Welcome to the Classics Department

The classics department offers the opportunity to study four years of Latin and three years of Greek, long‑standing hallmarks of Jesuit education. Students take the National Latin and National Greek Examinations each spring, and qualified advanced students may prepare for the Advanced Placement Latin Examination of the College Entrance Examination Board.

Mr. Ariel Laguilles (Chair)

LATIN I (810) /full year

                The goal of the student in this course is the ability to read Latin. By gradual initiation into the structure and vocabulary of the language and continual practice in dealing with it, the student comes to know more and more Latin and, at the same time, more and more about the nature of language in general and the relationship of his own tongue and others to that of the Romans. Latin readings serve to increase proficiency and to introduce the student to the historical world that found expression in Latin. Open to all students.

LATIN II (820) /full year

                As the student continues to master the patterns of the Latin language and enhance his command of its vocabulary, his reading extends into various areas of the literature: Greco-Roman mythology and the war commentaries of Julius Caesar. Open to students who have had Latin I, or its equivalent.

HONORS LATIN II (821) /full year

                This course is similar in content to regular Latin II but moves at an accelerated pace and covers more extensive reading in the literature. It is designed to prepare the student for Honors Latin III. Open to approved students who have had Latin I, or its equivalent.

LATIN III (830) /full year

                 The third-year Latin course revolves around the Roman poets Ovid and Vergil, examining their cultural context and emphasizing comprehension, appreciation, critical analysis, metrical scansion, and translation. Open to students who have had Latin II, or its equivalent.

HONORS LATIN III (832) /full year

                 This course is similar to regular Latin III but requires more extensive reading in Latin.  Open to approved students who have had Honors Latin II, or its equivalent.

AP LATIN: VERGIL (831) /full year

                This course is based on the College Board Advanced Placement syllabus in Vergil and involves the reading in Latin of selections from Books I, II, IV, VI, X, and XII of Vergil's Aeneid. Knowledge of the content of the remaining books and the cultural context of the work, familiarity with Vergil's use of poetic devices, and the ability to scan the Latin hexameter verse are expected. The Advanced Placement Examination is required. Open to approved students.

GREEK I (811) /full year

                 The function of this course is to give the student a firm foundation in the structure and vocabulary of Attic Greek, the language of the Golden Age of Athens. The course aims to enable the student to read in Greek from the masterworks of that period and, with little adjustment, from the earlier Greek of the Homeric epics and the later Greek of the New Testament. Open to approved students with a year's background in Latin or equivalent preparation.

GREEK II (822) /full year

                As the student continues to master the patterns of the Greek language and to enhance his command of its vocabulary, his reading extends into various areas of the literature: the historical works of Herodotus and Xenophon, the philosophical dialogues of Plato, and the New Testament. Open to approved students who have had Greek I.

GREEK III (833) /full year

                The third year course in Greek is devoted mainly to the reading of selections from Homer's Odyssey. Readings from the New Testament, as well as samples of a number of classical authors, are also included in the course. Open to approved students who have had Greek II.