A Glossary—Arcadia—by Tom Stoppard.doc

A Glossary—Arcadia—by Tom Stoppard Act I, Scene 1 Arcadia—A region of ancient Greece in the central Peloponnesus. Its inhabitants, somewhat isolated from the rest of the world, proverbially lived a simple, pastoral life. Any region offering rural simplicity and contentment. The term Arcadia is used to refer to an imaginary and paradisal place. Derbyshire (1)—A county in central England; Matlock is the administrative center. English park (1)—Examples of a form of English landscaping begun during the rise of romanticism in the late 18th century that imitated rather than disciplined nature. It celebrated the picturesque, wild nature, the past, and the exotic. Gardens like this are characterized by gently sloping hills, sweeping lawns, curving paths, and rivers and ponds with informally planted trees and shrubbery. Often these gardens included fake medieval ruins, Roman temples, and Chinese pavilions and bridges. primer (1)—A book that covers the basic elements of a subject. quarto (1)—The page size resulting from folding a whole sheet into four leaves or a book made up of pages of this size. theodolite (1)—An optical instrument used to measure angles in surveying, meteorology, and navigation, it consists of a small telescope which rotates in horizontal and vertical planes. mutton (1)—The meat from fully grown sheep. haunch of venison (1)—The leg and loin of a deer used as food. grouse (1)—Plump, chickenlike game birds with mottled brown or grayish plumage found in the Northern Hemisphere. caro, carni (1)—Latin for flesh or meat. QED (2)—Abbreviation of Latin phrase Quod erat demonstrandum. Used to mean: of course; undeniably; without doubt; as demonstrated. Gallic Wars (2)—The campaigns which Julius Caesar led in Gaul (mostly France) from 58-51 B.C. Caesar’s commentaries on the wars were a common Latin textbook. “The Britons live on milk and meat” (2)—(“lacte et carne vivunt”) from Caesar’s commentaries on the Gallic Wars, De bello. Onan (2)—The son of Judah in