[Another Hercules movie...]

I expect that it will follow the many before it: Stunning visuals and fight scenes. Weak plot and acting. I'll wait for the DVD or Netflix....

[Spectacle in the Roman World]

I'm in. Let's see how my luck fares....

[All time favorite book]

Best Adult Fiction: I, Claudius

Best Young Adult Fiction: Eagle of the Ninth

Best Sequential Art: Asterix

Best Ancient Writer: The Twelve Caesars

 

Honestly, I recommend Suetonius to people before many other, more modern, books

 

 

Nothing like reading the Kitty Kelley gossip book of its day....

 

 

Seriously, I agree. It provides a good look into what a writer of the day found important.

 

For me, Meier's Caesar is superlative. It can be a bit dry, but its density really laid out Rome for me.

[Who Bathed?]

Santa Maria degli Angeli Church, I don't think it's a cathedral, is one of the most interesting in Rome because it preserves the Diocletian Baths. It may be that the floor is a more recent renovation. Here's an image:

 

http://www.romecity.it/santamariadegliangeli01c.jpg

 

Basilica. That's the word I was looking for.

 

Mea culpa.

 

(It's so big, it's almost too much to take in. And it was just the common area.....)

[Classical Music in Latin & German.]

Some Latinists might be interested in hearing this:

 

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6470188

 

Thanks, GO, an interesting article. It's one of my favourite pieces of music.

 

Some of the lyrics are a bit sexy, but I wouldn't say "lewd" as this author does. In spite of what she implies, "venio" in Latin means "come" in the everyday sense, not in the sexual sense!

 

True. True.

 

But there are plenty of other lines explicit and not so explicit.

 

And who doesn't love a good double entendre...?

[Learning Latin, the best approach]

Okay, I'm on my third attempt to learn the language. I just got the Henle Latin series (1st year and Grammar). While it primarily teaches what Henle calls Continental Latin, it's certainly close enough for a beginner.

 

I also have Wheelock's Latin (but not the exercise book), something called "Learning Latin," and am also looking at the Rosetta Stone version.

 

The Rosetta Stone promises more, but is also a lot more expensive (nearly $200). And it seems more conversational in nature. But how much of a problem could that be?

 

So what are the Group's opinions on learning the language? What's the best (their favorite) resource? And how about tutors? For example, I live in the St. Louis, Missouri area. I think SLU and WashU are good starting points (both Catholic universities) to find them. Any other avenues that anyone knows?

 

I looked and didn't see any other Latin resource threads, so I figured I'd get one going.

 

Thanks.

[Who Bathed?]

As I recall, the baths of Caracalla were free to the public, and they were frequented by free men and slaves, men and women, young and old. Most likely, it was considered in the public interest that everyone bathe, much as we consider it in the public interest that everyone be vaccinated.

 

So far as everything I read and heard while I was there, the baths were free to all. I believe some were charged to keep out the riff-raff. Rich Romans might set up a private bath in their homes, but would still frequent public baths for the communal aspect of Roman bathing.

 

I can't remember if the massages were free. The massages were considered an important part of the baths.

 

In the standard Roman view of Public Works and Services, ensuring the baths were free and accessible was an important part of government administration. If any Consuls (republic) or Emperor (empire) allowed them to lapse, they were viewed unfavorably.

 

I visited the Diocletian Baths, one of the largest and most opulent in their day. To give you an idea how big, what amounted to the foyer, the entrance to the Baths, is now a large cathedral, the Santa Maria degli Angeli. It's amazing. It's on the Piazza della Repubblica in Rome.

[A Question About A Famous Roman Quote]

The only one I can think of is Cicero's quote:

 

Times are bad. Children no longer obey their parents, and everyone is writing a book.

 

It's one of my favorites. Nothing changes. Society is society....

 

It seems familiar somehow, your quote. I'll look more....