Latin 510 (Tacitus). Assignment for Week 10 (T 12/8 and 12/10)

Dialogus 27-42

This week, as we finish the Dialogus, I’d like to devote Tuesday to translation and discussion of roughly 27-35 (essentially the speech of Messala) and Thursday to the speech of Maternus and conclusion (36-42).

For Tuesday-- and rather than have you do another written translation -- I’m assigning each of you a chapter for which you are responsible. This means you should be able (and ready) to translate some or all of it (if you need to, or find it easier, write it out); know what the commentary says; be able to answer any niggling grammatical questions; and in general be ready to expound authoritatively about your chapter. Assigned as follows:

28: Lissa

29: Rachel

30: Bridget

31: Alberto

32: Ed

33: Laura

34: Jessica

35: Brandon

For Thursday we’ll try to figure out what Maternus’ speech is all about -- read it carefully, with the commentary. Do you find this a satisfactory and fitting end? Does it provide resolution to the debate?

I’d also like to reserve the last 30-45 minutes for a freewheeling wrap-up discussion of what you believe binds the three minor works together, so give that some thought and come prepared with a few ideas. This may be the place to give some time to Luce’s reading of the Dialogus.

Optional secondary reading:

The first quickly became a classic study of the D. (online, click on link); the second is brand spanking new, very interesting and thoughtful, and will give you a good sense of where scholarship on the text might be headed (I’ll send you a pdf of this):

T.D. Barnes, "The Significance of Tacitus' Dialogus de Oratoribus." HSCP 90 (1986) 225-44.

Andrew Gallia, “Potentes and Potentia in Tacitus’ Dialogus de oratoribus”, TAPA 139 (2009) 169-206.