"We should read none save the best
authors and our reading must be almost as thorough as if we were
actually transcribing what we read. Nor must we
study it merely in parts, but must read through the whole work
from cover to cover and then read it afresh."
Quintillian, Institutio
Oratoria 10.1
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To enjoy the classics of world
literature one needs a knowledge of the Elementa Rhetoricae
(Elements of Rhetoric) and an understanding of the Ars
Grammatica (the Art of Grammar). Students in the
Classical Liberal Arts Academy, having studied Grammar and
Humanities are prepared to study literature properly.
However, there is one more
requirement for the study of literature: leisure.
The writings of history's greatest authors are not intended to
be crammed or skimmed. The authors themselves were masters
of the classical liberal arts and they invested years--even
decades--of their greatest skill in writing these works.
Only when we read them with the attention they were intended to
be read with can we expect to profit from them.
Most students will not have the
leisure to read the classics during their schooldays--but they
shouldn't be expected to! This is why the Classical
Liberal Arts Academy provides a literature program that may be
started when students have made some progress in
Humanities...and may continue throughout life.
GET
READY!
The CLAA Literature program will
admit its first students in the Spring of 2010. To begin,
it is required that students are enrolled in or beyond
Humanities and that they have completed the World Chronology
course.
In Spring 2010, Homer's Iliad
and Odyssey will be the first studies made available, as
Homer is prince of poets. Additional studies will be made
available each semester until the full collection is completed.
In the meantime, get ready! As
always, the CLAA is the only source for philosophically sound
classical learning. |
READING
RIGHTLY
Above we see Rembrandt's famous
image of Aristotle contemplating the bust of Homer. This
image has great significance for the Classical Liberal Arts
Academy.
Students cannot study literature
correctly without a knowledge of the arts studied and practiced
by the classical authors. When we contemplate the masters,
we do so with a system of timeless principles that the authors
themselves understood and practiced--as Aristotle did with
Homer. This ensures that we rightly analyze, interpret and
most importantly imitate the masters.
Without classical liberal arts
training, students attempt to read the classics with a modern
mind--disordered and divorced from the ancient philosophical
system. Ultimately this leads to an erosion of literary
studies into trivial or mercenary pursuit and makes "creative
writing" (i.e., art-less writing) the only option for
students. The Classical Liberal Arts Academy ensures that
the classics are read rightly and that the benefits available
for the students' own composition are reaped. |
