Latin A2 Thread
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Original post by Crimson Goose
Hey everyone 
I'm sorry this is a bit off topic in the middle of your exam revision (good luck by the way) but I am trying to decide whether to do Sallust or Tacitus for A2. I am wondering whether anyone who's done either could briefly summarise what they view as the key pros and cons of the author they are doing, and or say any resources or books they found (or are finding) useful. Thanks
I'm sorry this is a bit off topic in the middle of your exam revision (good luck by the way) but I am trying to decide whether to do Sallust or Tacitus for A2. I am wondering whether anyone who's done either could briefly summarise what they view as the key pros and cons of the author they are doing, and or say any resources or books they found (or are finding) useful. Thanks Doesn't your teacher choose? Anyway I'm doing Tacitus and the main con is the fact that there is hardly any resources for it! The Norma Miller commentary is the only up to date commentary, with various authors adding some points but these books aren't free to hand.
Original post by jessy313
does anyone doing Aeneid 1-299 and Tacitus annals have any predictions about what passages might come up?
thanks
thanks
Extremely hard to predict, its the first time they've done the texts in a while! Although if last years anything to go by, learn the first 50 lines of the aeneid well!
Original post by binxgillam
I'm doing the Tacitus too - I hate it so much! Does anybody on here have any practice essays for Tacitus that they wouldn't mind uploading - I find him so obscure and difficult to find points for 
The resources for Annals 15 is extremely limited, I'm just trying to use the Normal Miller Bristol Classical Press commentary.
Original post by ohmygosh
I have virtually no stylistic points on Book IV of the Aeneid, someone please help me! especially on the main passages, Anna's speech, the hunt, rumour, Iarbas, Aeneas leaving, speeches with Juno and Venus. anything at all would be helpful
Here are a few example stylistic points on the first 4 lines; once you see what kind of points you need to be looking for, just make sure you can spot similar things throughout the book. Just pick out stuff like word positioning, the sound of the words, alliteration, particularly vivid words, caesuras etc. It's the close analysis like this which gets the high marks
At regina gravi iamdudum saucia cura - virgil uses slow metre; emphasises how long Dido has been suffering for
Vulnus alit venis et caeco carpitur igni. - 'carpitur' is a historic present (makes it more vivid), 'igni' is placed at the end of the line for emphasis as well as being in its own foot- dramatic irony perhaps as she dies in a fire?
Multa viri virtus animo multusque recursat - 'multa' emphatically positioned (highlights her obsession), repetition of 'multa...multus' (again highlights obsession), alliteration of 'viri virtus' shows how amazing she thinks Aeneas is
Gentis honos; haerent infixi pectore vultus - 'vultus' emphatically positioned (shows again her obsession with him), 'haerent' is a very vivid word (it suggests a physical connection, rather than simply longing after him
Original post by Crimson Goose
Hey everyone I'm sorry this is a bit off topic in the middle of your exam revision (good luck by the way) but I am trying to decide whether to do Sallust or Tacitus for A2. I am wondering whether anyone who's done either could briefly summarise what they view as the key pros and cons of the author they are doing, and or say any resources or books they found (or are finding) useful. Thanks
I'm sorry this is a bit off topic in the middle of your exam revision (good luck by the way) but I am trying to decide whether to do Sallust or Tacitus for A2. I am wondering whether anyone who's done either could briefly summarise what they view as the key pros and cons of the author they are doing, and or say any resources or books they found (or are finding) useful. Thanks Hiya
I do the Sallust and I really like it. His Latin is quite simple, and a bit easier to translate than Tacitus I found ( I did some Tacitus last year, before the set texts had changed). Tacitus's Latin is also very dense, which means there's less room for linguistic flair and it's therefore harder to make points about linguistic technique. The story of the Sallust is quite interesting; the section is about Catiline's preparations to carry out his plot against the state. It's largely a psychological analysis of Catiline, which is really interesting, and that also means that there's lots of stuff to write about as a lot of it is Sallust's view of Catiline's character. Hope this helps (edited 10 years ago)
Original post by emma2013
At regina gravi iamdudum saucia cura - virgil uses slow metre; emphasises how long Dido has been suffering for
Vulnus alit venis et caeco carpitur igni. - 'carpitur' is a historic present (makes it more vivid), 'igni' is placed at the end of the line for emphasis as well as being in its own foot- dramatic irony perhaps as she dies in a fire?
Multa viri virtus animo multusque recursat - 'multa' emphatically positioned (highlights her obsession), repetition of 'multa...multus' (again highlights obsession), alliteration of 'viri virtus' shows how amazing she thinks Aeneas is
Gentis honos; haerent infixi pectore vultus - 'vultus' emphatically positioned (shows again her obsession with him), 'haerent' is a very vivid word (it suggests a physical connection, rather than simply longing after him
Thanks this is great
Original post by jessy313
how well are people learning the rest of the book? I.e after line 299 (of the Aeneid book 4).. as you have to refer to it in the themes essay
I have no idea what happens, we hardly covered it. could you possibly give a quick summary? I've looked online for a continuation of the translation but I haven't found a very good one which rounds it up quickly. are there any key phrases? to do with pietas e.g.?
Original post by ohmygosh
I have no idea what happens, we hardly covered it. could you possibly give a quick summary? I've looked online for a continuation of the translation but I haven't found a very good one which rounds it up quickly. are there any key phrases? to do with pietas e.g.?
I really like the John Dryden translation which is the only one I've found online free - it's translated into real poetry
Basically Aeneas is trying to leave, Dido gets all weepy and clingy, then she's like you know what screw you and curses him to die just after he gets to Italy and has won all the battles, and curses his people/future Romans to always suffer at the hands of the Carthiginians (hence the Punic Wars) - of course, this being mythology, it all comes true eventually though obvs not in book 4 because Virgil's a slow ass writer. I mean descriptive and vivid, sorry. Anyway, after sending Anna to beg and cry on her behalf to no avail, as Aeneas sails away she sends Anna to get her some material for a fire saying she wants to burn all the stuff that reminds her of him, but actually kills herself on a pyre in the bed, realising she has nothing left, not even a child to remind her of him. Something about Juno taking pity on her and doing something I can't remember. Anna's really annoyed when she realises Dido's killing herself and says she'd have wanted to die with her (basically Dido's just an awful sister) and then Dido I think stabs herself or just dies. The end. I definitely advise reading the rest of the book because they expect you to know it for the wider question and if there's a question on tragedy or Dido or the madness of love or really anything, it's really good to refer to.
Meanwhile... anyone else FREAKING OUT about translating the unseens? Especially the Livy, dear lord. How are people revising? I haven't really started revising properly for Latin yet, I've just been learning a bit of vocab now and then. This subject is ridiculous.
Original post by cornflaked
I really like the John Dryden translation which is the only one I've found online free - it's translated into real poetry Basically Aeneas is trying to leave, Dido gets all weepy and clingy, then she's like you know what screw you and curses him to die just after he gets to Italy and has won all the battles, and curses his people/future Romans to always suffer at the hands of the Carthiginians (hence the Punic Wars) - of course, this being mythology, it all comes true eventually though obvs not in book 4 because Virgil's a slow ass writer. I mean descriptive and vivid, sorry. Anyway, after sending Anna to beg and cry on her behalf to no avail, as Aeneas sails away she sends Anna to get her some material for a fire saying she wants to burn all the stuff that reminds her of him, but actually kills herself on a pyre in the bed, realising she has nothing left, not even a child to remind her of him. Something about Juno taking pity on her and doing something I can't remember. Anna's really annoyed when she realises Dido's killing herself and says she'd have wanted to die with her (basically Dido's just an awful sister) and then Dido I think stabs herself or just dies. The end.
I definitely advise reading the rest of the book because they expect you to know it for the wider question and if there's a question on tragedy or Dido or the madness of love or really anything, it's really good to refer to.
Meanwhile... anyone else FREAKING OUT about translating the unseens? Especially the Livy, dear lord. How are people revising? I haven't really started revising properly for Latin yet, I've just been learning a bit of vocab now and then. This subject is ridiculous.
Basically Aeneas is trying to leave, Dido gets all weepy and clingy, then she's like you know what screw you and curses him to die just after he gets to Italy and has won all the battles, and curses his people/future Romans to always suffer at the hands of the Carthiginians (hence the Punic Wars) - of course, this being mythology, it all comes true eventually though obvs not in book 4 because Virgil's a slow ass writer. I mean descriptive and vivid, sorry. Anyway, after sending Anna to beg and cry on her behalf to no avail, as Aeneas sails away she sends Anna to get her some material for a fire saying she wants to burn all the stuff that reminds her of him, but actually kills herself on a pyre in the bed, realising she has nothing left, not even a child to remind her of him. Something about Juno taking pity on her and doing something I can't remember. Anna's really annoyed when she realises Dido's killing herself and says she'd have wanted to die with her (basically Dido's just an awful sister) and then Dido I think stabs herself or just dies. The end. I definitely advise reading the rest of the book because they expect you to know it for the wider question and if there's a question on tragedy or Dido or the madness of love or really anything, it's really good to refer to.
Meanwhile... anyone else FREAKING OUT about translating the unseens? Especially the Livy, dear lord. How are people revising? I haven't really started revising properly for Latin yet, I've just been learning a bit of vocab now and then. This subject is ridiculous.
Great summary! thank you and I completely agree I'm losing it every time I think about the unseens, for me it's just vocab at the moment and trying to apply grammar rules (not that I actually understand them)
Original post by cornflaked
I really like the John Dryden translation which is the only one I've found online free - it's translated into real poetry Basically Aeneas is trying to leave, Dido gets all weepy and clingy, then she's like you know what screw you and curses him to die just after he gets to Italy and has won all the battles, and curses his people/future Romans to always suffer at the hands of the Carthiginians (hence the Punic Wars) - of course, this being mythology, it all comes true eventually though obvs not in book 4 because Virgil's a slow ass writer. I mean descriptive and vivid, sorry. Anyway, after sending Anna to beg and cry on her behalf to no avail, as Aeneas sails away she sends Anna to get her some material for a fire saying she wants to burn all the stuff that reminds her of him, but actually kills herself on a pyre in the bed, realising she has nothing left, not even a child to remind her of him. Something about Juno taking pity on her and doing something I can't remember. Anna's really annoyed when she realises Dido's killing herself and says she'd have wanted to die with her (basically Dido's just an awful sister) and then Dido I think stabs herself or just dies. The end.
I definitely advise reading the rest of the book because they expect you to know it for the wider question and if there's a question on tragedy or Dido or the madness of love or really anything, it's really good to refer to.
Meanwhile... anyone else FREAKING OUT about translating the unseens? Especially the Livy, dear lord. How are people revising? I haven't really started revising properly for Latin yet, I've just been learning a bit of vocab now and then. This subject is ridiculous.
Basically Aeneas is trying to leave, Dido gets all weepy and clingy, then she's like you know what screw you and curses him to die just after he gets to Italy and has won all the battles, and curses his people/future Romans to always suffer at the hands of the Carthiginians (hence the Punic Wars) - of course, this being mythology, it all comes true eventually though obvs not in book 4 because Virgil's a slow ass writer. I mean descriptive and vivid, sorry. Anyway, after sending Anna to beg and cry on her behalf to no avail, as Aeneas sails away she sends Anna to get her some material for a fire saying she wants to burn all the stuff that reminds her of him, but actually kills herself on a pyre in the bed, realising she has nothing left, not even a child to remind her of him. Something about Juno taking pity on her and doing something I can't remember. Anna's really annoyed when she realises Dido's killing herself and says she'd have wanted to die with her (basically Dido's just an awful sister) and then Dido I think stabs herself or just dies. The end. I definitely advise reading the rest of the book because they expect you to know it for the wider question and if there's a question on tragedy or Dido or the madness of love or really anything, it's really good to refer to.
Meanwhile... anyone else FREAKING OUT about translating the unseens? Especially the Livy, dear lord. How are people revising? I haven't really started revising properly for Latin yet, I've just been learning a bit of vocab now and then. This subject is ridiculous.
Very nice synopsis! Livy is just going to be horrendous, can see the grade boundaries being lowered because of it as it seems harder than the Caesar. Ovid however is fine, unless we get a strange passage, you've just got to realise he just loves grass!
Original post by joereed
Does anyone have any 'top tips' as to how to write the essays. I mean when writing, is there a structure you try to follow, what is the balance between content and stylistic points etc. Anything will be greatly appreciated.
For the close analysis ones (both of the prose ones and the first - I think - Virgil one), just do point, evidence, analysis (PEA). It's never a deep question, you just usually need to say how X makes this passage vivid and dramatic, or how he emphasises Y. ALWAYS QUOTE THE LATIN. You only get half the marks if you don't so back evey single assertion up with a quotation. Try not to reuse the same technique in the same essay, e.g. talking about emphatic position twice, even if you're making a totally different point about a different phrase: they might be mean and not credit you. I'm not an expert but my structure's usually like this:
1. Virgil makes this passage vivid by comparing Dido to a deer, a 'QUOTE' which has connotations of X, which is highlighted by its emphatic positioning. More analysis about deer simile.
2. Virgil makes it vivid by emphasising the pain she feels. Analyse techniques which emphasise that.
3. The passage is made vivid (mix up the syntax of your essay a little omg) by reminding us of the gods' intervention.
Basically just carry on until you run out of points or time, whichever comes first :P
The wider Virgil one requires more thought. I'd try to plan and structure that one before starting it, maybe with 5 paragraphs or something, but it always depends and you think of more points as you go along often. You don't have to quite but I think it's good to back your points up with references to specific moments in the texts, e.g. However, Dido is portrayed as a victim of the gods because Venus and Juno discuss and interfere with her life without considering her feelings or fate, only that of Aeneas.
Hope that helps a bit
Has anyone got any miraculous tips for how to learn all the grammar you've not learnt since the Cambridge Latin Course? I only learnt the endings for the declensions this year and I'm still iffy ony 4th and 5th which sucks because Livy loves 4th. -_- Or vocab learning tips?
The Livy is ridiculous, has anyone here managed to get their heads around it?
Original post by armadillo150
The Livy is ridiculous, has anyone here managed to get their heads around it?
No. And I can't say the situation will improve in the near future.
Original post by emma2013
No. And I can't say the situation will improve in the near future.
Well, maybe if we all screw it up, the grade boundaries will be like 5 marks =A*... to be honest just sitting in that room for 2 hours is arduous enough a test, we should get some kind of 'You Survived Latin For 6 Years' medal.
Original post by armadillo150
The Livy is ridiculous, has anyone here managed to get their heads around it?
Nope. I've not done a lot of prose because I'm cramming the verse so much though. I actually prefer Livy to Caesar because the technical military jargon was even worse with Caesar, but that isn't to say that Livy's a good option in any way, shape or form. What about the prose composition?
Original post by cornflaked
For the close analysis ones (both of the prose ones and the first - I think - Virgil one), just do point, evidence, analysis (PEA). It's never a deep question, you just usually need to say how X makes this passage vivid and dramatic, or how he emphasises Y. ALWAYS QUOTE THE LATIN. You only get half the marks if you don't so back evey single assertion up with a quotation. Try not to reuse the same technique in the same essay, e.g. talking about emphatic position twice, even if you're making a totally different point about a different phrase: they might be mean and not credit you. I'm not an expert but my structure's usually like this:
1. Virgil makes this passage vivid by comparing Dido to a deer, a 'QUOTE' which has connotations of X, which is highlighted by its emphatic positioning. More analysis about deer simile.
2. Virgil makes it vivid by emphasising the pain she feels. Analyse techniques which emphasise that.
3. The passage is made vivid (mix up the syntax of your essay a little omg) by reminding us of the gods' intervention.
Basically just carry on until you run out of points or time, whichever comes first :P
The wider Virgil one requires more thought. I'd try to plan and structure that one before starting it, maybe with 5 paragraphs or something, but it always depends and you think of more points as you go along often. You don't have to quite but I think it's good to back your points up with references to specific moments in the texts, e.g. However, Dido is portrayed as a victim of the gods because Venus and Juno discuss and interfere with her life without considering her feelings or fate, only that of Aeneas.
Hope that helps a bit
Has anyone got any miraculous tips for how to learn all the grammar you've not learnt since the Cambridge Latin Course? I only learnt the endings for the declensions this year and I'm still iffy ony 4th and 5th which sucks because Livy loves 4th. -_- Or vocab learning tips?
1. Virgil makes this passage vivid by comparing Dido to a deer, a 'QUOTE' which has connotations of X, which is highlighted by its emphatic positioning. More analysis about deer simile.
2. Virgil makes it vivid by emphasising the pain she feels. Analyse techniques which emphasise that.
3. The passage is made vivid (mix up the syntax of your essay a little omg) by reminding us of the gods' intervention.
Basically just carry on until you run out of points or time, whichever comes first :P
The wider Virgil one requires more thought. I'd try to plan and structure that one before starting it, maybe with 5 paragraphs or something, but it always depends and you think of more points as you go along often. You don't have to quite but I think it's good to back your points up with references to specific moments in the texts, e.g. However, Dido is portrayed as a victim of the gods because Venus and Juno discuss and interfere with her life without considering her feelings or fate, only that of Aeneas.
Hope that helps a bit
Has anyone got any miraculous tips for how to learn all the grammar you've not learnt since the Cambridge Latin Course? I only learnt the endings for the declensions this year and I'm still iffy ony 4th and 5th which sucks because Livy loves 4th. -_- Or vocab learning tips?
This is absolutely brilliant! thank you so much!
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