Description
Book SynopsisHarry Mount and John Davie unlock the wisdom of the past in this light-hearted and fascinating book, revealing how ancient Latin can help us to live better in the present.
There are so many Latin phrases in everyday use that often we use them without understanding the background and context within which they were actually used. ''Carpe diem''; ''Stet''; ''Memento mori''; ''Et tu Brute'' examples would fill a book. And often these phrases are also used in English translation: ''The die is cast''; ''crossing the Rubicon''; ''Rome was not built in a day''.
Many of these phrases are humorous, but they are also a rich source of wisdom: the wisdom of the ancients. The chapters of this book include: Latin for Gardeners, the Great Latin Love Poets, Cicero on How to Grow Old Gracefully and Seneca''s Stoic Guide to Life. Each chapter starts with a quotation and is lightly sprinkled with many more, with accompanying English translations and entertaining cartoons and illu
Trade Review
Both entertaining and informative, this is not to be missed. * This England *
There’s much pleasure to be had in Et Tu, Brute?...which carries a lot of learning very lightly. * The Tablet *
…filled with memorable and fun facts. * The Times Literary Supplement *
…highly readable… the perfect approach… presented with verve and wit. * The Wall Street Journal *
Table of Contents
Introduction A note on translation A timeline of Julius Caesar and the Roman Emperors 1. Writing on the Wall – Latin graffiti, from Pompeii’s brothel to Herculaneum’s tavernas 2. Ruling Britannia – Roman Britain, from Londinium’s first bankers to freezing legionaries on Hadrian’s Wall 3. Sex in Rome and the Rudest Poem in Latin 4. True Romance – the Great Latin Love Poets 5. Latin Jokes and Insults 6. Latin for Gardeners 7. Bathtime, Feasts and La Dolce Vita 8. Bread, Circuses and Gladiators 9. Plebs and Patricians – the Roman Class System 10. Empire and Emperors 11. The Divine Family – Religion and the Gods 12. Christian Conversion – how Christ went from Roman Victim to Roman God 13. Vesuvius Erupts – Pliny Reports 14. What did you get for Saturnalia? Martial’s Funny Festival Presents 15. Horace, the Sweetest Poet of All 16. Cicero on How to Grow Old Gracefully 17. Seneca’s Stoic Guide to Life 18. Your Vade Mecum – the Latin-English Glossary Roman Numerals Conclusion Acknowledgements Picture credits
