Classical Trivium

Aristotle (384-322 BC) is history’s master of the art of Logic.

The Trivium is a name for the the language arts in the seven liberal arts.  The arts of the Trivium are Grammar, Logic and Rhetoric.

It is important to realize that these are not three levels of study or three stages of learning, but three separate arts to be studied and practiced.  In fact, they are the three arts on which all philosophical studies depend.

The First Art of the Trvium:  Grammar

Grammar is the art of speaking and writing rightly.  This art is divided into four parts:  Orthography, Etymology, Syntax and Prosody.  Orthography is the study of the letters and sounds of a language.  Etymology is the study of the words of a language, that is, the parts of speech.  Syntax is the study of sentence-making, how words are joined together to express judgments, questions, commands, wishes, and so on.  Prosody is the study of the rhetorical powers of a language, and include pronunciation, accent, meter and figures of speech.

The Second Art of the Trivium:  Logic

Logic, or rational philosophy, is the art by which our ideas are ordered according to the truth.  The art of logic is divided into six parts, each of which is taught in one of six books published by Aristotle in his “Organon“.  In the Categories, we study disconnected ideas that exist in the mind.  In “On Interpretation“, we study how ideas are joined together to form judgments (propositions).  In Prior Analytics, we study how propositions are joined to form arguments (syllogisms).  In Posterior Analytics, we study how demonstrative syllogisms are formed.  In the Topics, we study how dialectical syllogisms are formed.  In Sophistical Elenchi, we study how contentious or sophistical arguments are formed which are not true arguments but only appear to be so.  These studies combine to form the art and science of Logic.

The Third Art of the Trivium:  Rhetoric

Cicero (106-43 BC) is history’s master of the art of Rhetoric.

Rhetoric is the study of the means by which we may procure credibility in speaking.  We study the effects of arguments (logos), character (ethos) and emotion (pathos) on the human will and how they may be affected by a speaker.  The art of Rhetoric is learned through the study of Aristotle’s work “The Art of Rhetoric”, along with a number of books by the Roman philosophers Cicero and Quintilian.

Studying the Trivium

In the Classical Liberal Arts Academy, we make the study of the Trivium simple–not easy, but simple.  We provide free, self-paced, online courses on all of the authoritative works on Grammar, Logic and Rhetoric.  From the first lessons in Grammar through the final lessons in Rhetoric, all of the ancient Trivium can be learned in one place.

To get started in our free courses, please see visit the Academy Study Center.  For articles and videos on the Trivium, please use the links below.

If you have any questions about the Trivium, please contact us.

God bless your studies,

William C. Michael, Headmaster
Classical Liberal Arts Academy

Aristotle’s Prior Analytics PUBLISHED!

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I am happy to announce that I have re-published Taylor’s translation of Aristotle’s Prior Analytics in a number of useful formats for students in the Classical Liberal Arts Academy. This is the most important of all studies in the classical liberal arts, and we now have a searchable, working text on the Academy website–and a printed edition to keep in hand. Ours is the only online source for Taylor’s translation. Links to the online text and printed text are posted below: I will continue to improve the formatting of the online copy, making it more and more easy to use. … Continue

Conversation and Composition

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Your habits of speech are likely to become permanent and errors of speech will creep into your written work. Short sentences are quite as necessary as long ones, and in some cases, such as the portraying of strong emotion, are more effective. Even a succession of short sentences may be used with good results to describe rapid action. In conversation, also, sentences are generally short, and often grammatically incomplete, though they may be understood by the hearer. Sometimes this incompleteness is justified by the idiom of the language, but more often it is the result of carelessness on the part … Continue

Freshman Latin Grammar, Lesson 04

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To complete this lesson, complete the following tasks: Study the lesson below, carefully and completely. Read the instructions for translation exercises. Complete translation exercises. Memorize all lesson vocabulary. Work to earn a perfect score on your lesson exam. Lesson In this lesson, we begin our study of St. Jerome’s Latin translation of the Gospel of John. In each lesson, we will study five verses, until we have completed the first five chapters of the Gospel. 1 In principio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum. 2 Hoc erat in principio apud Deum. 3 Omnia per ipsum … Continue

Freshman Latin Grammar, Lesson 03

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In this lesson, you will study the first of the eight parts of speech: Nouns. You will learn to define and identify a noun, substantive noun, adjective noun, proper noun and common noun. You must complete the following assignments for this lesson: Study Grammar Rules 16-20 below. All rules must be mastered and known by memory. Study the Lesson as you learn the rules. Complete the Lesson Exercises as you study the Lesson. Complete the Lesson Examination when all assignments are completed. Memory Work What is a noun?A noun is a word, or part of speech, which has cases, and … Continue

Freshman High School, Latin Grammar. Lesson 01

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To complete the objectives of this lesson, complete the following tasks: Study the Lesson. Complete the Lesson Exercises. Read the Grammar Rules. Memorize the Grammar Rules. Complete the Lesson Examination. Lesson In this first lesson, we will begin with an introduction to Grammar. We learn in the first rule that Grammar is the art of speaking and writing well. We learn this art by first knowing letters and their sounds. We see that in Latin, there are only 23 letters–less than English, which has 26. The letters look the same, but there are two important differences: (1) they have different … Continue

Learn English Composition the Right Way in the Classical Liberal Arts Academy

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If you were taught to write in a modern school, it’s likely that you didn’t like your writing classes and never felt that you were learning how to write. You felt this way because it was true. Modern schools attempt to teach writing in a way that is artificial and contrary to the natural way we communicate with others. We find great pleasure in sharing our ideas with others by speaking because we talk about topics we’re interested in, about which we have knowledge, and we talk with people whom we believe are interested in what we have to say. … Continue

Learn to Read Classical Greek

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In God’s Providence, the language of the world at the time the Catholic Church was established was Greek. The Apostles, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote the books of the New Testament in Greek and read a Greek translation of the Old Testament, known as the Septuagint. The greatest ancient philosophers–Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, Pythagoras–all wrote in Greek. Greek is the original language of ancient philosophy and Christian divine revelation! I invite you to study Greek with us in the Classical Liberal Arts Academy. We will be studying the Gospel of St. John, the writings of Aristotle. The course includes access … Continue

English Composition, Lesson 17. Variety

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In this lesson, we will continue to study how “euphony” can be improved in our composition by giving attention to variety. To complete the objectives of this lesson, complete the following tasks: Study the lesson for mastery. Complete the lesson assessment. Lesson Of the many elements which affect the euphony of a theme none is more essential than variety. The constant repetition of the same thing grows monotonous and distasteful, while a pleasing variety maintains interest and improves the story. For sake of it we avoid the continual use of the same words and phrases, substituting synonyms and equivalent expressions … Continue

Latin Grammar I, Lesson 27. The Declension of Adjective Nouns

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In this lesson, we will study the declension of adjective nouns in Latin. To complete the objectives of this lesson, complete the following tasks: Study the lesson for mastery. Memorize the declensions of bonus, bona, bonum. Memorize the declensions of acer, acris, acre. Memorize the declensions of brevis, breve. Memorize the declension of felix. Memorize the list of adjectives with Genitive in -IUS and Dative in -I. Memorize the declension of alter, altera, alterum. Memorize the three irregular adjectives. Study the declension of the three irregular adjectives (memory not required). Complete the lesson assessment(s). The content of this lesson is … Continue

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