Spring 2016
Nationals Contests Explained for Plebeians
Graphic Arts:
These projects
are constructed
purely for the
purpose of
making plebs
feel incompetent
in the visual arts.
For those not
blessed by
Minerva or
Apollo, it is best
to presume that
your creations
are simply for
show. For those
deter mined to
fight for a spot
on the podium,
you should
consider creative
ideas for your
“classical theme” Lindsey Dierig performing some decorative
and utilize unique stitching
skills you possess
in unusual fields like jewelry or decorative stitching (fewer
entries improves your chances statistically). Bold
adventurers diving into previously unexplored fields such as
stained glass should be wary of the dangers of projects
without a category. It is difficult for category-less projects to
be scored well.
hearing the first few words is possible, but Certamen shows
that it clearly is. Protégées in the fields of mythology,
grammar, Roman history/life, literature, or translation should
consider grabbing some tail wind from Aeolus and getting
over to the National team. Basic instructions for each area
of expertise follow. All mythology experts should, at a
minimum, know the twelve Greek Olympians and their
Roman counterparts, all of the major heroes and their
authors such as Odysseus, from the Odyssey by Homer. It
helps to be able to I.D. which woman or goddess Zeus/
Jupiter was seducing by his form and vice versa. Generally,
just try to memorize the entire family tree of every
mythological character. It’s only slightly complicated.
Grammar experts should know all declensions, exceptions,
and as many uses of the ablative as is humanly possible.
They should be able to parse mentally and should probably
correct sentence structure automatically whenever they read
anything. They can also consider branching out to
vocabulary, including learning all the principle parts of every
verb that has ever been written. Experts in Roman history
should strive to be able to name every battle that occurred
during the Roman times. Roman history bookworms should
also know an extraordinary amount of extremely
unnecessary information about politics and the evolution of
Roman culture while also memorizing the names of obscure
towns and cities. Translators should not only be able to be
read Latin and hear English, but also have people speak to
them in English and want to respond in Latin. They should
be the perfect conversion machine, and probably the best
at preemptive answering on team.
Creative Arts: A strange world is created when you enter
the rooms of muttering poets. Hermes looks over all the
orators and writers as they prepare to demonstrate their
nimble minds and quick wits. Are your memory banks like
Tartarus for all of classical history? Try writing an essay or a
myth. Can you recite every line of the Aeneid because you
read it three years ago in class? Dramatic Interpretation or
some type of recitation is for you. Are you artsy, but find the
graphic arts too limiting? You should try slogans or
costumes. No matter where you end up, just know that
each piece of knowledge brings you closer to the ancient
writers and orators of our past.
Academic Testing: Go! If you don’t attend testing, pray to
all of Olympus that Mr. Dean never finds out. So go.
Certamen: Nobody understands how the magical art of
pulling out answers out of the air to questions after only
Members of the 2015 Ohio Advanced Certamen team
Aquila Simmons, OJCL Central Gubernator, Wellington
VIII