Let's Create Some Latin
Languages are made for communication. They develop organically among groups of people who need to externalize their thoughts so that others can share in them, whether it be warnings of danger, requests for aid, or musings about the nature of things. Given the back and forth of communication, an understanding of a language requires not just receiving it, but also producing it: that is, that we be not hearers of the word only, but speakers and writers also.
For this reason, the natural end of a course of Latin study is composition. And for many centuries, this has been how the curriculum has been set up. But the realities of language learning these days mean that most who study Latin never progress to the point of doing Latin composition.
The recent emphasis on spoken Latin aims in some ways to redress this, and it is a helpful development. It is difficult to overstate how helpful the project of writing and speaking Latin is for understanding great Latin literature.
So this seminar will take you deep into the practice of writing and speaking in Latin as a way of strengthening your understanding of the language. It will provide structures and principles for developing comfort with creating thoughts in Latin, and a space to explore and begin finding your own Latin voice alongside others curious to find their voices as well.
This course is included in the Latin Package.
Monday - Friday, 9:00 - 11:30 am CT
July 22 - 26, 2024
$200 / student
or included in the Latin package
-
Dr. Johnson’s personal, innovative, and engaging instruction has helped me, even as a longtime Latin teacher, to think about Latin in new and surprising ways, which has infused my teaching. I have been humbled and yet inspired anew to value the process more than the result and to share that vital perspective with my students.
-
Junius Johnson is one of the best professors I have ever encountered. He is deeply knowledgeable and qualified, but also uses humor and a sense of play to foster a collaborative and engaging learning environment — all while pushing his students to do and be their best. He equipped me with the essential skills of nuanced Latin translation, and perhaps just as importantly instilled in me a love for the language and appreciation for its historical development and contexts. More than a decade after studying with him, I continue to benefit from Professor Johnson’s instruction and in fact am currently translating a ninth-century text for publication.
-
With humor, intelligent discussion, and deep insights, Junius Johnson gives you more than an overview or introduction to Latin, he inspires you to keep learning hard things while giving you a vision and much fuller picture of Latin.
-
Junius has such a robust understanding of the language, and his passion is contagious. His approach invites parents, educators, and students to re-imagine how they think about Latin, moving from merely transactional to experiential. He’s also not afraid to address many of the “why” questions that all too often go unanswered. Highly recommend!
-
Simply put, Junius Johnson is the best Latin teacher I have ever experienced in my many years of supervising education. He is a true scholar of the Latin language from the classical period to the neo-Latin present; he has success teaching every age and skill level. Junius is compassionate with those who are less gifted than he, but still manages to stretch his students in a friendly and inviting manner. I wholeheartedly recommend him to you as your teacher. Trust me, the encounter will be memorable.