Professor Leonard Muellner, in his recent posting on the Kosmos Society website, shares his experience from the visit to the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Lille 2, and his lecture about Homeric poetry to an audience of 500 students.
“The indestructible languages are Ancient Greek and Latin, and they have introduced them not simply to teach people dry subjects like the roots of Greek and Latin words so that they can understand and learn scientific terminology more easily. It’s become clear to many in France that the several Faculties of Medicine may do a good job teaching their students the scientific and technical aspects of modern medicine, but that students’ aptitude for interacting with patients as human beings has not been similarly nurtured. As a response, Drizenko and Gosset have been incorporating the study of Classics—the languages themselves, the history of ancient medicine, the study of both scientific literature and also of Homeric poetry, into the curriculum for medical students.”