PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

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PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Raconteur » Mon Sep 26, 2022 12:15 pm

I'm currently taking some courses at the the Alexander Arguelles Academy of Languages & Literatures.

Starting in October, there will be some new courses on offer. Because these are so different/unique, I thought they may be of interest to some of you here. For example, I don't think I've ever seen another place offer online instruction in Old Icelandic (a form of Old Norse). There will also be a class called "Path of the Polyglot," which makes me think of the old HTLAL subforum he once hosted. Anybody remember those days? Feels like it was in another lifetime for me...

The Academy's outreach efforts are still quite lackluster, so I thought this might be the only way for some of you to find out about it. Besides, I gather many here (as was the case on the old forum) seem interested in Prof. Arguelles' doings in general.

Anyway, here's the copy of the email that was sent out to students:

Alexander Arguelles Academy of Languages & Literatures wrote:Hi everyone!

I hope you have enjoyed this first full quarter of classes! As we approach the end of September, we are also entering a new quarter of the Alexander Argüelles Academy of Languages & Literatures.

Excitingly, we are now offering another three new classes for our upcoming quarter from 3 Oct to 24 Dec!

Firstly, Prof. Argüelles is finally preparing his manuscript, The Path of the Polyglot, for publication. As part of that process, he will be offering a small lecture-based circle to read through the text together. It will cover in detail every aspect of planning for a lifetime of scholarly pursuit as a form of mental discipline or self-actualization practice. In many ways, this is the culmination of the Professor's life's work, and so do not let this opportunity go to waste!

Secondly, there will be another Latin circle, this one for those who are not yet ready for the Conversational Latin circle. Selections of pattern drills and rapid oral question and answer exercises will be provided for those who have studied and can read Latin but lack speaking practice.

Lastly, based on the Professor's academic work in Medieval Literary Languages, he is also offering a class on Old Norse. There are no prerequisites for this class, unlike the circles on Middle High German and Old French, and so this is a great way for you to dip your toes into the period.

If you are interested to sign up for these or another course that you have not been in before, you can apply for them here. (Full list of courses below.) For classes that you are currently enrolled in, you do not need to do anything to enrol for the next quarter—to simplify the process, we will automatically enrol you in the next quarter unless you explicitly request to leave the class.

One final update: we have officially started a newsletter! We will be sharing exclusive updates and tidbits there, so please feel free to join by scrolling to the bottom of our Academy page. You can also read the very first issue of the newsletter here.

It is quite a milestone to finish our first full quarter of the class, and we hope that you can join us over the next three months as we round off the year. Thank you all so much for your time, attention, and continuous support!

Best Regards,
[I redacted out the assistant's name]
unnamed.png

  • Comparative-Historical English + Gothic: The Gothic and Anglo-Saxon Gospels in parallel columns, with the versions of Wycliffe and Tyndale
  • French {Classic Novels} [Thursday 10-11 AM]: Émile Zola – La Fortune des Rougon
  • French {Classic Drama} [Thursday 12-1 PM]: Corneille, Racine, Molière, Voltaire – Pièces – Racine Andromache
  • German {Modern Classics} [Tuesday 2-3 PM]: Max Frisch – Homo Faber (Suhrkamp)
  • German {Classic Drama} [Wednesday 12-1 PM]: Schiller, Goethe – Schiller Die Braut von Messina
  • German {Contemporary Novels} [Saturday 12-1 PM]: Walter Moers - Rumo & Die Wunder im Dunkeln (Piper)
  • Great Books of the East: Vedic Hymns
  • Great Books of the West: Plutarch’s Lives
  • Latin {Conversational} [Tuesday 10-11 AM]: Selection of Stories from 13th and 14th Century Manuscripts; Traupman – Conversational Latin
  • Latin {Drills} [Friday 10-11 AM]: Selections of pattern drills and rapid oral question and answer exercises
  • Medieval Literary Languages [Mittelhochdeutsch]: Das Nibelungenlied: Mittelhochdeutsch / Neuhochdeutsch (Reclam)
  • Medieval Literary Languages [Ancien Français]: Chrétien de Troyes – Erec Et Enide (Le Livre de Poche, Lettres Gothiques)
  • Medieval Literary Languages [Old Norse]: Sigrid Valfells and James E. Cathey – Old Icelandic: An Introductory Course (Oxford)
  • The Path of the Polyglot or Principles of Polyliteracy: Manuscript of The Path of the Polyglot
  • Spanish: Carlos Fuentes – Carlos Fuentes – La Muerte de Artemio Cruz


EDIT: Forgot to make the links work.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby MorkTheFiddle » Mon Sep 26, 2022 5:40 pm

Raconteur wrote:For example, I don't think I've ever seen another place offer online instruction in Old Icelandic (a form of Old Norse).


The University of Texas at Austin offers Old Norse Online.
There is also Old Norse for Beginners.
What they call Old Norse is in effect really Old Icelandic, methinks.
Both are useful if not all-encompassing courses.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Raconteur » Mon Sep 26, 2022 6:56 pm

MorkTheFiddle wrote:
Raconteur wrote:For example, I don't think I've ever seen another place offer online instruction in Old Icelandic (a form of Old Norse).


The University of Texas at Austin offers Old Norse Online.
There is also Old Norse for Beginners.
What they call Old Norse is in effect really Old Icelandic, methinks.
Both are useful if not all-encompassing courses.
I mean... unless I'm missing something, these are pre-recorded courses. Certainly, great resources to have, but hardly the same thing as a weekly meeting with 4-6 fellow students and a PhD with a specialization in Norse Mythology.

By writing "I don't think I've ever seen another place offer online instruction in..." I mean live classes, not online materials in general. Naturally, we all know you can find some online materials on just about any topic.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Vordhosbn » Thu Oct 06, 2022 4:19 am

I'm hoping to take Old Norse and Middle High German starting this week, despite the unfortunate reality of time zones living "down under". I agree with the OP that this is a rare opportunity to study these languages with someone who has a deep knowledge of the literary cultures, their historical development and significance, and has been teaching them for decades.

Here is the updated schedule for the final quarter of 2022:
Schedule-Oct-Dec-v.-3-2048x1104.png
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby David1917 » Sat Oct 08, 2022 9:27 pm

I want to take the comparative English/Gothic course so badly. Hopefully it will work out sometime in 2023.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Raconteur » Sun Oct 09, 2022 8:14 am

Reporting back after the first Path of the Polyglot seminar. It's really interesting and comprehensive. Practical advice, but also a lot of AA's theories on language in general as well as language learning as a life pursuit, etc. Highly recommended to anyone here who can make the time (and time zone) work.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Vordhosbn » Mon Oct 10, 2022 5:24 am

The classes in Old Norse and medieval German were likewise excellent. This was, funnily enough, despite my years of engagement with the professor's writings, my first experience in a class setting with him. I'm still astounded by the breadth and depth of his knowledge across so many different languages and cultures, both past and present, often down to the smallest details.

The Middle High German session was especially interesting. The class is conducted entirely in German with the epic poem Das Niebelungenlied selected as our first foray into this 800+ year-old language. We began by first reading a stanza in the modern German translation, followed by the original, and then attempted to analyze the original text with help from the professor as needed. This was then followed by a discussion of the themes and psychology of the people of that time.

A definite recommendation from me also. There are some learning opportunities here that you don't come by very often.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Vordhosbn » Sun Dec 18, 2022 2:25 am

The Academy schedule survey for next quarter 2023 has just been published. If any of the courses listed might interest you, do take the time to fill it out:

Academy Schedule Survey for Next Quarter and Beyond
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Vordhosbn » Fri Dec 30, 2022 10:09 am

Timetable for Quarter 1, 2023 (January, February, March) has been added.

Three new offerings next quarter:

  • Guided Self-Study in Introductory Latin
    Each week we will go over the exercises of one chapter of Lingua Latina, and then spend the bulk of the time reading and explicating word-for-word from Dr. Giles editions of classical texts.

  • Guided Self-Study in Introductory Arabic
    Each week we will go over the seventh review lesson of Assimil’s Arabic course, and then spend the bulk of the time reading and explicating word-for-word retellings of classical texts.

  • Comparative Historical Religions
    An overview of the phenomenological features of religions across cultures and times.

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Last edited by Vordhosbn on Sun Jan 08, 2023 8:47 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: PSA: New Courses at the Alexander Arguelles Academy

Postby Raconteur » Wed Jan 04, 2023 8:52 pm

I'm especially looking forward to introductory Latin, maybe introductory ancient Greek next? :D
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