I've finally been beaten...

[Burley]

My entire educational career I've been good at any class I've been in. I'm great in math and science. I write very well. I'm a great actor. I'm atheltic when I'm not feeling super lazy.:smalltongue:
But, now that I'm in college, I've finally had my butt kicked. By Latin.
I don't know why I picked Latin. I needed 201 and 202 credits in a foreign language for my AA. And, I picked Latin. Why? Because everybody said its difficult and I wanted a challenge.
Well, I somehow made it through 101 and 102. Seriously, it was a fluke. I don't know how I did it. I seriously know zero Latin. None. It was luck. Pure luck.
Now, I'm in 201, can't translate or parse a single word. I spent three hours on the first sentence of my homework and got nothing.
The worst part: I get my AA degree next semester, if I pass these classes, and I transfer to a university (from community college) when that's done. I'm hosed, folks. Totally Booped
So, any advice for a doomed soul?

[Ichneumon]

My advice: don't see latin sentences as a language, but instead see it as a mathematical equation. That's the only advise I can give you as a science person who also had to endure latin and greek.

[Haruki-kun]

I picked Latin. Why? Because everybody said its difficult and I wanted a challenge.

Oh, yeah, I know several people who did that.

They all changed their majors in less than one semester.

[Thrawn183]

Oh Latin. I went to Emory (a fairly selective school, I'd like to think). What grade did I get in Latin 1 before then? A D-. I think the teacher may have passed me out of pity.

Seriously, don't beat yourself up over latin.

[potatocubed]

Aid for Latin comprehension: Learn a whole bunch of other European languages. Especially modern Italian.

It won't give you an exact translation, but you should be able to hazard a guess at most Latin sentences if you have a moderate grasp of 2-4 Latin-based tongues.

I'm not sure how practical that is, but it helps me.

[Whammydill]

I took 4 years of Latin and I can safely say I remember next to none of it. This was over 10 years ago of course. My last year we had to do on the fly translations of the Illiad, the Odyssey, and various other works. He would unfailingly know if we had pre-translated stuff because none of us could translate that well. If you did, he would just hit you with something and if you couldn't translate it then...you were hosed and got no credit for that day.

For myself, Latin doesn't just *work* in my head like other languages do. For instance, as I said I took 4 years of Latin, I also took one year of Spanish....and I retain more Spanish that Latin.....probably because I actually use(not well) Spanish and hear it more often.

Repetition was what helped me in Latin. I got some audio language stuff for Latin and just kept listening to the parts describing the *rules* and eventually it stuck in my head long enough to use it on my schoolwork. This use it and dump it won't help retention though. I would just keep repeating endings endings endings in my head for each classification. It sucked.

-bo
-bis
-bit
-bimus
-bitis
-bunt

ahhhhhh!!! make it stop!!

Edit: I'll be damned if I know if those are even right.

[Syka]

I am a Classics major which means I should know latinand ancient Greek. Wanna know how I passed all my classes?

Knowing the vocabulary. Seriously I am horrible with grammar but by knowing vocabulary and being able to semi memorize test passages I got through. I live the languages I'm just crap with them.

That said- I hate you for having Latin in community college. I went fro Latin in high school to having to take spanish to Latin again. It blew.

My only other advice is to ge a study group. Good luck! Latin is a notorious soul crusher.

ETA: that is right whammydill. If there is one thing I remember it's most active conjugations of verbs. And some noun declensions. Get more complicated than regular nouns and verbs and I die.

[Burley]

Yeah, the only thing I friggin' remember is:
-o
-s
-t
-mus
-tis
-nt

Why? Because I put it to the Mickey Mouse club theme song.

[bosssmiley]

Latin works best if learned by rote. It's a lot like elementary mathematics in that respect.


Now, I'm in 201, can't translate or parse a single word. I spent three hours on the first sentence of my homework and got nothing.

But this sounds almost like you're willing yourself to fail. There's no way you could have unlearned Latin that thoroughly without a wish to do so.

Sounds like you'll have to grind 201 out the hard way. Grab a Lat/Eng dictionary and get a handle on the key words in the first sentence. Determine context from there. It'll fall into place. Eventually. Or you'll end up as the kind of bitter Socialist who hates the Classics and only wants people to do Gradgrindian vocational classes. Either way, Latin is character building.

I understand that being flogged regularly and play rugby in bad weather aids Latin comprehension. But then I come from a culture where latin, rugby and flogging go together like rum, sodomy and the lash. :smallbiggrin:

@v: Well played!

[Catch]

So, any advice for a doomed soul?

Aequam memento rebus in arduis servare mentem.

[Burley]

Aequam memento rebus in arduis servare mentem.

I'd probably either laugh or be really frustrated... But I can't figure out what that means...

[Coidzor]

Aequam memento rebus in arduis servare mentem.

to retain memory well is best served by mental hardship?

[Telonius]

I'd suggest watching "Life of Brian." Might help you remember some of the rules.

"What's this, then? "Romanes eunt domus"? People called Romanes, they go, the house?"

[Catch]

I'd probably either laugh or be really frustrated... But I can't figure out what that means...


to retain memory well is best served by mental hardship?

"Remember when life's path is steep to keep your mind even."

But yes.

[Coidzor]

Aye... Isn't Latin basically capable of being constructed in any way with the same meaning as long as you have the right conjugations?

[Catch]

Aye... Isn't Latin basically capable of being constructed in any way with the same meaning as long as you have the right conjugations?

Excepting prose, Latin uses the Subject > Object > Verb structure, with adjectives succeeding nouns. Most Latin-based languages branch right because the mother language does, but word order can be pretty fluid. Extra verbs (like infinitives) can be snuck in before the main verb, and qualifying adjectives (cost, size, veracity) usually come before the modified noun.

Poetry, however, is basically anything goes. It was written to be heard, not read, so the conventions of grammar are loose and fast.

[Telonius]

Poetry, however, is basically anything goes. It was written to be heard, not read, so the conventions of grammar are loose and fast.

I'll remember that the next time I hear somebody complaining about rap being ungrammatical. :smallbiggrin:

[J.Gellert]

Latin sounds pretty, but I'm hopefully never buying any ranks in it. Sounds painful. I'm glad I got Greek for free as a starting language.

[Syka]

Latin sounds pretty, but I'm hopefully never buying any ranks in it. Sounds painful. I'm glad I got Greek for free as a starting language.

Greek is harder to learn, Latin is harder to translate. That seems to be the general consensus. The fact that greek has identifier before the nouns help tremendously in translation.

[Thajocoth]

Back in middle school, I had to take Latin II. This was with no Latin I. I don't remember anything. (I also took French from January of 3rd grade until the end of 6th and Spanish from 7th through the end of 10th.) I don't remember any part of any foreign language I've learned. Luckily, my university waved their foreign language requirement for Computer Science majors, as we learn several programming languages. Not that I remember Java either... Waste of a language that it was.

Primary languages: English, C++
Secondary languages: C#

I've just never seen the point in learning something I'll never use, so it doesn't stick for long and I wind up with bad grades in it. Everything that's not a foreign language that I've learned has been smooth sailing. Not even necessary to study to do well. I've only forgotten Java (and SML and Prolog) because it's been so long since I used them.

[Lioness]

Oh drat, this isn't encouraging. I'm also a good student, good at everything except maths. I'm also planning to take Latin in university.

Here's to hoping that my non-affinity with maths will make it easier. I do pick up Japanese well.

[Moff Chumley]

I took latin last year. Translating each sentence took about half an hour... look up all of the roots, write down on a separate piece of paper the translation and declension/conjugation, then write THAT...

It was a nightmare. And to add insult to injury, Vini Vidi Vici is in fact pronounced "Weenee Weedee Wikee". :smallannoyed: