The Classics in the Antebellum South
The classical curriculum survived well into the 19th century CE through an injection of new life through reform and continued advocacy of educational institutions. Yet the case of the classics proved to be particularly important in the Antebellum American South on the eve of the Civil War. It is within this culture that First Latin Lessons and the Fontaine family resides in.
The classics in the American South formed the corps of the elite education, and the notions of civility, virtue, and civic responsibility. Wealthy families continued to undergo an education in classics through each generation, with those in the 19th century experiencing a larger emphasis on Greek rather than Latin.[19] Nonetheless, education in both languages proved vital for any young man seeking a college education. Preparation for entrance exams came from two primary areas: preparatory schools and individual tutors.[20] Through these avenues young men prepared for not only college entrance exams but for further education of the languages themselves. It is in these preparations that textbooks proved uniquely useful. Textbooks serve as foundational reference and supplemental texts for educators and students alike, with some curriculums basing their entire structure off of these books. Others merely utilize textbooks for supplementary practices, reducing the course of language preparations to whatever the tutor or instruction necessitated.