aristotle had one daughter together, also named Pythias. After Pythias died, he had a son named Nichomacus with Herpyllis who became his second wife. In 343, he began tutoring Alexander, son of Philip of Macedon. That student would one day be known as Alexander the Great. He also taught two other future leaders, Ptolemy and Cassander.
There have been many great thinkers throughout the centuries such as Socrates and Plato, huge influences on Aristotle himself. But Aristotle is the one that students will keep running into time after time. Why does he show up in academic studies seemingly more than any other man in history? Because he wrote about everything.

Are you interested in the theater? Until the last several hundred years, much of western drama was controlled by the idea of Aristotle’s unities. He taught in On the Art of Poetry that dramatic works should have unity of place, unity of time and unity of action. Therefore, dramas should only have one location, they should take place over the passage of no more than one day, and everything in the play should directly link to the main plot with no digressions. Even after English theater had begun to move away from practicing the unities, French theater held onto them. Obviously, modern plays have moved far from this ideal, but any study of the history of the theater will include Aristotle.

Are you interested in literature?  The plot of the tragedy was analyzed and studied by Aristotle, using famous Greek tragedians such as Sophocles, for example. Aristotle wrote that the tragic character must be nobly born, must be a mix of both bad and good, and must fall from prosperity to suffering.  The great tragic characters of Shakespeare follow the principles Aristotle laid out. Hamlet, King Lear, and Coriolanus all spring to mind.  All three are Shakespearean characters who take that fall Aristotle describes and most readers would consider them stronger characters than Shakespeare’s comic heroes. One of my favorite literary characters, Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre, also meets Aristotle’s guidelines for a great tragic character.

Are you interested in rhetoric? Even though Aristotle was not the first person to write about rhetoric, The Art of Rhetoric is still one of the most read texts on the matter. Many modern textbooks use The Art of Rhetoric as their basis and then just use modern examples to illustrate ancient principles.

Are you interested in philosophy? Needless to say, you will study Aristotle.

Are you interested in ethics? Aristotle was what we call today a virtue ethicist. In a very simplified form, virtue ethics says that people become more virtuous over time because they practice being virtuous and nurture virtuous qualities. Once they are virtuous, they should be able to judge others who have not yet attained the judge’s level of virtue. People who are not virtuous will not be happy, according to him. Happiness depends on leading a virtuous life. He covers this in two writings, Eudemian Ethics and Nicomachean Ethics, the second written to his son, Nichomachus.

Are you interested in science? Aristotle studied anatomy, astronomy, geography, geology, physics, biology, and zoology.  He believed that nature should be studied by reason and observation. He believed knowledge could be examined. He didn’t believe in chance or spontaneity as causes in scientific experiments. His methods resembled scientific method practices today. Discoveries of Aristotle were used by both Newton and Einstein. He understood that the earth was round almost 2000 before Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

Are you interested in logic? Aristotle believed it was the first step in learning. With his creation of the syllogism, he created the field of formal logic study that is still done today.

Are you interested in politics? Aristotle believed that men are social animals and that the state exists for the good of the citizens. He wrote about different systems of government and also about what makes a good citizen. He believed it was natural for men to form themselves into communities and that there should be diversity in those communities if it was to be healthy. His Politics is still widely read and, interestingly enough, his ethical works mention that a study of ethics will lead to a study of politics. Politics and ethics went together in his mind, something we can’t always say today.

Math, metaphysics, poetry, psychology, aesthetics, music, linguistics, economics, history, you name it, he studied it and wrote about it. Along with being a primary influence on Alexander the Great, his influence on millions of lesser-known students can’t be overestimated.

If you are going into any field of academic endeavor, you will meet and get to know Aristotle.  He’s a smart guy, so you might as well learn to love him.

Plan for AP Latin from the Start

By Amy Barr at The Lukeion Project

At The Lukeion Project, we offer AP Latin in our fourth-year Latin class after students have had a chance to complete their grammar years (Latin I and II with us) and a full year of Latin readings (Latin III). Students who make good progress in Latin will cross that golden finish line during their junior or senior year, depending on when they started Latin with us. The AP Latin Exam typically tests a student over the translation and close readings of two authors (Caesar and Vergil) as would be typical in a second-year college Latin course. This makes success on a single AP exam worth ticking four semesters at college off the "to-do" list.

Many students join our program after starting Latin elsewhere. Unfortunately, some super teacher-friendly Latin approaches on the market don’t offer enough Latin syntax, grammar, and language mechanics to carry a student into reading the real stuff. Obviously, some of our own students feel the need for a little more Latin review before moving into our third-year program. The solution? Offer a Transition course to give students who need it one more chance to fill in any gaps before moving into a translation-heavy Latin III course. If students have time in their schedule, this can be a good option for many students. Those who feel their Latin is pretty strong, we offer additional years of Latin study after AP Latin, including Cicero, Ovid, and now Terence.

So, students who would like to try their hand at AP Latin should already be reasonably competent in Latin translation as they start the course. What else do they need to succeed?

A College Board approved AP Latin course dictates the Latin that the class must read as well as a range of additional skills beyond skillful Latin translation alone. The course’s goals are to help students:
1. Build accurate literal translations from Caesar’s De Bello Gallico and Vergil’s Aeneid.
2. Understand the broader context of the written passages.
3. Understand the style of writing and the rhetorical devices employed.
4. Analyze the Latin and draw logical observations and well-supported conclusions based on Latin evidence.
5. Practice reading Latin prose and poetry aloud with accurate comprehension and appreciation.
6. Learn to scan dactylic hexameter and discover how it is used to enhance the text and create a specific effect.

That's a lot for two semesters of study so I would recommend a rising AP Latin student possess a certain mindset. First, AP Latin students must personally desire to be enrolled in the class. The material is challenging and extremely rewarding for those who do the work. Externally imposed incentives often fail in the long run. Examples of bad reasons to take AP Latin include: parent(s) alone think it is a good idea to take the class while Joe Student is just along for the ride, or Joe Student is mainly looking to collect shiny stars for college applications and hopes any old AP class will do. If you do not personally want to be enrolled in the class, you are not a good candidate, even if doing the fourth year of Latin would make mom really proud.

All AP Latin students must work hard to develop their critical/analytical essay writing skills. It is impossible to pass the AP Latin Exam without writing well-informed, well-organized, analytical essays. Does this mean you must begin this course with fierce college-level writing skills? No. But, if you do not wish to work hard to develop those fierce writing skills (or if you consider writing to be akin to dental surgery), this class also may not be the right class for you.

Conversely, most students do not start the class with an understanding of what will make an excellent AP Latin essay. If flowery essay-writing is a strong point-of-pride for you and you are not willing to learn the new methods consistent with philological analysis, this may not be the right class for you.

All AP Latin students must take personal responsibility for improving their Latin skills. One student may suffer over relative tenses in the translation of participles while her peers agonize over subjunctives. This course is not about the basics of Latin translation so be prepared to go brush up on your own. Only students who have already translated a selection of Golden and Silver authors prior to starting this class (Martial, Catullus, Ovid, Cicero, etc.) will be prepared to tackle Vergil and Caesar. If you have limited “real Latin” translation experience, this also may not be the right class for you.

This sounds tough! What’s the point of taking AP Latin?

1. Students who successfully earn a 3, 4, or 5 on the AP Latin exam, depending on the requirements of the college program they ultimately enter, will “test out” of two full years of a foreign language. The financial benefits of testing out of 16 credit hours of language are obvious in terms of time and money.
2. If you want to be a Classics major in college, earning a good score on the AP Latin Exam is nearly (sometimes always) a requirement of getting into a decent undergraduate program while hopefully winning a scholarship to study in that program. While I'm talking about things that make you an appealing applicant as an undergraduate going into Classics, let's include adding Classical Greek to your high school studies. If you are interested in studying Classics, try to do both languages (Latin and Greek). If you can only fit in time for Latin, be sure to take AP Latin.
3. If you don’t want to be a Classics major but enjoy Latin and want to test out of college language requirements, passing the AP Latin exam (if your college program accepts AP Latin credits), voila! You have just tested out and at great savings. Pro tip: add a Classics minor or even double major. If you have already tested out of your first two years of Latin, you’ll only have to add a few credits to make that minor (or double major) a reality. A Classics major/minor is a great addition for those considering degrees in law, medicine, sciences, literature/journalism, English, and so much more. 

What else can support success on the AP Latin Exam?

The AP Latin Exam presumes a decent understanding of Classics which is, in itself, very interdisciplinary. Don’t wait to take other classes in related areas (history, literature, writing, philosophy). I recommend the following Lukeion Project courses scattered through the high school years:
1. Muse Literature Series (Muse Reloosed focuses on Latin literature in translation but I consider both of them essential)
2. Mythology Alpha (including Iliad and Odyssey) and Mythology Beta (includes Aeneid in English plus a study of ancient heroes) - people mistakenly take this topic as "fun for kids." We should all consider it essential for understanding Western civilization.
4. Roman History – offered only in the spring semester (take Greek History too if Classics is on your horizon)
5. College Composition – master a range of writing assignment types assigned at the college level. This course is not just for those thinking about entering a program in the humanities. Both this course and College Research Writing make the perfect senior year English credit.
6. College Research Writing—We focus specifically on success in college research papers. Do not graduate from high school before taking this course. 
7.     Philosophy: the Romans (spring) - educated Romans mainly held a Stoic worldview when Caesar and Vergil were composing their works. Naturally, taking a full year of Classical Philosophy is a great idea.

Want to be a Classicist?

By Kelsie Stewart
[Ms. Stewart is a doctoral student deep in the Classics trenches at The Ohio State University, a former Lukeion student and traveler, and an esteemed Lukeion grader in advanced Latin]

Dear Future Classicists:

Help! Just kidding; Classics is an amazing major or minor for undergraduate studies. Just think long and hard before you do grad school.

I am having a rewarding if challenging time, but my advice to you is: have a plan. Classics is a great major if you’re planning on going to medical or legal school afterward. It is a great minor if you’re doing anything else. Before you consider graduate school, know that it is a long grueling process during which, you will make little money. After graduate school, the market is quite slim for jobs at colleges and universities. It is better at highschools and online programs like the Lukeion Project; just know that is what you’re getting yourself in for. You may end up changing your mind later, but make the most well thought out and researched plan that you can.

To supplement your planning process in Classics or anything else, you need mentoring, and more mentoring, and all the mentoring. Talk to students who are a few years ahead of you and younger teachers and professors. Their memories will be fresher, and their more recent experiences will be more relevant.  Older professors are great to chat with, but they probably won’t be up to date on the nitty-gritty details of what you need to do in your career to provide much help for you. There is no step by step youtube video or syllabus for how to go from being a high school student to a tenured professor. You just have to figure it out, and the only tool you have is talking to people who are doing or have recently done it.

Speaking of nitty-gritty details, you will need research, references, teaching experience, travel experience, money, test scores, and 45-50 hours a week of difficult mental work.

You need research experience on your resume because one of the major features of academic work is research. Even if you are planning to teach high school but you are going to graduate school, you will need to do research before and during the process. You will need to learn to write well. To do this, find a mentor, or take one of the Lukeion’s classes on writing. Also, don’t tell anyone you just want to be a highschool teacher unless you are going to a program that specializes in that; it’s not as prestigious and people won’t take you as seriously.

You will need to study for and take the GRE and obtain at least whatever the minimum score is at the university you are applying to for acceptance. You start studying for this test several months beforehand and leave yourself enough time to take the test a second time if necessary before applications are due. There are courses you can pay for, but I’d recommend buying a reliable prep book and working through that. Also, taking the GRE costs money, so be prepared.

You will need teaching experience. TA, substitute, grader, tutor. Ask around at your university and local colleges, high schools, and job boards. Get whatever you can and take on and as much as you can reasonably manage. The other half of your job as a professor is teaching. Schools and employers will want to see you can do this.

You will need references. If you have been getting mentoring from a few professors, you should be good to go. People like people who ask them for advice. Don’t be sycophantic, but if you’ve been consistently asking for advice, they will like you more for the attention, and because you seem to be making an effort. Ask them to write references for you many months before the deadline. Give them as much information about yourself, the school or job, and the application as you can. Do not make them do an ounce of effort that you could have done for them.

If you can, get some travel experience. It is the most enjoyable thing on this list and adds a couple bonus points to your resume. It shows that you are passionate enough about Classics to spend lots of money to go look at it. There are plenty of programs that offer scholarship money for travel. You can also do a Lukeion trip-which I would recommend. I don’t love to study abroad because I don’t really want to have homework and sit in a classroom. I preferred my Lukeion trip because it was educational but focused on the hands-on experience.

You will need money. Unless you are planning on medical school afterward, you can’t afford to go into debt for a classics education. Make as much money as you can over the summer, apply for scholarships, and only apply to graduate programs that offer stipends. You won’t make a ton of money in this career, but you can be comfortable and at least not go into major debt. Learn how to budget, cook at home, and if possible, get married! I’m kind of joking about marriage, but it helps if you can split the bills and your roommate is not a stranger.

Graduate school is demanding. I work 45-50 hours a week and I have peers who do more like 60. You have to be disciplined because there is no time clock or supervisor to make sure you are keeping up. It is all on you. You have to spend a lot of time sitting at desks in freezing libraries memorizing rare verb forms and fragmentary poets that you don’t care about. You do get to spend time on things that you are interested in, but not all of them. Be mentally prepared.

Perfectionists will struggle. Classical studies encompass more information than one person could possibly learn in a lifetime, so there will always be more you need to learn. Even in the particular field you choose to specialize in, you will never be finished, and there will always be holes in your memory that you have to go back and fill in.

If you are doing Classics, do your research so you are aware of what you are signing up for. Then make the best plan that you can. Good luck!

Just Follow the Directions

by Amy Barr with The Lukeion Project

I teach mostly high school students. About half of them struggle to follow directions. This problem isn’t limited to this age group, but I can easily compare them across the span of my teaching career. Sure, I’m getting older and crankier, but even younger colleagues concur the situation is getting worse.

Maybe humans hit information-overload long ago even while they must still live in the constant blast of the online information-spigot. Perhaps students of this age naturally figure I’ll just email them if it were important. Most people assume they know what an assignment entails long before they’ve read how to complete that assignment (and they are often wrong). Sure, nearly everyone finds orientation handouts and syllabi dull reading. This doesn't explain the trouble.

Following instructions is important for success in the kitchen, furniture assembly, filling out required paperwork at the DMV, knitting a sweater, and completing a research project. If you are adept at following instructions you can build your own house, run a business, craft a gourmet meal, or paint “almost” like an expert. 

Failing to follow the instructions leads to comical “post-worthy” inconveniences to major disasters worth millions of dollars. We know this, yet reading and following instructions fall in the same category as flossing after every meal. We know we should do it more often than we do. (Virtuous flossers: please don’t send me notes).
 
Fans of The Great British Baking Show will confirm that following instructions can be the main issue during the technical challenge in which everyone is required to bake the same thing. Disasters aren’t usually due to a lack of skill but due to a failure to follow the (admittedly vague) instructions. The video editors love to show hosts issuing admonitions and tips followed by clips of contestants ignoring those admonitions and tips. This makes for great entertainment plus we can shake our head and say, “No wonder the sponge is stodgy!”

I use several ways to get my students to follow my instructions. I know these things work because they become excellent directions-followers. Newest students will struggle and stumble for the first 4 or 5 assignments but then their next 7 or 8 decades run more smoothly. It’s worth it. What do I do to get students to follow instructions? Here are just three ideas:

1. I can be a bit dramatic. Sure, it isn’t going to be the end of the world if a student ignores some formatting laws, but my instructions make it clear they will lose points if they do. When their score is diminished by something so easily fixed as line-spacing or font-size, they pay attention the next time to both the details and the big picture. 
 
2. I sometimes hide ways to earn bonus points deep in the instructions. After the assignment is over, there’s certain to be a peer boasting in class about those helpful extra points. Oh my! Everyone becomes careful to read all the instructions on the next assignment, just in case there are more hidden goodies.

3. I expect them to follow instructions and hold them to it. This last pointer seems to be a no-brainer. Don’t we all expect people to follow the instructions we provide? The number of new students who use their failure to read or follow the instructions as their excuse to ask for a second chance suggests otherwise. Many are accustomed to blaming the instructions rather than blaming their failure to follow the instructions. Their approach works for them elsewhere or else why would they try it in my class? I step outside everyone’s comfort zone, pick up my “mean Latin teacher I.D. card,” and require everyone to follow instructions. When things unravel (as they often do), I encourage them to pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and do better next week. They usually do. By week three or four, things start to go smoothly for everyone.

Simply following instructions will bring most of us to a satisfactory point in our grades, furniture construction, dinner preparation, knitting, gardening, and home repair. Following instructions will get us through the most mundane paperwork tasks and the most elaborate swing set/treehouse ever crafted by flashlight. Are instructions vague, poorly worded, or are they in Swedish? Are you experiencing unusual variances in the assignment expectations, turkey or font size, tax table specifics, or tab A/slot B issues? This is normal! Ask your instructor, mentor, elder, parent, neighbor, or more experienced peer. That’s all part of the skill set as well.