Show o E The Place of Ancient Classics in College Ed Ed- THE HE first thing to be considered in planning a course of study in the college is What is the object of a college education education education edu edu- cation Look to the end of life said one of the ancient sages We may add When you get to the end look back and see whether or not your life has been successful If it has what has contributed most to make it so sol This r 4 L J t. t-t. discovered you yo you have hiv found f that which is of mo most t value CI Clearly arly whatever gives the student power to act best and in most wisely under all all' circumstances life is most val valuable able and should be besought besought besought sought in all education He must have some knowledge of the world and of j things with which he will deal but this t. t knowledge furnishes only the data for judgments If the power to judge has not been developed the knowledge is is comparatively valueless In consid considering ring then the value alu of of-an- of an ancient c ent classics in education we may first as ask Does a knowledge of the Greek and I Latin languages furnish us with data from which we can make Jud judgments ments of s' s value Second Does the study of these R C l languages d develop the power po to judge f If If these thes questions can be an answered in inthe inthe the negative then Greek and Latin f 5 should never be studied If one one or both c can car b be answered in the affirmative we have still to enquire into their relative value Do they pay for the time and patience they r require quire V Would not the I same amount of labor expended on other ris subjects give better results We beU believe believe be be- U lieve that with most college students V the answer to th the first question would be No and to the second Yes II and for these reasons The majority of students never reach the point where they can appreciate the Greek and Latin authors more in reading reading reading read read- ing the original than in reading a trans trans- lation Then it cannot be that these study the langu languages for the sake of readi reading read read- i ing ipg g Homer and Virgil Virgi If they do the re result with the them is a miserable failure All they get is IS the dry husks of language language lan lan- guage words guage words and rules of grammar But it is argued that even this knowledge knowledge knowledge know know- ledge helps the student in his English r Doubtless it does yet the same labor expended on English directly using sing Greek and nd Latin when necessary necessary s sary ry m might make him h much ch more more pro proficient pro pro- l' l in h English English h. h It t is also h held ld I a a knowledge of of dr a foreign i tongue ngue tongue is i's is' is essential es essential s to the pr proper per understanding ding n of one ones one's own own vernacular Admitting the truth of this statement why not study French and German instead of Greek and Latin They are are less less' difficult and will give the student the prop proper r insight into his own language Besides he will have acquired living languages which are wide widely y spoken and will probably be beof beof beof of some direct practical value Does the study of Greek and Latin develop the power to judge Yes t tj to j judge dge of language If the student desires desires de de- sires to trace out the com complexities le of bf language he will find his paradise in inthe in inthe n the study of f Greek and Latin If h he wishes to to specialize in philology if h his he heis heis is going to translate ancient manuscripts or improve upon translations already made or if he intends to be an archeologist archeologist archeologist archeo- archeo logist and unearth the ruins of ancient cities then let him study the ancient classics in the original not for two or four years but but until he has thoroughly mastered them If his occupation in life requires constant judgments of language language language lan lan- guage or a practical use of these languages languages languages lan lan- es in trans translating he should work hard and long in acquiring them His labors are fully rewarded only because his specialty demands such knowledge But the majority of c college graduates are occupied in other ways They have social and industrial problems to solve problems of ethics and of every-day every life H Has as their study o of the Greek and Latin languages given them them power to judge of these Very little if any is the answer of modern psychology and of common sense We do not wish to insinuate that students of the ancient languages are not capable of judging in such cases but we do affirm that their power to ju judge e depends upon their experience in life and not upon their study of Greek and Latin Given equal ability their fel fel- students low-students who had put ut the same time on the sf study d of f ec 1 8 ri m cs cs' and hd sociology G w would uld be far more capable pf solving social and political problems r t We conclude then that the Greek and Latin languages should be numbered numbered numbered num num- among the elective studies I Th They y should never be required in a general college course L They are of direct value to the few and of indirect value to the many If the student of ancient langua languages languages lan lan- gua es would be fully repaid for his labor he must be a specialist and justas justas justs just as s the specialist in any science spends the tle greater part of his time O on oil l the one subject and nd gives to humanity the benefit benefit benefit ben ben- of his research so must the student of Greek and Latin be devoted to his subject If others wish to study the ancient classics they had b better use good English tr translations M. 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