Education in and from the Greco-Roman World CIV February 2016 Class 14

First, Chris Galvan from the Writing Center

Second, Kyle Peck from the University Theatre

Initially, the Romans were ambivalent to receiving Greek “wisdom,” so much so that they twice expelled Greek philosophers and rhetoricians from Rome (161 and 91 BC). Eventually, and off-and-on, the Greeks were allowed to return. Further, Roman teachers were free to travel to Athens, and often did, returning with rhetoric. Greco-Roman Education

By Cicero's time ( BC) education in rhetoric was the hallmark distinction in Italy. The subject matter of primary education was more than just rhetoric, although rhetoric was always included. More importantly, however, the methods for teaching and learning were rhetorical in nature.

The Foundation for Learning: Imitation (Mimesis) Not plagiarism or mere copying Rather, careful observation of the behavior of the masters which fostered an appreciation for their attitudes and approaches. Apprenticeship through observation and application.

The Foundation for Learning: Imitation (Mimesis) – Whom to Imitate? Writers and speakers. – The best models. – The old and the modern, but only those who are best, not merely because they are old or new. – Pay close attention to those particular persons of note; but do not get overly attached to one model

How to Learn Through Mimesis 1.Carefully analyze the model (the speech or the writing) so as to explain how the author of the model achieved the excellence there. 2.In the school setting, the teacher normally did this analysis with professional accuracy, thereby illustrating, for the student, how the model was made to be excellent and how a lesser usage might have worked less well. 3.Complete exercises that find students composing words that practice the forms illustrated in the model and analysis above. The students imitate the excellent aspects, using their own materials as content.

4.Analytical and appreciative lectures in which student efforts are discussed and criticized orally in class. 5.Practice of the imitation by a.Paraphrase b.Translation c.Memorization How to Learn Through Mimesis

The elementary exercises in the Greco-Roman grammar school: Progymnasmata A graded series of exercises in speaking and writing--from the easy progressively to the more difficult. They assume that which preceded them and build in a new aspect. In Hermogenes, there are twelve that introduced the rudiments of the three kinds of rhetoric:

Deliberative: fable, tale, chreia (brief exposition of what a person did), proverb, thesis, legislation (retell narrative stories from epics and dramatic poets). – These enable one to not only improve at writing sentences, but also leaves one with a stock of stories from which to draw. Judicial: confirmation and refutation, commonplaces (added to the narratives just told--argue those that have been constructed) Epideictic: praise a person, impersonation, comparison, description The elementary exercises in the Greco-Roman grammar school: Progymnasmata

Taught to older boys, only after the progymnasmata were thoroughly learned. – Suasoria: exercise in deliberative oratory – Controversia: exercise in judicial oratory (argue cases). These were considered the most important educational exercises The teacher set the topic, pointed out possible lines of argument and ways to argue The elementary exercises in the Greco-Roman grammar school: Declamation

The Elementary Exercises Progymnasmata and Declamation were thoroughly learned by (what for us would be) the early school years, for us, roughly K-8.

The Seven Liberal Arts The circle of disciplinary school studies that minister to the general education of youth, preparatory to the higher liberal studies, which are called philosophy. To us, roughly, late middle school and/or high school.

grammar rhetoric dialectics music arithmetic geometry astronomy The Seven Liberal Arts Trivium Quadrivium

Romans add – Medicine – Architecture Later Christians (after Augustine) removed them as overly “practical” The Seven/Nine/Seven Liberal Arts

Future of the Greco-Roman Liberal Arts

HOWEVER, the liberal arts get challenged repeatedly, including in our time. – Late Renaissance sees the reorganization of what’s in rhetoric. Logic gets sent to philosophy; word choice and style to Literature, and rhetoric often gets reduced to memory and delivery. – Scientific revolution turns away from both rhetoric and dialectic (logic) in favor of scientific methods. – In our time, professionalization moves away from the liberal arts; standards-based testing and STEM push us toward math.