I am an unlikely Latinist: I went to a high school that had recently cut Latin and learned most of the Latin I know outside of the college classroom. On some definitions, I’m not one at all (and fair enough!). Yet, somehow, here I am, thinking about Latin in my free time. A couple of decades of reading and thinking about texts in classical languages, both in and out of the classroom, have left me in awe of the rich human heritage embedded within these languages and all too rarely explored.

Here, I’m trying to make a simple but, I hope, both entertaining and meaningful contribution to what Reginald Foster used to call “the Latin cause.” That means contributing to knowledge and appreciation of the fascinating feelings, thoughts, arguments, and traditions that happen to have made their way to us in Latin. It also means reminding ourselves that Latin did not drop down from heaven in a golden box (as Foster also used to say), nor is “real Latin” or “good Latin” limited to any particular clique of writers, any particular genre, or any particular period. More abstractly (and, I worry, pompously), I hope to encourage reflection on certain aspects of the present and past, and perhaps the relationship between the two.

More concretely: here, I am presenting, in hopefully polished (and relatively accessible) form, little “gems of Latin,” whether classical or medieval or modern, that I come across in my reading, along with translation, a bit of commentary, and occasional reflections.

Questions, comments, and suggestions are welcome. Restat ut cum Apuleio dicam: lector, intende – (ut spero) laetaberis/Hope you enjoy the read!