Full text: Proceedings of the International Congress of Education of the World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago, July 25-28, 1893

26 INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF EDUCATION. 
LETTERS. 
As T shall not be able to be in Chicago this summer, I must miss not only the Colum- 
sian Exposition, but also seeing and hearing you. 1 don’t know how much you care 
about A, B, and C's view on the question of requiring Greek for the A.B. degree, but 
© shall feel a little easier if I tell you why I still favor such requirement. I can do it 
very briefly. It seems to me that Greek history, literature, art, and language still 
stand far enough outside of and away from our modern languages, literatures, and arts 
:0 furnish to the mind which busies itself with them that essential feature of culture, 
7iz.: drodyuia. I grant that Latin and the modern languages and literatures do this 
to a far greater extent now than they could do it in the times of the Renascence and of 
[saac Casaubon. But only Greek can do this, and is worthy to do this, supremely. 
The modern languages and literatures are still too near us, too closely associated with 
sur own, too identical with our own in countless molding influences. The Latin can 
do it, and can do it better now than when Greek first gave Furope its new intellectual 
birth. But the Latin cannot do it supremely well, because it is too closely woven into 
she web of our scholastic and literary and intellectual life. The Latinist is not remote 
enough from the Germanist. And, besides all that, my instinct as a Quellenforscher 
drives me to the Greek because it is the great Quelle, as well as because it is a supremely 
rood Quelle. 
Whatever else I might say or write on this subject would be hardly more than an 
amplification of this line of argument, and I suppose that even at Chicago in this 
sulminating time, verb. will be sat. sap. 
B. PERRIN, 
Professor of Greek in Yale University. 
The argument for requiring the study of Greek for the degree of Bachelor of Arts is 
vith me a brief one, because it comes of my personal experience. 
The Greek I learned in college has been of immense service fo me in my scientific 
work. I look upon the study of Greek as of far greater importance to the student in 
science than to those of any of the other professions except the theological. His scien- 
tific text-books, and all collateral works that he may study, are full of words of Greek 
origin, and such words are multiplying with every new advance of science. Greek is 
-eally of more importance in this respect than Latin, but Latin is essential, not only for 
.ts general contributions to our language, but also because Greek words are usually put 
nto a Latin dress for introduction into English. 
By the study of Greek I do not mean study according to the most approved of modern 
methods, but with less of the refinements of grammar and more of English etymology. 
{ would have each lesson in the translation of Greek a lesson also in the derivation of 
English words. This could be easily accomplished by requiring at the recitation the 
stating of the derivations—the more the better—from the roots of words, not compound, 
shat may occur in the passages translated, the student finding them by the use of his 
dictionaries ; and also by asking for an explanation of the present meanings of the words, 
zonsequent on their derivation. 
By this method of instruction the study of Greek and English would go on together, 
and in a way that would be profitable to any student, whatever his future profession. 
Whether the candidate could acquire under this method sufficient Greek before entering 
college for a degree of Bachelor of Arts I do not undertake to say. He would certainly 
know more than many college graduates under the existing method, for IT have found 
lamentable ignorance in my geological class as to derivations, even of words that ought 
-0 be familiar. 
My « 
The de 
found: 
am in 
My 
Greek 
The 
case tl 
busine 
great, 
Aft 
the lit 
the Gt 
to sue 
1 Qi 
A.B. 
vest n 
20mm 
studie 
to-day 
ered. 
the sc 
In 
ology 
Thi 
do no 
The 
educa 
the be 
so for 
Cir. 
no lo 
many 
ancie 
than 
who 1 
the n 
for tl 
not }
	        
Waiting...

Note to user

Dear user,

In response to current developments in the web technology used by the Goobi viewer, the software no longer supports your browser.

Please use one of the following browsers to display this page correctly.

Thank you.