vox populi 2021

Why I chose Classical Greek GCSE
Jonathan, Fourth Form
When I told my friends that I was
thinking of choosing Classical
Greek for one of my GCSE subjects,
I was asked a lot of questions:
mainly, “Why?” followed by, “but
the alphabet” and “but it’s a dead
language.” For me, these aspects are
a key part of the reason I wanted to
study Greek. Yes, it is in a different
alphabet, but that’s part of the
challenge and so part of the fun. Yes,
it is technically a dead language but
when we can read original texts in
the language, we have a connection
with people who lived around two
thousand years ago. That sense of
connection is overwhelming, both
for the similarities it might reveal
and also the differences which it
illuminates. I had always loved Latin
and, as both are inflected languages,
I hoped that this would help me with
learning Greek from scratch.
What I knew of the culture of the ancient
world also inspired me to choose the
subject. There are many parts of Greek
culture which feel modern, for example
the theatre and political democracy,
but there is also a challenge for us in
recognising that theirs was a society
built on slavery where women rarely
had a voice. I had also seen theatre
performances of Greek literature in
English and so was keen to be able to
read them in the original language as it
would give me closer proximity to the
intention and meaning of the writers.
On options evening I found that we
were likely to be reading Homer and
Herodotus, so I finalised my decision.
The first term of Greek has been swift and
exhilarating. We are a small class and so
we have moved at a rapid pace but one
of the benefits of being a small group is
that we support each other and progress
together. We are already reading passages
where we encounter mythological heroes
and towering historical figures and by the
end of the year we will be reading texts in
the original Greek: I can’t wait.
mundus senescit at gens maturescit
John Ellis, Fourth Form
Despite all the hardship it has
left in its wake, the COVID-19
pandemic has provided an almost
unprecedented opportunity for us
as a society to pause and reflect on
our past, present and future. Most
notably following the death of
George Floyd, the rapid expansion
of the Black Lives Matter Movement
has led to numerous institutions
across the world examining their
own diversity and/or links to slavery
and racism. However, there is one
key question posed at this time:
‘Is there validity in judging the
actions of the past in the eyes of the
present?’
Although many have pointed fingers
at the British Empire for its central
role in the Transatlantic Slave Trade
and colonialism, all of the world’s
most powerful empires were built and
sustained on the backs of slavery and
oppression and, therefore, it is important
to recognise this also. As a Classicist, I
take a keen interest and fascination in the
structure and civilisation of the Roman
Empire. Nevertheless, this does not go
without my own criticism of a leader
who often painted himself as the greatest
in history: Gaius Julius Caesar. Now it is
needless to say that Julius Caesar was one
of the most extraordinarily resourceful
and talented military minds that Europe
has ever seen but his integrity falls short
of his achievements. The mass genocide
committed by Caesar in the Gallic Wars
is completely and utterly unacceptable
in the lens of our modern society but,
just as Caesar and many of those around
him seemed to be very potent in clearing
their consciences, should we be able
to forgive and forget simply because it
happened so long ago? Likewise, the
role of slavery in the Roman Empire was
central to its expansive economy. On the
contrary to common argument, however,
this institutionalisation of slavery did
not go unquestioned or seen as normal
by all at the time. In Gaius’ Institutiones
(161 AD), he refers to the domination
of another person in the case of slavery
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