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Articles Tagged Julius Caesar

Beware the Ides of March

When I was in high school during the last century, students studied Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar in 10th grade. Besides grappling with impossible language and syntax, we encountered the soothsayer’s warning in Act 1, Scene 2. Caesar and his advisors make their way through a crowd on a festival day, perhaps the festival of Lupercalia, an

CALENDRICAL TRIVIA

Oh, the joys of winter, especially if the lake freezes. In the 1820s, Jane Austin’s contemporaries frolicked in snow and ice. Clearly these young men are showing off, while the boys in the background focus on their own games. January is the month of Janus, the Roman god who looks both forward and back, supervising

GUNG HEI FAT CHOY – HAPPY LUNAR (CHINESE) NEW YEAR

“Okay, I’ll bite.  Why are you wishing me a Happy New Year when we already celebrated the New Year on January 1?” Excellent Question, Grasshopper.  (Historian settles in for a lengthy chat.)  The January 1 date is completely arbitrary, a result of the introduction of the Julian calendar in 45 BCE. “Could you answer my