That Just Happened

When you encounter a Latin sentence during a public reading of Kant, what do you do?

In our case, we ask: "who here speaks Latin?"  The nearest Latin expert says, "I do."
To which you reply, "Then will you read this for us with the proper pronunciation?"
If answered in the affirmative, he or she will clarify: "Ecclesiastical or standard?"
We decide, usually defaulting to standard.

It is read as it was intended to be read.

Then the professor reads it with a forced German accent, as one might guess Kant would have read it.

This is where I come in, scribbling in my journal: That just happened.


And so, I'm sure, it will happen again. Unfortunately, some talents have little opportunity for public exercise. But in the cloistered halls of academia, you may revive dead languages or impersonate whoever you want. You may even do both these things at the same time with relative impunity.

I've attended my first barrage of classes, and I must say that I absolutely love this department(s). The St. Andrews and Stirling Graduate Programme (SASP) is taught by both Stirling University and St. Andrews. Though the bulk of the work occurs at St. Andrews, we M.Litt'ers take the bus every Monday to Stirling (about 1.5 hours each way). The faculties of both departments are approachable, engaging and damn good at what they do.

The same can be said for my fellow graduate students. Everyone is friendly and interesting. The most casual conversations have a tendency to get deeply philosophical. Then, at the turn of a dime, it is casual again. There is no love lost.

Unless I mention some preference for continental philosophy.