Critics Compilers and Commentators

<p>"To teach correct Latin and to explain the poets" were the two standard duties of Roman teachers. Not only was a command of literary Latin a prerequisite for political and social advancement but a sense of Latin's history and importance contributed to the Romans' understanding of their own cultural identity. Put plainly philology-the study of language and texts-was important at Rome. Critics Compilers and Commentators is the first comprehensive introduction to the history forms and texts of Roman philology. James Zetzel traces the changing role and status of Latin as revealed in the ways it was explained and taught by the Romans themselves. In addition he provides a descriptive bibliography of hundreds of scholarly texts from antiquity listing editions translations and secondary literature. Recovering a neglected but crucial area of Roman intellectual life this book will be an essential resource for students of Roman literature and intellectual history medievalists and historians of education and language science.</p>