Latin Projects
Throughout my seven years of Latin education, I've had the opportunity to complete several projects focussed on approaching Latin in a new way, converting it to different mediums, and generally just having fun with the language. Explore four of those projects below!
Quick Break-Down
Ovid's Metamorphoses through Oboe
I learned and performed the second movement (Phaeton) of Ovid's Metamorphoses by Benjamin Britten, using my original translations from book II of Ovid's Metamorphoses to inform my musical decisions. I then wrote an artist's statement, including excerpts from my translation, that walked the listener through these decisions.
Pliny's Naturalis Historia through Storybooks
I transformed Pliny the Elder's Naturalis Historia into a children's book accessible to beginner Latin students. I did this by simplifying the Latin, drawing original illustrations, and formatting the book before publishing it through Shutterfly.
Trump's Immigration Policies through The Aeneid and De Bello Gallico
In a short essay, I compared the immigration policies present under the reigns of Queen Dido, Emperor Augustus Caesar, and former president Donald Trump in order to understand how leaders' pasts affect their policies.
The Aeneid and De Bello Gallico through TikTok
I made several hundred TikToks that turn The Aeneid and De Bello Gallico into humorous, easily consumable videos, achieving my goal of making ancient Roman literature more accessible to my peers.
Ovid's Metamorphoses Through Oboe
I really love playing oboe, and I really love Latin, so it was super exciting to get to combine these two passions in this project. I spent several weeks learning and practising Ovid's Metamorphoses, Movement II: Phaeton by Benjamin Britten under the tutelage of my teacher, Mr. Nathaniel F. At the same time, I translated the original Latin text into English. As I practised, I used what I had just translated to help me make artistic decisions about how to play certain passages. It was wonderful to see how fluent the communication between the very different mediums could be!
Understanding how Donald Trump's Life Experience Affects his Policies through The Aeneid and De Bello Gallico
Our world has always been interconnected, and we depend on our governments and leaders to dictate how, where, and when people can move into and out of our countries. This important topic has been at the forefront of our minds for the past four years, as Donald Trump is in the presidential office. These themes of immigration can be found throughout the Aeneid and De Bello Gallico, both texts that were written thousands of years ago. Through the examination of the similarities and differences between the immigration policies and the leaders themselves....
(click Read More to see full essay)
Aeneid and De Bello Gallico Tiktoks
Over the summer of 2020, I downloaded Tiktok and found it to be a great place to learn about topics that I had no previous knowledge of, such as art restoration or falconry. I realized that I could produce content related to classical literature, and by doing so I could help other teenagers become interested in the Classics. Here's a compilation of some of the TikToks I made over the summer and throughout the school year.