This seems to suffer from an all-or-none fallacy. I was just
talking to someone yesterday who SPEAKS Latin. He even
uses a 'modern' pronunciation. He doesn't mind that it is not
exactly like Cicero (i.e. KIKERO to academics). What he has
noticed is that his reading and general feel is much better
than before he could speak, and that those who do not
speak Latin do not get into the language in the same way
and to the same depth. Maybe your mileage varies, but this
seemed pretty much on target. And I suspect that students
who could handle an oral Latin lecture 3-4 centuries ago
could read Latin literature much more comprehensively and
accurately and appreciatively than someone today who only
learns to painfully crank out compositions, if they even get
to that level.
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