At the end of the course students will be able to: - recognize and analyze basic morpho-syntactic structures; - be familiar with basic vocabulary, and particularly recognize roots and word-building; - read, understand and translate Latin texts (both in prose and poetry) of intermediate difficulty.
Course objectives: to give basic linguistic tools; to present and show the proper use of learning/translating materials (dictionaries, grammar handbooks), and to allow the students to follow and prepare independently the course Lingua e Letteratura Latina
Course Prerequisites
The course presumes no knowledge of the language. Potential students already familiar with Latin will receive individualized learning material.
Teaching Methods
The course is delivered in a blended format and includes: recorded lectures, in which the instructor will present the phonetics and morphosyntax topics covered in the syllabus; interactive in-person sessions for reinforcement and practice on the topics covered in the recorded lectures, as well as work on Latin texts of increasing difficulty; exercises and cooperative learning sessions, in which students will be asked to actively assess their understanding of the topics presented; - translation workshops, in which students will be encouraged to develop their own personal approach to ancient texts. In particular, various translation methods will be presented: the colometric method; the syntactic construction method; the verbal valency method; and the mixed method; - small student projects on the theme “Latin in everyday life.” In all cases, both traditional materials (grammar worksheets, exercises, texts) and multimedia resources will be used. Other useful materials will be presented, in order to guide the students in their individual learning. The texts analyzed and translated during the workshops and the individual work will be considered part of the program in the oral examination. Students are invited to enter the course in Kiro. Tutoring is provided for those who need to strenghten their knowledge.
Assessment Methods
The final oral examination will be divided into 3 parts: - reading and translating one of the texts already studied during the course - questions on morpho-syntactic structures of the text - reading and translating a short new text with particular attention to its vocabulary Two written examinations regarding morphology and translation (dictionary is not allowed) are part of the evaluation. They are provided during the course or together with the oral examination. Each test has a maximum grade of 15; the overall outcome of the written paper, which can be taken together with the oral, contributes 70 percent to the grade. Project work is on a voluntary basis, but-if done-is considered for assessment.
Texts
Traditional and multimedia learning materials and texts will be provided during the course and on Kiro. Dictionary: free choice Handbook:M.J. Falcone, Breve grammatica di latino, Roma, Carocci 2026. For further study: A. Traina-G. Bernardi Perini, Propedeutica al latino universitario, Pàtron, Bologna, 1998.
Contents
Basic historical phonetics aimed at facilitating comprehension and memorization of morphology (Latin apophony, rhotacism); accent. Morpho-syntax: Latin as a fusional language; parts of speech (noun, verb, adjective, pronoun, adverb, conjunction, preposition) and their use; basic notions on case uses and sentence structure. Vocabulary: individuation of morphemes and word-building, knowledge of the most common roots and word-families. Translation: reading, analyzing and translating texts (basic to intermediate level).
Course Language
Italian
More information
Non-attending students are requested to contact the teacher in due advance so as to define a specific programme and organize the final examination.
