Harry Mount and John Davie

Author and editor of The Oldie Harry Mount and classicist John Davie bring to life some Latin phrases in everyday use and argue that ancient Latin can help us live better in the present.

Mount and Davie say there are so many Latin phrases in everyday use, such as carpe diem, stet, memento mori, and et tu Brute, that they are often used without any understanding of the background and context of their original use. Some are used in English translation, including the die is cast, crossing the Rubicon, and Rome was not built in a day. They argue that these phrases are a rich source of the wisdom of the ancients and can help us to deal with misfortune, old age, and death.

Mount is author of the bestselling Amo, Amas, Amat and All That – How to Become a Latin Lover and studied classics at Oxford. Davie was head of classics at St Paul’s School, London, and is now a lecturer at Trinity College, Oxford. He has translated Seneca, Horace, Cicero and Euripides.