Senior Work

Latin - National Classical Essay Competition

Kendal Hall highly commended

Kendal Hall, Year 10, has achieved recognition in a national classical essay writing competition.
Kendal was highly commended in the Joint Association of Classics Teachers’ contest.
Her entry, a letter from Odysseus to Penelope on the eve of the Greek victory over Troy, was described by judges as a ‘thoughtful and personal account...with believable sentiments expressed in Homeric style.’
She was placed 17th in the country in a competition which attracted more than 300 entries . Her cash prize will be presented in assembly at school.
Kendal , who has taken part in Latin drama competitions, recently passed the University of Cambridge Latin tests stage 3 and is studying for a GCSE in Latin.

-------
My own true Penelope,

Right now I am in the vast stomach of a wooden horse, waiting within the city walls of Troy to finally take the city as ours. I know it has been many a year since you have heard but I hope to be seeing you very soon, my love. Be careful though, Penelope, these Trojans' minds work differently to ours, they may have set spies up in Ithaca, and I don't think I could live with myself if anything happened to you.

You will recall 10 years ago, when I left you to fight with Menelaus for his maiden, I promised I would be home soon. I know I broke that promise, and I hope that you can forgive your Lord for his mistakes.

When I left our palace in Ithaca, I sailed straight to the palace of Agamemnon and he told me of the wrong done to his brother by a young Trojan Prince by the name of Paris, who had run away with Helen of Fair Cheeks, back to the land of Troy. He also told me he had called to the aid of many other kings all over Greece and we were to sail from the harbour of Aulis and once we gathered there our great fleet set sail for Troy.

However, Agamemnon was not happy. Our fleet was one fighter down, Achilles. We knew that his mother did not want him to fight, and that was why she was hiding him. We also knew he was at the palace of King Lycomedes. So, I disguised myself as a market trader, and walked up to the palace. When the king's daughters heard there was a trader in the forecourt, they came running down to see the spoils I bore. “Oh! Does this necklace suit me, or are the jewels too big? What do you think, Metella?” “This toga is so flattering! I like the pink best!” Each daughter chose their favourites, then one of them noticed something at the bottom, a bronze sword. The last daughter took the sword and threw off her veil and shouted, “This is for me!” - it was prince Achilles. And so Achilles joined our great number, and our fleet was complete.

Our journey to Troy was not easy, it felt like the winds were against us the whole way, and the storms! They raged around throwing us off track time and again. We also had skirmishes with other enemies, but we soon shook them off. And at last, we came within sight of the shoreline of Troy. We raced to see which ship could get to the shore first, and prince Protesilaus won. But, as he dropped from his boat, onto the land, an arrow from the Trojans struck him in the neck. He was dead before he hit the floor. He was the first one to die in the long battle. I was shocked, it had happened so quickly, and I was so full of sorrow too. He didn't deserve to die, he was a good man.

But the rest of our number managed to force back the Trojan warriors who were not as prepared as they thought for us and by the end of that day, we owned the coastline, dunes, reed-beds and rough grassy areas on the edge of the plains of Troy. We moored our ships on the beach, and built halls and small huts to live in. But don't worry, my love, the huts were not so bad, just not quite the standard of living that we were used to.

For nine years then, we waited. Our ships were ruined and all our hope and energy was starting to ebb away. We didn't know much about sieges. We were running on guesswork mostly. And because we could not take Troy yet, we stormed other nearby towns raiding them of their food, cattle and horses. We also took women to prepare our food and things... how are we supposed to concentrate on fighting when we have to cook and clean?!

As our tenth year opened, we took two of the fairest maidens and gave them to Achilles and Agamemnon. The father of Agamemnon's slave came to our camp and begged for her release, offering many fine gifts to our leader, but he refused and soon after fever hit our camp. Many of our men died and so we begged Calchas, our soothsayer, to tell us the source of the death. He told us that Apollo was angry because his priest’s daughter had not been returned to him. So Agamemnon returned the girl but ordered Achilles to hand over his instead. A horrid argument flared between the two men and the outcome was that Achilles gave up the lady, but swore never to fight for Agamemnon again. I was the one who sailed the girl back to her father with cattle as a sacrifice to Apollo, and the girl who was left behind, moved in with Agamemnon. When I returned I was sure that Apollo was no longer angry at us.

It was 12 days after I returned that Agamemnon had the dream. He had dreamed that he had to get our warriors ready to fight. He doubted his dream though, and called us all to hear about it, and we were all doubtful about it too.

But then he said a strange thing, “we should tell the army that the war had dragged on too long and we should go home. If they agree, we will stop them before they reached the ships, if they didn't we would turn to fight.” And, of course, the army agreed that they all wanted to go home, and they all hurried off to the ships. But I stood firm. I told them all, “Agamemnon was only joking and it would be an act of cowardice to end the siege now.” I herded all the warriors back to our gathering place. Only one man protested. And I silenced him quickly enough with a few swift hits from a staff. He joined the rest and stayed silent after that. We all laughed at the pitiful sight of the man, and we still laughed as we harnessed up our horses and put on our armour ready to fight.

The Trojans came to meet us halfway across the plains. It was the first time we had come face to face since the start of the siege. And then Paris came to the front of his army, and challenged someone to single combat. Of course Menelaus took up his challenge at once. It seemed that Paris feared Menelaus though, and he retreated back to his army lines. Then suddenly he re-appeared again with more courage this time. It was to be a fight to the death, and the outcome of the war was to be pinned on the result of this duel. Two lambs were sacrificed. Paris threw the first spear and missed, and Menelaus' spear also missed. Menelaus theN brought out his sword and was whirling this way and that, but as he turned to stab Paris, he had disappeared. He did not return, so really, we won. Helen was now ours again, and we could sail home again. But Helen never came. But our truce still held strong so our men and theirs could talk in peace to each other. While we were talking, an arrow came out of nowhere, and struck Menelaus in the breastplate and drew a little blood. Menelaus lived, but the truce was broken. And so the first full-on battle took place. In that battle they lost Pandarus to Diomedes, one of our finest fighters. We were taken back almost to our ships, but Diomedes and I drove them back again. But then Paris and Hector returned to the fight and we were driven back once more. Before the day was out, another call for single combat came, and this time Hector was to face our Ajax. That fight ended in a draw.

By the end of the next day, we had lost a lot of land, I was starting to lose heart now, fair Penelope. And to make things worse, the Trojans did not go back to their camps that night, they stayed where they were. But don't worry, Honey-sweet, we had lookouts too. Agamemnon called a meeting and said that he thought that we had no hope of winning because Zeus had turned his back on us. But Diomedes said that we couldn't give up now and everyone agreed. And it was also time to win back Achilles. So I and a few others went to his hall with promises of his girl and many other riches but he refused them all and we left with no hope again that night.

Later it was decided that Diomedes and I would sneak into the Trojan camps and get as much information from them as possible. We returned with two very powerful horses of the Thracian King.

The next day of fighting saw Agamemnon, Diomedes, and I all were injured and had to pull out of fighting. I was in the hall of the healer Nestor when Patroclus, Achilles' friend, came running in asking for news. It was then that and idea formed that Patroclus could wear Achilles' armour and drive his chariot and fight alongside them and the Trojans, thinking he was Achilles, would be terrified. Patroclus ran back to Achilles who, reluctantly, agreed. But, things were bad out on the battle field, the Trojans had somehow crossed our ditch and were in the heart of our camps. But, all of a sudden, our army was strong again, and they had new heart.
But that night, Patroclus died in the fighting. And Achilles' grief was hard to bear.
The next day Achilles joined in with the fighting, desperate to avenge Patroclus' death. Achilles killed Hector that day. We held funeral games for Patroclus and I participated in the wrestling and the foot race. That was a sad, but good day.

After the three day truce that was held for Hector's and Patroclus' funerals, the siege was becoming dull again. But no-one wanted to fight any more. Everyone, except me. I wanted to get the 'Luck Of Troy'. So I went to the high king and asked to take one of my ships to the island of Delos to get 3 princesses who could help us with our fighting. But he didn't know that actually I would dress as a beggar and return to our camp as the strange man, make them hate me and whip me, and send me over to the Trojans. The Trojans had no idea who I really was until Helen herself bathed my wounds, because she felt sorry for me. She recognised me, because we had been friends before all the fighting. She let me live because of that friendship all those years ago. I lived for a while in the streets of Troy until one night I slept in the temple that housed the Luck Of Troy. I drugged the priestess who was guarding the stone, and stole it. The next morning I returned to the Greek camps as myself and we rejoiced at my clever skill.

The Trojans sprung an attack on us with new allies; the Amazon Warrior Women. Achilles brought down their queen and soon they were all destroyed. But it was a horrible job, having to slay women. We didn't even strip them of their armour once we killed them.

The next morning saw the Trojans with yet more allies; men of the darkest colour of skin.
The leader of the dark men, was killed by Achilles. But, the true horror of that day was that we lost Antilochus... and Achilles. Paris shot him with an arrow to his ankle, the only part of his body that could let death in. We all fought over his body, and finally, I grabbed his wrists and flung him on my back and carried him back to camp. We held funeral games for Achilles as we had done for Patroclus, and their ashes were mixed together as they had wanted. Then there was a shout for whoever brought back Achilles' body to be rewarded his armour for he was the bravest man. I stood, and so did Ajax. We ourselves could not decide who was more worthy of the armour, so we proceeded to ask out Trojan captives who deserved it more. They chose me and in is rage, Ajax killed himself that night along with all our sheep. I would have rather not had the armour, and still have my dear friend Ajax instead.

Things were getting desperate on our camp so we went to our sooth-sayer, Calchas, for advice. He told us that we had to go and find our old friend Philoctetes, who we had left on the island of Lemnos on our way to Troy, because he had been fighting dragons and had been bitten by one, and his wound his not heal, but seeped venom and left a terrible smell. He kept us all awake at night with his cries of pain. We felt bad about leaving behind, but none of us could stand the smell or the screaming. And so Diomedes and I sailed back to him, and it took a little bit of convincing, but he soon agreed to come back with us. When he was back at camp, his wound was tended to and he soon joined in the fighting. He shot one of his arrows (dipped in the venom from his wound) and shot it at Paris. Paris fell and screamed in agony and died within a day.

Even after Paris' death, Helen was still not given back to Menelaus.

After more days fighting. I suddenly had an idea. It was to build a giant horse and hide some of our number inside it. We would send the rest of our army 'home' but really they would be waiting to ambush not far out to sea, and then leave one man behind to explain ton the Trojans that the horse was a peace offering to Athene and the Greeks had finally given up. The man who said all this, would let the warriors that were waiting inside the horse, out and attack the houses of Troy once it was safely inside the city walls. Then the boats would return and help with all the destruction.

Within 3 days the horse was built. Sinon was to be the man that stayed behind and convinced the Trojans that they had given up. Menelaus, Diomedes and I were all the first ones in the belly of the horse and were soon joined by many other men. We were all in our armour, so to detract from the noise, we covered ourselves in thick cloths and cloaks.

From inside the horse, we could hear Sinon talking to the Trojans, and before we knew it, we were being dragged inside the walls of the city. Now we were to wait for Sinon to give us the signal to come out.

We are still here waiting now, Penelope. I can see through one of the tiniest cracks in the wood that it is almost dusk now. It is almost time. Tonight is the night, my love, we will conquer the Trojans, and we will set sail for home tomorrow. I promise. We can all carry on our lives as they were when we return. How is Telemachus, our son? I cannot wait to see how he has matured while I have been away.

I hope that we can go back to the way things were before all this mess. I want to see my son grow up into a man and take over my role of King of Ithaca someday. I want to see you everyday and grow old together. I want my family and my old life back, for now it has been tainted with war and death. I will return to you, Penelope. Soon.

Odysseus

50 Word Short Story Competition

November 2011

This year's 50 word Short Story Competition had the title 'A Mini Saga'.

All Senior School pupils entered and the standard was very high. Judge was BBC Look East's Jozef Hall who spent a long time reading and re-reading the entries. The eventual results were:

Year 7 winner & best in school: Lisa Boero
As I plunged into the refreshing water, the sudden shock hit me. The thought of freedom was glorious. Will I suffer such sorrow once more? The pirates rowdy cheers and clinks of rum glasses ring from the ship. Suddenly I'm caught by a fishnet. My journey aboard The Shadow continues.

Year 8 winner: Evan Landini
The dead were scattered across the sea like leaves fallen from a tree. I slowly rowed along the bloody water occasionally hearing the cheers of victory coming from the pirates. The sharks began circling the small boat I was in, attracted by the fresh blood seeping out of my veins.

Year 9 winner: Ruby Osman
The ship was tossed about the ocean, as if it weighed nothing. Colossal waves pounded onto the deck, enveloping the crew in their deadly embrace. Deep down in the bowels of the ship, grown men wailed, pleading for their mothers, for their loved ones. The next morning, an empty sea.

Year 10 winner: Kaan Tyrell
The price of murder was treacherous, especially for a young boy like me, death for death. Slice a man and you’ll be joining him. We neared port, shouts from the admiral made this clear. We docked, my end was near. It’s my turn to die – the narrow blade awaited me.

Year 11 winner: Christian Westripp
The forgotten sailors slouched across the deck as the boat rocked gently in the placid water. Streaks of yellow lightening stabbed the foreboding horizon. The sails sagged motionless in the empty winds. They were waiting for something. Then a flash of green light sparked across the sea. They set sail.

Jozef's comments, "More difficult to judge than last year because the quality has gone up a notch. Lisa's story transported me to a time and place I'd rather not be!! Wonderful."

Also Commended:

Thomas Bullock (year 8)
Sam Clarke (Year 9)
Akanksha Patak (Year 11)

Latin: Golden Spongestick Prize Winner

The horse reared high on its hind legs then crashed down to the ground, with me under it. My vision was clouding, my mind slipping into a dark abyss and my last thought was that I knew I was falling into an eternal slumber. As I lay there listening to the muffled voices, a feeling of utter still washed over me and I heard my heart drumming in my ears. The beat was getting feeble. I was dying.

I awoke on a dirty river bank. I was face down in the mud, and it was smeared on my face. I picked myself up and wiped most of the mud off with the back of my hand. The air around me was a thick mist, and I struggled to peer through the gloom. I stumbled forward, hands stretched out so not to walk into anything, when my toes just touched what felt like cold water. I fell to my knees and stared at the water, at my shimmering reflection. As I bent forward, my shoulder length blonde hair skimmed the surface and as I watched the ripples dance before me a smell hit me like a fist to the face. I leapt back, crawling on my elbows away from the water. The smell terrified me; for it was the foreboding smell of death. As I scrambled a small bag of aureus and denarius fell out of my pocket and spilt on the ground, sending the sound of coins rolling coins through the air. That’s when I saw him. The mist around him cleared as he drove his haggard wooden boat to the bank beside me. He wore a decaying black robe with a hood that prevented me from seeing his face. He looked at me, then the coins and said in a whisper “You’re not going to need all that money in the underworld.” That was when I realised I was no longer in the land of the living and for a moment I just stared at the shiny coins spread across the bank and the next moment I was gathering them up greedily. I was horrified at the thought of being dead so I blurted out “Where am I? Who are you? Why am I here?” even though I knew the answers already. “ I’m Charon; the one who ferry’s the dead across this here river; the Styx. Which means…you’re dead.” he replied. I started to panic. “Here, look! You can have all these coins…if you take me back! Please! I’m not ready for death, not yet!” I shuddered as I spoke. And even though I could not see his face, I could feel a wicked smile spread across his lips. “ I’m sorry, I can’t do that. But I can and will take you to the other side. And even with a good seat. It’ll cost you one of those pretty gold coins though.” He held out his hand. “Come on. One Aureus. Your not going to need that money in the underworld anyway so…you may as well hand it all to me.” He gestured to a small pot of coins just beneath him on the boat. I was utterly terrified of the consequences of what I did. I dropped one Denarius into the pot and climbed into the boat.

By the time we had reached the opposite side of the Styx and I had left the boat, I knew there was no turning back. I was told by Charon to walk ahead until I found a gate, but the mist was once again as thick as I had ever seen, so how I was meant to find it I didn‘t know. Once I had started walking he seemed to disappear into the mist. But I knew he was there. His presence sent an ominous chill down my spine. I found myself staring into the mist looking for his dark figure until I heard a low growl. I turned sharply, finding myself stunned with fear as a snarling beast bared its teeth to me. I knew at once what this creature was; Cerberus, the guardian of the damned. I backed away, but it continued advancing. My reason told me if I was already dead, this beast couldn’t harm me, but this whole experience had thrown my reason out of the window, so I let out a ear piercing scream. The ravenous dog was no more than a metre away now, and the writhing crest of snakes that framed each of the three dog heads was now spitting a green venom in the direction of my face. As I picked up speed so did he, and when I saw the dark metal gate, and that it was open, I realised that Cerberus was trying to force me through them. I’m not sure what came over me, but in the moment I realised this, I swung my heels around and sprinted as fast as I could in the direction of the Styx. I had no idea of what I was going to do, or how I was going to do it, but all I knew was that I wanted to live again. I wasn’t going to give up. Mortal life was too precious to me. It always had been. And always will be. Its funny how I only realised this once I was dead.

I could see Charon’s boat. He was near, but Cerberus was right on my tail. He was know not doing a job, he was doing his duty. His growl had turned into a bellowing bark, his snakes were now a squirming collar of scales and fangs. Those who death has claimed for his own, must never escape. I finally reached Charon who was wandering standing perfectly still, watching, as though he knew this would happen. “Please! Please take me back!” I dropped to my knees in front of him. Cerberus was drawing near. “And where would that be?” he replied, perfectly calm, relaxed even. “The mortal world! I know you can! Please! I’m begging you!” Tears were streaming down my face. “And why should I do that?” he seemed to be enjoying my suffering, soaking up my fear like a refreshing drink. “You saw that bag of money I had! There’s a small fortune in that bag! You can have it all! Please help me!” I screamed at him. For a moment he just stood, then he held out his hand. I practically threw the bag at him and clambered into the boat. He threw the bag into his money pot and grabbed the his wooden pole, and soon we were away from the river bank and punting down the river. I thought I had done it. I thought I had escaped the underworld without a scratch. But clearly I was wrong. Cerberus had reached the river bank and launched himself off of it, half landing in the boat, half in the water. The boat went down on one side, making us both collapse. Cerberus was howling now, and I was clutching the side of the boat, squeezing it so hard it gave me splinters. Cerberus was rapidly slipping into the water, as were we, so he made one last move. He lurched forward, bit my arm savagely, then slipped under the water. The boat violently swung itself upright again, and I lay there with blood pouring out of me.

I don’t know how Charon took me back to the mortal world. I just know that I woke up under a pile of earth, which I fought my way out of. And that I couldn’t let my family know I was alive, because they would think I was possessed. So I was homeless. I wandered the streets in search of food and shelter, but I was shunned. So I spent my first night as a mortal again under shelter of a bridge. That’s when I started to change.

I held my knees up to chest, and tucked my chin between them. It was a cold, dark night, and the moon was hiding behind the clouds. Since my heart had once again started to beat, my body shook uncontrollably. It was unbearable, like having the flu of the worst kind, and I started to wish that I had just given in and accepted my untimely death. Suddenly the moon revealed its shining white face. A shot of pain ran through all of my muscles, and I started to retch. I scraped the stone walls with my nails and bit into my lip. My body distorted. Fine black hair covered my body. Green snakes sprouted from around my three necks. He bit me. He knew what it would do to me. I now bear his curse. I am Versipellis, dog of the damned.