The formation of intelligence through Greco-Latin Literature and its survival.

Abstract

Although the classical languages and literatures of Greece and Rome enjoy great prestige, they are increasingly neglected in mainstream curricula. This work aims to analyse the principal reasons behind this situation. To do so, it turns to the thoughts of different specialists who have considered the issue in depth. Their opinions cover a wide array of perspectives, but they all agree on one key point: the scant attention usually paid to texts in the teaching of Greco-Latin literature. Scholars have tended to focus on context, therefore obscuring the texts: they pay more attention to morphological, syntactic, historical, literary, and metric aspects than to the texts themselves. Means have thus become ends, with tangible and unfortunate consequences. As a solution to this, we propose returning the texts to the centre of the classroom, through reading — in full if possible — and discussion of the original works. This way, Greek and Latin language studies will achieve a greater relevance, precisely because they would allow a deeper and more direct knowledge of the classics.