Time out of mind were gathered in the halls of Selwyn under the benificient rule of a King of a Fishes such an assembly of kindred spirits as gave themselves to reading and philosophy. Brought together for the ostensible purpose of sharing the reading of 'ancient literature', a dubious conceit of nomenclature applied to whatever of storytelling captured their fancy but most especially such as was pervaded by an air suggestive of having never been intended for print publication, they begat that tradition known as the Ancient Literature Society, since passed down through successive retellings to the present generation of luminaries wont to vie with one another in abstruseness of argument, pretensiousness of cultural and historical reference and a command of language quickly degenerating into the baroque. It is the Sisyphean labour of whomever they condemn to preside over their meetings to attempt bringing their intellectual meanderings back to the text that it is intended they read…

The Ancient Literature Society is a casual and convivial group for reading and discussing texts of traditional literature from about the world. We routinely meet every week to discuss a designated text, with occasional meetings besides. In Michaelmas and Lent each a single text is read, in Easter a set of short texts around a single theme. The Michaelmas text is chosen by the president; the Lent and Easter texts by a decision of members. Many members join one another for dinner after our meetings, outside of the society's proceedings.