On Tue, 18 Jun 1996, Sol Miguel-Prendes wrote:
> I would like to apologize for sending such a stupid query to the list
> ("help with Latin"). It was not intended as a joke (well, the joke is on
> me). Since English is not my first language, the Latin "gem" made no
> sense to me. And yes, I should have considered it more carefully before
> sending it to the list. I am TOTALLY mortified.
> Sol
>
>
> Sol Miguel-Prendes
> Romance Languages Dpt.
> Wake Forest University
> Winston-Salem, NC, 27109
> (910) 759 4403
>
> Please, you should NOT be mortified. Those silly old Latin jokes are
terribly hard to decipher. What they are, actually, is a testimony to
the fondness in the English-speaking world for the Latin language, through
which uncountable millions of school children have had to suffer. The
language has never lost its vogue in this country or in England, and the
whole study (with its attendant frustrations!) is something that actually
sparks a kind of good-natured humor of the kind seen in these old
jokes. They are really quite culture-specific.
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