Reading Classics, Chronologically Through the Ages discussion

This "Member TWEM/Classics Book Lists" folder was Cleo's great idea to have a place for our members to discuss their own Classics reading projects, including but not limited to books from The Well-Educated Mind list.

Each member can start their own thread (just "add topic" under the "Member TWEM/Classics Book Lists" folder) to discuss your past, present, and future reads. Essentially, use this space to keep track of your own reading projects as well as engage with other members! :-)

Thanks, Kenia! I'm away this weekend so it will take a few days to post lists, but I've made my thread and held spaces for them. I'll come up with something in a few days.

This is great! I need to get my reading organized, and these lists should help. Thanks, Cleo, for the idea and Kenia for setting it up.

Cleo wrote: "Thanks, Kenia! I'm away this weekend so it will take a few days to post lists, but I've made my thread and held spaces for them. I'll come up with something in a few days."

Hi Cleo! I was also out of town from the 18th until just last night, so I had minimal GoodReads interaction (I find the mobile app sub-par and limiting) and am just now catching up!

I saw that you held spaces for your lists within your thread, and I have to say it's now obvious to me you're a GoodReads expert! I wouldn't have thought to do that and, at first, actually wondered why hold spaces when, thinking to myself, "Can't you just add them anytime?" ...except now I realize it's so that the book lists are at the top of the thread, since adding them later means they would be lost within the jumble of responses and conversation that your thread will surely have in the future. Good thinking! ;-) Once I get myself organized, I'll be doing the same.

Kenia wrote: "Cleo wrote: " Good thinking! ;-) Once I get myself organized, I'll be doing the same.
..."

;-) I learned it from another GRs member so I'm passing the knowledge along!

I just returned from being out of town too. I thought I wouldn't be gone long, but my daughter's nearly-last-place softball team ended up going to the final and winning gold in their pool, so my stay was longer than anticipated, although for a good cause! :-)

Cleo wrote: " my daughter's nearly-last-place softball team ended up going to the final and winning gold in their pool"

That's fantastic! Cheers to them!

Cleo wrote: "Kenia wrote: "Cleo wrote: " Good thinking! ;-) Once I get myself organized, I'll be doing the same.
..."

;-) I learned it from another GRs member so I'm passing the knowledge along!

I just retur..."

Congrats to your daughter!

AAAnnnnnd, because all of our "to read" lists aren't long enough, here's an article about a woman who took a year to read a book from every country in the world. (The number of countries that technically exist is, surprisingly, up for debate. For this project, she went with 196.)

http://ideas.ted.com/your-guide-to-re...

My hunch is that there will be some books that are old classics and others which are contemporary works. She curated the list by taking recommendations from locals.

The article has several maps embedded, with a pin on each country that, when clicked, gives you the book's information for that country.

So neat!! I may just have to partake in this myself.... hahaha

I really like the concept of this, but I would need to find the fountain of youth first in order to make it work for me :)

Sandy, her TED talk is very good (and it's only 12 min.):

http://www.ted.com/talks/ann_morgan_m...

In it she speaks to how translations are so difficult to find. She managed to locate them due to the response to the blog she created for the project:

https://ayearofreadingtheworld.com/

Many people went out of their way to find her English translations from their local bookstore and mail them to her.

In the spectacular case of São Tomé and Príncipe, 9 Portugese-speaking volunteers each took a short story from an anthology of the culture's local stories, and translated them into English for her! (In that country's case, it appears there were *no* English translations at all.)

Sandy wrote: "Interesting idea. I think it's odd that the one book she chose to represent Canada is (although written by someone who born in Canada) to all appearances set in Arizona. Maybe I'm mistaken -- I just skimmed the GR entry -- but I wonder how many of the 196 books recommended by "locals" are set in the appropriate country."

On her blog, she says:

"Some countries have a culture of almost exclusively oral storytelling (alright, get your giggles over with now). Others have governments that don’t like to let works of art leak out to corrupt westerners.

And that’s not to mention the whole issue of what constitutes a national literature in the first place. Is it by a person born in that place? Is it written in the country? Can it be about another nation state?

Frankly I didn’t know. But I hoped I’d figure out the answers (or at least my answers) to some of these questions en route."

I'm just so fascinated by this.

Hello all! Just a reminder that ANY one of you is so welcome to add your own list of book projects at any time!

Just "add topic" under the "Member TWEM/Classics Book Lists" folder.

Anyone here into reddit? There is a new subreddit up at r/thewelleducatedmind that is along the same lines.

Sandy,

I do like that quote, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Oh, how often our body gets in the way!

I do wish you the best on your road of recovery and back to good health. I hope that, while you take a break from GoodReads, you may still find comfort in your unwavering friends: books. :-)

Kenia

There is a website where you can do online university courses for free. I am doing 2 in October and have linked the site below for anyone who cares to join me or who may be interested in future courses. They are ongoing and great fun and educational values. You can register to be notified when they are next doing the course if you don't have time now and they are regularly sending me emails of great course.

The First is 3 hours/week for 5 weeks and is:
Rome: a Virtual Tour of the Ancient City

Week one: Ancient Rome location and infrastructure

Geographical and historical overview
Introduction to the digital model
Roman building materials and techniques
The importance of aqueducts and sewers
Using coins to illustrate ancient architecture
Week two: Political architecture in Ancient Rome

The Imperial Fora
The function and development of the Forum
Types of monumental architecture
Using poetry as evidence to investigate the past
Week three: Religious architecture in Ancient Rome

Overview of Roman religion
The architecture of the Capitoline Hill
Developments in Imperial temple architecture
Worshipping the gods
Week four: Life and death in Ancient Rome

Overview of Roman housing
Food supply in the ancient city
How the Romans liked to be remembered
Using inscriptions as evidence to investigate the past
Week five: Bread and circuses (entertainment architecture) in Ancient Rome

The importance of entertainment for Rome’s rulers
The architecture and function of theatres and circuses
Roman baths and bathing
Using evidence to understand the Colosseum

https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/rome

The second is related, Hadrian's Wall: Life on the Roman Frontier

Explore the archaeology of the most heavily fortified frontier in the Roman Empire, its people and their lives.

Explore the archaeology of the most heavily fortified frontier in the Roman Empire, its people and their lives.

Hadrian’s Wall stretches over 73 miles (117 km), from coast to coast in what is now Northern England. The Wall, complemented by a sophisticated system of outposts and coastal watch stations, offers a remarkable glimpse of ancient society. In addition to housing one of the largest concentrations of Roman soldiers anywhere in the Empire’s provinces, Hadrian’s frontier system was home to an incredibly cosmopolitan array of civilians.

This six week course offers a comprehensive introduction to Hadrian’s Wall and its people and raises fascinating issues concerning colonisation, cultural transformation, immigration, integration and imperialism. We will explore life in the region before the construction of the Wall, the arrival of the Roman army and its impact on the local population. Detailed case studies will consider the different features of the Wall and its surroundings, considering the way in which the frontier system evolved throughout the Roman period. The changing face of both the Roman army and indigenous populations is richly illuminated through archaeological finds and reconstructions. To appreciate the range and character of native people, soldiers’ families, slaves, merchants and migrants, we will examine their homes, dress, diet, rituals and religious beliefs.

Drawing on the very latest research, we will investigate how archaeologists interpret evidence, considering:

the factors that determine the survival of evidence
the different methods of archaeological prospection used to detect settlement locations and better understand their organisation
the planning of archaeological projects
excavation techniques
and the detailed study of structures and artefacts.
As part of the course you can test your understanding of these methods with real case studies and participate in a series of archaeological experiments designed to help you appreciate the complexities of daily life on Rome’s most famous frontier.

Find out more about new discoveries and how learners are helping to shape the content of these course runs on the FutureLearn blog.

https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/h...

I've taken the Hadrian's Wall course and others on Future Learn. So far it's my favourite MOOC site.

Cleo wrote: "I've taken the Hadrian's Wall course and others on Future Learn. So far it's my favourite MOOC site."

Are you in the UK? I lived there until I was 36 and visited Hadrian's Wall many times so this particular course attracted me.

You're so lucky to have been able to see it! No, I'm on the West Coast of Canada. I initially tried the EdX MOOCs platform but I found the courses sometimes a slight bit indoctrinational (is that a word?! :) ) The Future Learn courses give you the information and allow you to think for yourself. I really like them and wish I had the time to do more of them.

Hey Sandy, I hope you're doing well! Thanks for the feedback on the courses, as I've never taken any with Coursera and had been eyeing a few. I'm actually afraid to look at the moment as I have so much on my plate but I may pop over there and browse. Don't worry, I won't hold you partly responsible for any ill-conceived or impulsive signing up! LOL! ;-)

Cleo wrote: "You're so lucky to have been able to see it! No, I'm on the West Coast of Canada. I initially tried the EdX MOOCs platform but I found the courses sometimes a slight bit indoctrinational (is that a..."

So you are a BC girl I am in Alberta myself. I do miss the history of living in Britain but I did travel a lot whilst there (I went somewhere every weekend) and one day hope to visit again on an extended tour and take my kids to all the sights worth seeing. Amazing historical sites throughout all of Europe to see. I keep telling my friends when they are ready to retire we can book an all ladies tour and I don't mind being a tour guide.

Tracey wrote: "Cleo wrote: "You're so lucky to have been able to see it! No, I'm on the West Coast of Canada. I initially tried the EdX MOOCs platform but I found the courses sometimes a slight bit indoctrination..."

Really?! I was just in Calgary, and two weeks before that drove to Regina and back. I loved meeting the people in the prairies! I found them more friendly, relaxed and polite than people in B.C. (generally, of course!) But we have better food! ;-)

I took my daughter on a trip through France and Italy when she was nine and we looked at art and ate good food and generally had a wonderful time. She still remembers every bit of it.

Reading this morning in Plutarch’s Lives, the Dryden / Clough translation in the old Modern Library Giant edition. Now that’s as classical as it gets. Long sentences with many clauses, you really have to pay attention. I like this quotation about empire: “And indeed there was nothing did more advance the greatness of Rome, than that she did always unite and incorporate those whom she conquered into herself.”

Along with books such as Plutarch, one might take a look at Moses Hadas’s helpful guide Ancilla to Classical Reading.

Of the 19th Century British novelists who figure in the standard histories, Charles Reade (1814-1884), a good friend of Dickens and Wilkie Collins, is one of the least-read today. He is best known for an uncharacteristic production, the historical novel The Cloister and the Hearth, but essentially he was a contemporary social fiction writer who was all over the hot-button issues of his day, and quite a bit of a muckraker. I greatly admired the first Reade that I read, It is Never Too Late to Mend, which achieves considerable power in its pictures of English prison life and the Australian goldfields. I just started Put Yourself in His Place, an industrial labor novel set in Sheffield (“Hillsborough”).