PhD in the Classics

[docoflove1974]

[As someone who still teaches ancient history (albeit over the internet) I've found one of the best ways to encourage discussion is to put people into the situations faced by ancient protagonists and ask what they would do. e.g. 'Where did Pompey go wrong? Come up with a strategy that would have beaten Caesar in Greece' works better than 'Discuss the Pharsalus campaign'. A colleague reports a discussion becoming well over-heated on the topic 'Were the Gracchi social reformers or socialists?'

 

That's the best way for me, too. Although in a lower-division language class, sometimes that's not always possible. But I was always taught that if you can make your lecture more 'personal'--meaning, if you can make it so that you don't come off as a know-it-all and post open, thought-provoking questions that are relevant--you get the best discussion.

 

Example: I used to hate literature courses, because the professors always seemed to be telling the students what the correct interpretation of a given passage was...instead of everyone bringing their own point of view. The most fun I ever had in a literature course was when I took Don Quixote, because the professor let us say what we saw in the literature. Now, I'm not saying every course can work that way, but certainly there is always room for interpretation.

[spittle]

I would wonder if these students were in the right place if they cannot even summon enough enthusiasm to offer comments and join in discussions.

After years of workplace chat about beer and football I loved the lively debate of the classroom.

...

Say your a native English speaker and you want to learn German you'll meet a German wanting to learn English and help each other out.

I'm not sure how successful you'd be with Ancient Greek or Latin but its worth a try.

 

Indeed - and you might have to pick a version of Ancient Greek. I struggled for a year with Thucydides and then discovered that most of the texts I needed were in demotic Greek anyway. As someone who still teaches ancient history (albeit over the internet) I've found one of the best ways to encourage discussion is to put people into the situations faced by ancient protagonists and ask what they would do. e.g. 'Where did Pompey go wrong? Come up with a strategy that would have beaten Caesar in Greece' works better than 'Discuss the Pharsalus campaign'. A colleague reports a discussion becoming well over-heated on the topic 'Were the Gracchi social reformers or socialists?'

 

But going back to languages, apart from the advantages of being able to read Mommsen and Herder (for example) in the original, someone who studied with me at university now has a well-paid job in the EU, not because of the topic of his thesis, but on the strength of the languages he acquired in order to be able to write it.

 

What different versions of Ancient Greek are there?

Are they relevant to different periods, different area's, a little of both?

I checked Latin on myngle and the tutor has adviised students who want to learn 'church latin' to take different courses to those hoping to read Ancient Roman Texts. Can I infer from this that Latin has continued to evolve upto and including modern times?

[Adelais Valerius]

I loved six form. Loads of discussion and interaction with enthusiastic and interesting lecturers and students. My friends said it was totally different after they progressed to Uni. No discussion, just sat listening to the lecturer, recording his/her voice on a dictaphone and becoming rapidly disillusiioned with it all.

Does this sound like a bad example of a graduate course or the normal situation?

 

Graduate classes in the US typically involve very little lecture and a great deal of discussion. If students read material reliably, all classes could focus on the evaluation and discussion of materials.

 

I'd add that there's usually quite a bit of what I call 'practicum'...not only discussion but paper-writing, all utilizing the information found in the readings and the personal interests of the students. But I must say that in Europe it can be different; in Spain, for example, there's quite a bit of lecture, even in graduate courses. I've heard similar stories elsewhere.

 

It can be quite disillusioning for students if there is no discussion I agree, but as someone teaching undergrads in the UK I would have to say that discussion has to come from the students too. Sometimes I am banging my head against a wall trying to get people to speak in seminars. Here we generally have lectures and seminars in the first year and only seminars in the second and third years. My own graduate study has been all research but it is possible to start grad study in a taught programme.

 

As to what languages for PhD I would say don't kill yourself trying to do everything at once. If you want a career in academia afterwards then you will also need to have done other things while a PhD student. You need to organise a conference, give a paper at one too and preferably get an article published in a decent scholarly journal. You will also almost ceratinly need to work to support yourself during this time. If you do any teaching the preparation will take you ages when you first start out.

 

I have been at it nearly three years (and yes I am nearly done) and I have got Latin and Italian so far. I intend to do the Greek intensively after I finish and I will almost certainly learn German over the next three years too. But none of that matters if you don't finish your thesis. It is the thesis above evrything that matters, learn the languages as you go along - NOT before you start out or you will never start.

 

Hope that helps

SF

O all this is helping greatly. My biggest fear is that I don't know what to expect, and I was hoping that I would get some good information and advice, which I have. Keep it coming,lol, and thanks to all

 

Mike