Adoleszenz

Latin Class

Moritz:

Third lesson of the day. Three more left.

"…vi superum saevae memoreum Iunonis ob iram…" Otto stumbled in Latin. I wished he'd slow down. I didn't learn Virgil's Aeneid for homework...

"Better, Otto. Continue, Georg." Herr Sonnensitch comanded. I looked over at Melcie by my side, but she was facing the other way. I felt lost.

Georg, "…multa quoque et bello passus, dum conderet urbem."

 "Hanschen. From the beginning." Herr Sonnenstich barked.

Hanschen replied without a stumble. "Arma virumque cano, Troaiae qui primus ab oris-"

"Ernst! And…"

"…Italiam, fato profugus, Laviniaque venit litora-" Ernst answered.

I became so hung up on worry, that I didn't realize it was my turn. Melcie had to kick my leg to get my attention. And it hurt. 

"Were you sleeping, Moritz?" Herr's eyes became tinted with fury, as he slammed his beating ruler on my desk. To which I simply answered, "Sir…?"

"Continue. Please." I hesitates. "Moritz Stiefel!" Haltingly, I spoke, "… Laviniaque venit…"

"Yes…?"

"…litora…multum enim-"

 “Multumenim….?" Herr Sonnensitch taunted cruely, getting mad at my hesitentce.

I took another stab at it, trying to sound confident. Taking one look at Melcie's conserned face, I carried on. "…multumolim-" 

Herr Sonnenstich started losing patience“Olim?!  Multumolim…?! So then, somehow the Pious Aeneas has 'already' suffered much 'in the days still to come'…?" I didn't respond. "Herr Stiefel?" No response. "Do you have any idea what you’re saying, Herr Stiefel!?"

I was too mortified to respond. Melcie wouldn't take it any longer and she rose from her seat.

"If you please!" she almost screamed at the teacher. And after realizing what she had just done, she stood in a calm and respectable manner, bracing her brave self for what was coming. 

"Pardon me?" Herr Sonnenstich almosted whispered at her.

"If you please, Herr Sonnenstich… can’t we at least consider 'multum olim' as a plausible conjecture for how the text might read?"

"Melcanne Gabor, we are hardly here today to conjecture about textual conjectures. The boy has made an error."

"Yes." agreed calmly, "But an understandable error, sir. Indeed, if we could only entertain the fitness of the conjecture-"

“Multumolim?!"

She managed to stay strong. "Look to the fresh rhetorical balance-'multumolim' introducing 'multaquoque'- a parallel, sir, between what Aeneas has already suffered in war and those sufferings on land and sea just ahead."

"Frau Gabor, since the days of Servius, Aulus Gellius, and Claudius Donatus-nay, since the moment of Virgil’s death-our world has been littered with more than sufficient critical commentary on textual conjecture."

"With all respect, sir, are you then suggesting there is no further room for critical thought or interpretation? Why indeed, then, do we even—" Then he struck her. Right across her breast. I flinched at the sound, and almost cried at the look on her face. It was bent down, eyes scrunched, tears?