I have a love story with Latin. I met my husband in the spring of 1994. He was a Classics major. He studied Latin, Ancient Greek, and ancient civilizations in college. I didn't actually know what "Classics" was until I met him.
Forgive me. I didn't grow up in an intellectual community. Few students went to college where I was from, let alone some small liberal arts school called Hamilton College. But I ended up there, and I met my husband—in an art history course, of course.
When I met my husband, I had nearly a 4.0 GPA in college, but I didn't understand meaning, literature, art, history, and how to write. I had a much higher GPA than he did. But he knew so much more than me. We'd watch a movie, read a poem, or analyze a piece of art and I was dumbfounded by how much he knew. He connected modern-day politics to Aristotle. He pointed out the themes in the Greek tragedies I would perform on stage as a theatre student. He would unpack every word of every poem I had to read as an English minor. He pointed out symbolism in artwork I had only viewed on the surface. Most of all, he sat with me and taught me how to write, word by word.
Now we have three kids. My husband is a doctor. Yes, Classics majors can become doctors. I am the writer, but I help kids apply to college. Almost every student I work with wants to be a business, engineering, or pre-med major. There are so many of them. When I ask them why they want to major in that particular field, many are not sure. Some say that it's a smart choice. A financial choice. A family choice. I sigh.
We tell our own kids the opposite. We want them to get a liberal arts education, like we did. So they can write. Think. And speak about everything.
Now we have three kids. My husband is a doctor. Yes, Classics majors can become doctors. I am the writer, but I help kids apply to college. Almost every student I work with wants to be a business, engineering, or pre-med major. There are so many of them. When I ask them why they want to major in that particular field, many are not sure. Some say that it's a smart choice. A financial choice. A family choice. I sigh.
We tell our own kids the opposite. We want them to get a liberal arts education, like we did. So they can write. Think. And speak about everything.
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We love Latin. It makes our kids different. It makes them better writers. Better thinkers. Better speakers. Better people. And, better college applicants.
Every student I work with who takes Latin (and Ancient Greek) as a high school student and lists Classics as their major choice fares far better in the college admissions process than any other student. It's like they are handed the "golden ticket" to get into any college they want. But it's not really a golden ticket. They earn their way because they are willing to do something different. They are willing to be pre-intellectual as a young person instead of pre-professional.
There's plenty of time for students to go into business, become an engineer, or go to medical school. Don't rush it. Instead, learn everything you can about what came before you. The Classics are the foundation of learning. They will inform every single thing you do in the most breathtaking and magical way.
I urge high schools to invest in the Classics instead of divest in them. I urge students to take Latin (and even Ancient Greek) through senior year. I urge parents to stop pushing pre-professionalism on teenagers. This is America. We can major in anything. We can go to any college. And we can succeed in life without being pre-professional.
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On this Valentine's Day, I think back to studying Venus de Milo, the Greek goddess of love, in college. My husband and I studied this sculpture in that art history course where we met in the spring of 1994. I fell in love with my husband, that statue, and the liberal arts in that course. May we never forget what the Classics, liberal arts, art, and writing can do for a young mind.
Love is the ultimate golden ticket in life. No business, engineering, or pre-professional degree could ever compare to Venus de Milo. A Classics major taught me that. And nearly 27 years of marriage have proven that.
