Alexander HumezBesprekingen

I expected to see something in the vein of that eye-opening theory on how a brake between words in writing has dramatically changed the course of our learning, gleaned from William Bernstein's "Masters of the Word: How Media Shaped History ". However it looks like there's nothing of that kind in it. Still let me quote from Bernstein:

“The empowerment afforded by solitary silent reading is hard to overestimate. In the world of scriptura continua, the monk or scholar had to read aloud, usually as a member of a group, affording him no opportunity to stop, consider, or analyze. The silent reader had not only all these advantages, but also the ability to compose, fluently, in spaced writing. Most critically, having to dictate to a scribe took away the author’s privacy, since it required two participants. Eliminating the need for scribes gave rise to the newly widespread expression of seditious and sexual content. In the world of scriptura continua, Church authorities could control the reading of controversial texts. By contrast, silent reading of spaced text allowed scholars and monks at-will access to and independent analysis of these works. Spaced text snatched access to books from abbots or bishops and handed it to the monk, the student, and the researcher, who “could peruse knowledge while keeping their thoughts to themselves.

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“Solitary writing not only increased the power of individuals, but also improved their ability to impart ideas and knowledge to students, and it especially transformed the educational process. The classroom of scriptura continua involved reading aloud on a grand scale. The new spaced script enabled the educator to separate the lecture.

The sum total of things wrought by the humble blank space between words—the ease of both reading and composition; the improved efficiency of copying and of education; and the control, autonomy, and privacy afforded the individual—is such that the Reformation and Enlightenment would scarcely have been possible without it*. All that was needed was the means to print the words surrounding those spaces, and the paper to print them on.”

* “Saenger, Paul, Space Between Words (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1997), pp. 249–250, 258–276. The “Saenger hypothesis,” that the advent of spaced script precipitated an explosion of literary activity and social change, though well accepted by paleographers and linguists, is not without its critics. See, for example, Michael Richter, untitled review, American Historical Review 106:2 (April 2001): 627–628; and Mark Aronoff, untitled review, Language in Society 31:4 (Septemeber 2002): 624-628.”

"Latina pro Populo" makes use of a goofy quasi-countercultural humour in its writing. However, all of the not-necessarily-funny or even comprehensible jokes aside, the authors chose to use long-winded explanations of Latin grammar, which are ultimately not useful to a person like myself who has not previously studied Latin (though I have studied French for translation; have also learned Italian, German, and Russian, and am currently studying Spanish; both with teachers and auto-didactically). Nonetheless, I only speak English fluently and understand that a language is best learned in a country where it is spoken, and of course with Latin such opportunities would be severely limited, unless one lives -IE- in the Vatican. Although I do not have a degree in linguistics, nor am I a linguistic professional, it is my observation that English itself contains a great deal of Latin-based vocabulary; consequently, once one becomes aware of that, that in itself can aid in understanding Latin.

In support of this text, I appreciated the translation exercises, and found that I was able to understand about 25% of the Latin text presented here. Conversely, I can see that for a beginner, this overview of Latin grammar would seem daunting. I read the various excerpts in Latin (the "fabula"), the vocabulary, the verb conjugations--Out Loud--in an effort to get a feel for the sound of the language (at least as I imagine it sounds). In that regard, there was one glaring omission: I could not find any in-depth discussion in this book in regard to how the Latin language is pronounced. The text contains some interesting historical background of the Latin language and its connection to Greek, and to the predecessor of both Greek and Latin, Proto-Indo-European. In the end, I wish this book had made use of a more structured method for learning and practicing Latin; this text works best as an introduction to Latin. Additionally, to its credit, "Latina pro Populo" does suggest additional resources useful for those wishing to continue their Latin studies; as well as synopsis of Latin grammar, and a glossary.

NA

This beautiful little book is a work of art in itself. Printed by the Godine Press

The author recalls W. C. Field's famous answer to the question, "Is this a game of chance?" -- "Not the way I play it." Most counting-out situations, like most card "tricks", test the player's skill in solving problems of modular arithmetic. [202]

Enjoyed this, packed full as it was with lots of titbits of information. It's something to skim or dip into rather than to treasure for ever.

This book is full of segues and tangents that never actually end up relating back to the main point. That makes me angry. I love me a good tangent (see review of Bill Bryson). But this is ridiculous.

The Humez Brothers claim, and rightly so, that language can tell us about the culture it belongs to. From this book, you can also watch the transformation in the language from Early Latin to Late Latin as words are borrowed from their Etruscan, Germanic, and Gallic neighbors. Each chapter is short, and so this would make for a decent bathroom reader (or you can churn through it a day, like I did).

http://lifelongdewey.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/471-abc-et-cetera-by-alexander-and...½

The Humez brothers’ Alpha to Omega takes the reader on a journey through the standard Greek alphabet in order. Along the way, they investigate all manner of modern etymology, classical Greek mythology and history, interesting tidbits about gardening, and even why glass panes over time become thicker on the bottom than on the top (they are still a liquid).

The Humez brothers do a very good job of keeping the history and politics light(ish) and accessible while still imparting a massive amount of information about ancient history, linguistics, and theatrics. The short but eye-opening chapters make for very good bathroom reading.

http://lifelongdewey.wordpress.com/2012/04/01/481-alpha-to-omega-by-alexander-ni...

If you only associate Greek letters with fraternity and sorority names, this book will quickly broaden your horizons. For each letter of the Greek alphabet, the brothers Humez offer a breezy essay that defines a few Greek words and tells a little about Greek civilization. “Alpha is for Alphabet,” “Beta is for Boustrophedon,” and so on.

The pages are of unusually fine paper, better than a paperback deserves, but I’m not complaining. There are beautiful maps inside the front and back covers: Greece in the front, the whole Mediterranean in the back. So for anyone who doesn’t enjoy this book, all I can say is, “Beta is also for Barbarian.”

A chapter on each of the numbers zero to thirteen and infinity ("lazy eight"), with fun historical and mathematical tidbits about each.

I like books about numbers. I like learning about origins of language. And, for the most part, I liked this book. You cannot read this expecting some overlying theme to it all, or even a nice neat conclusions section to wrap everything up. Each chapter is its own entity and is tenuously connected to a single number (zero through thirteen, plus an additional chapter on infinity). However, the narrative is tangential and digresses often into adjacent but not immediately applicable topics. For instance, chapter 5 is spent largely discussing the measurement of time. Is it an interesting collection of random information? No doubt. However, it's nothing more than that. It is less a book than a collection of well-informed essays bordering on stream of consciousness. I had hoped for more explanation of common number-themed phrases, but I did not want for neat little facts on math and linguistics. If you're just looking for some light nonfiction, this is a nice diversion.

Latin for People is about as humorous as a Latin grammar could possibly be. It prompted some fond memories of the ablative absolute...

Organized in an easy to understand manner. A good supplement to a latin course, or to help decipher a state motto ;-)