CRIMSON 2005 The Roman Empire Strikes Back Welcome to Crimson 2005, the Wheelock Whirlwind Marathon! We'll be going through Wheelock's Latin at the rate of a chapter a week. Estimated time of completion is February 2006. For the syllabus, click here. [link?] Have you ever noticed how many superheroes and supervillains call themselves Crimson Something-or-other: Crimson Avenger, Crimson Fox, Crimson Pirate? And there's a series of Star Wars graphic novels about the Crimson Empire. So I figured a before-and-after style nickname (The Roman Empire + The Empire Strikes Back) might be cool. Have you also ever noticed that, translated word-by-word, Latin sounds an awful lot like Yoda? "The boy to the villa water brings." "Students books to the master they give." If you guys don't like it, let me know. Three Minime (Latin for Over my dead body) votes and it's cyber-dust. If you're subscribed to LatinStudy, and have tags and formatting codes coming out the wazoo, you can skip all this. If not, let's get to it! GETTING STARTED If you haven't already done so, subscribe to LatinStudy by sending a blank e-mail (no subject, no message) to: latinstudy-subscribe@vlists.net If there comes a time when you wish to leave LatinStudy, send a blank e-mail to: latinstudy-unsubscribe@vlists.net BOOKS These books are available in most three-dimensional bookstores and all major online bookstores. If you have trouble getting any of them, write me and we'll work out something. This one's a Must: Wheelock's Latin, 6e [6th edition] by Frederic M. Wheelock & Richard LaFleur ISBN: 0060956410 The reader, 38 Latin Stories, is highly recommended but not required. Starting with Chapter 3 of Wheelock, there will be an assignment each week from this book. I hope you'll try to do the Groton & May readings, but if time (or patience) is short, G&M is the part of the assignment to skip: 38 Latin Stories by Anne H. Groton & James M. May ISBN: 0865162891 Many have found the next couple of books extremely useful. They're not required, and we won't be using them: A Comprehensive Guide to Wheelock's Latin: Newly Revised for Wheelock's 6th Ed. by Dale A. Grote ISBN: 086516486X Workbook for Wheelock's Latin, 3rd Ed., Revised by Paul T. Comeau & Richard LaFleur ISBN: 0060956429 If you're looking for a good dictionary, or if you just can't get enough Latin and want more reading material -- it could happen! -- ask the good people in LatinStudy (hereinafter called "the List") for suggestions. ASSIGNMENTS Assignments are due each Thursday at 12:01 a.m., Eastern time (U.S.). Send your assignments, and Crimson-related comments or questions, to me at Crimson2005Latin@yahoo.com. Please DO NOT send assignments to the List. However, DO post questions about Latin to the List latinstudy@vlists.net ! The List is filled with friendly souls whiling away their time, whittling busts of Cicero, anxiously awaiting the day when their awesome knowledge of Latin may be drawn upon. TAGS The List is shared by many groups; Crimson is but one of many. Each group is identified by its own tag. The tag for Crimson is: WH2005 Crimson That tag should be the first thing in your e-mail's subject line for assignments (along with its due date or chapter) and most e-mail you send to me or the List. So all assignments should have a subject line that reads something like: WH2005 Crimson: April 27 assignment FORMATTING INSTRUCTIONS Assignments are collated using Kirk Lougheed's perl software. Since they're collated one sentence at a time, each sentence must be identified in a format that the software can understand. At first glance, this may seem confusing, but after you've done it once, it's a breeze. In a nutshell, there are three formatting items for each sentence: the type of exercise; the sentence number within that exercise; your two- or three-letter initials or code. In a giant clamshell, taking it one step at a time . . . . (1) The first item is a two-letter description of each type of exercise: PR = Practice & Review SA = Sententiae Antiquae TR = translation (this will be specified in each upcoming assignment e-mail) GM = Groton & May translation (2) Skip one space and put the sentence number. The PR and SA exercises are numbered in the text. The TR and GM are not, so either check the weekly e-mail which will have the assignment's sentences already numbered, or wing it. (3) Skip a space and add your two- or three-letter initials or code. You can use your initials but it's not necessary. Now skip a space and type your English or Latin translation. If the sentence runs on to the next line, and even a third and fourth line, that's okay. The software recognizes a break when you put the code for the next sentence. You don't have to do anything (other than use the correct formatting, that is!). For the Grand Finale, the very last line of your assignment will be the word END. TA-DAAA! So when it's ready to be sent, your assignment should look something like this: PR 1 DLP A group of 4- to 8-year-olds were asked, "What does love mean?" PR 2 DLP Here are some of their answers. PR 3 DLP When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different; you just know that your name is safe in their mouths. SA 1 DLP Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other. SA 2 DLP Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen. TR 1 DLP If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine. TR 2 DLP Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter. GM 1 DLP You really shouldn't say "I love you" unless you mean it. GM 2 DLP But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. GM 3 DLP People forget. END Stick a fork in the fat lady -- you're done! THIS'n'THAT (1) However you work out the translations, your assignment will end up as PLAIN TEXT in e-mail. That means no HTML, ALT or any other code. And please, no attachments. (2) When preparing English-to-Latin translations for an assignment, you may want to indicate long vowels. It's up to you. If you wish to do so, read on! Since assignments must be in plain text, macrons and other letter markings cannot be added. To indicate a long vowel in Latin, capitalize it. It looks weird, but no one has yet come up with a better solution. (By the way, we have it on good word that Caesar turns over in his grave every time a Latin student writes: "VEnI, vIdI, vIcI"!) (3) Translations (TR) in Wheelock include couplets and poetry. For our purposes, each couplet or poem is considered one exercise regardless of the number of sentences it has. So in those instances, you do want to format line breaks. To make a line break within a single exercise, at the end of each line (except the last one) add a blank space and an ampersand. For example: TR 1 DLP Beware the Jabberwock, my son! & The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! & Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun & The frumious Bandersnatch! (4) You can check the formatting of your assignment before you send it. (Thank you, Mark Reed!): http://thereeds.org/latin/lcheck.rhtml (5) Always feel free to write to me . . . . . . Crimson2005Latin@yahoo.com MEREDITH'S FORMATTING INSTRUCTIONS http://www.ravendays.org/latin/wheelock/wh2003.html