Week 9: Legenda Aurea: Franciscus. Background | Background Quiz | Starting Assumptions | Resources | Extras Vocabulary | Etymology | Grammar | Perseus Dictionary | Perseus Tool Reading Overview | Reading Quiz: English | Reading Quiz: Latin Discussion Questions | Latin Composition | Weekly Checklist

Latin Composition

A draft of your composition work (A and B) is due by Friday midnight. It will be returned to your with comments, corrections, hints and suggestions on Saturday. The final draft is due by Monday midnight. Note: This first draft is required: if you do not turn in a draft of the composition by Friday midnight, you will receive no composition credit for the week.

** If you are not an OU student, I will try to mark your compositions as well; send it to laura-gibbs@ou.edu and make sure you put MEDIEVAL LATIN in the subject line **

A. Answer the questions - in Latin...! Please make sure that your email contains both the question and the answer. If you are having trouble with this exercise, check out these Hints for Answering Questions in Latin.

B. Write a small Latin composition on your own. You will choose either to describe a picture or to write a small monologue/dialogue. If you are having trouble with this exercise, check out these Hints for Free Composition in Latin.

• When describing a picture, do not say "in the picture" or "the picture shows"... instead, imagine you are looking at the actual scene itself, and describe the scene ("the sheep are sleeping", "the fox is dead", "the woman is very beautiful"). Examples.
• When writing a dialogue, do not use indirect speech ("Samson says... Delilah says..."), but just write out what the characters say - don't worry, I should be able to figure out who's talking! Examples.

1. Qualis iuvenis erat Franciscus?
2. Cuius vestimenta induit Romam proficiscens?
3. Quid scripsit Franciscus?
4. Cuius charactere manus et pedes eius consignati sunt?
5. Quid hirundines fecerunt Francisco imperante?
6. Quare levabat vermiculos?
7. Quare apibus mel imponebat?
8. Secundum Franciscum, cui omnes laudes referendae sunt?
9. Quid symbolum Dei praefert?
10. Quis a Domino coronabitur?

B. Latin composition

Choose either one description or one dialogue/monologue to write in Latin.

Description: Choose one of the following images and describe the scene in Latin. You should write 5 sentences that are each at least four words long each. Please please do not use an English-Latin dictionary. You should have plenty of vocabulary from this week's reading to write your description!

• Ghirlandaio. Stigmata Francisci
• Gozzoli. Praedicans Ad Aves OR Praedicans ad homines (CHOOSE ONE)
• Giotto. Franciscus Pauper

Dialogue/Monologue: Choose one of the following scenes and write the words you can imagine the characters saying. You should write 5 sentences that are each at least four words long each. Please please do not use an English-Latin dictionary. You should have plenty of vocabulary from this week's reading to write your description!

• Franciscus et pater eius. How do you think Francis would explain to his father what is happening? What does Francis' pater think about this sudden change in his son? What does Francis want to do? What do you think his father was expecting him to do? Write a dialogue between Francis and his father.
• De vermiculorum vita. What do you think the vermiculi would say to Francis if they could talk? What would the vermiculi say to the other people in the world? To the birds and other animals? Put yourself in the place of the little vermes. What kind of life do they live? What would they have to say for themselves? What kind of prayer would they pray?