Some thoughts

I thought I would take the opportunity during the time when I should be revising for my exams to update my blog a little. I guess I would firstly like to thank Jon MacKenzie for mentioning me several times on his blog. I should also say that it is purely coincidental if my blog's format and content bears a striking resemblance to his. For the record, I bet John Calvin had a brilliant command of the Latin language, and I would certainly never say anything bad about him, at least in Jon's presence.

A few things I have been thinking about recently, in no particular order:

• A group of us had a discussion in the pub the other night concerning the merits of reading simply for the pleasure of it. I stated my belief that I would never read a book simply because it was enjoyable or a 'page-turner', unless it had some intellectual merit. This consequently led onto a debate on whether the main aim of the Hellenistic poets of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C., i.e. Theocritus, Callimachus, Apollonius etc., was a display of their erudition, and how much this factored into the enjoyment of their poetry by those who heard it. A very pedantic discussion, but also very challenging. I still stand by my claim that I would never read a book like the Da Vinci Code. Please leave your comments on any of these points if you feel so led.

• I have for a while now been convicted of the fact that the intensity with which the study of the Classics is pursued in today's schools and universities has diminished considerably from what it was. In a(nother) discussion the other day after dinner, Jon and I were talking about how J.R.R. Tolkien was fluent in both Latin and Greek- not just reading it but speaking it as well! I feel very strongly that classicists now adays are not reaching the standard that they should be.
  

• Sven-Goran Eriksson is an absolute idiot and should be strung up

• Got to watch Prime Minister's Questions live today for the first time this semester so far. It was absolutely fantastic, very entertaining, and I think David Cameron probably did quite well. The analysts on the Daily Politics said that Tony Blair did not seem to demonstrate his usual confidence and arrogance, and that it was almost as though he didn't even try and act as if it hadn't been a disastrous week or so for Labour. He certainly didn't answer any of Cameron's questions about the leadership handover, sticking mostly to issues of policy, although there is nothing new there. I still think Blair was quite strong, and his rhetoric brilliance was, in my opinion, as strong as ever today. They say 15-20 months until he resigns. We shall have to wait and see.