La testa degli italiani (Italian Edition)

Beppe Severgnini

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    • I do have the occasional meeting of Italian speakers and I read. I first read one of his books last year when in Bologna.

    Fratelli d'Italia - Inno di Mameli - Inno Nazionale Italiano

    I had joined a gym while in BO and since my habit is to read while doing relatively boring cardiovascular exercise I read most of this book during half hour sessions on an exercise bike. Of course in English I have a lot fewer gaps!

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    In any case it really gives a lot of insight into the differences between the cultures. One probably well known example is how a traffic light is considered. In America a red light is considered as only one thing — stop! In Italy it is an invitation to consider what is really meant and what one should do? Is there little traffic and good visibility? Then there is really no reason to stop. He goes on from there. You get the idea. It was a very enjoyable read and Beppe has a well developed sense of humor.

    Now why would they possibly do that!?

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    The best description of tangled Italian soul and full set of hints and tips in one book. But, don't worry about remembering which is which, because after explaining both the difference and its importance, he then proceeds to refer to both ideas with the uniform monikor "Italy" for the rest of the text. Subscribe to Dreaming In Italian by Email. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. There are many fascinating tidbits to be gleaned, such as a fascinating 2page history of the Vespa, the history of the word "ciao" and the fact that in the last 50 years the population of Italy has "risen by nine million but the number of available bedrooms has shot up from thirty-five million to one hundred and twenty-million. On that last one he elaborates: Not so much a travel guide as a sociological exploration, this book is packed with fascinating insights and telling weaknesses.

    The setting for this book is I think when he and his wife lived in Washington D. Many of his observations about the American way of life and how strange it sometimes seems for an Italian is still just as valid. I would say that some of this observations about American ways are a bit off just as mine surely are about Italians. Still it is very entertaining.

    Beppe Severgnini

    That means that I am highlighting words and looking them up in an attempt to improve my vocabulary. Want to Read saving….

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    Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Preview — La testa degli italiani by Beppe Severgnini. La testa degli italiani by Beppe Severgnini. Una terra di luce e profumi, aperitivi al tramonto, mattoni a vista e indigeni cordiali. Percorrendo la Penisola in compagnia di amici venuti dall'estero, Beppe Severgnini diventa cicerone ironico e implacabile. Un viaggio metaforico, autocritico e divertente attraverso il nostro modo di vivere oggi. Dieci giorni, trenta luoghi.

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    Paperback , BUR Saggi , pages. Published by BUR Rizzoli first published To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

    To ask other readers questions about La testa degli italiani , please sign up. Be the first to ask a question about La testa degli italiani. Lists with This Book. This book is not yet featured on Listopia. After living in Italy for a year, reading this book brought back memories and also explained a few hidden ideas in the Italian mind.

    Severini is hilarious in his description of his homeland but also acknowledges age-old problems that fill the country. I wouldn't recommend reading this book before your first trip to Italy because it will distort your view and may cause you to be hyper-critical. Read after you've been there a while or after you've left so you can laugh a bit. This book is filled w After living in Italy for a year, reading this book brought back memories and also explained a few hidden ideas in the Italian mind. This book is filled with stereotypes and often generalizes Italians which obviously isn't true Overall, entertaining and mostly true.

    Anyone interested in Italy, especially those living here or planning a visit. Not so much a travel guide as a sociological exploration, this book is packed with fascinating insights and telling weaknesses. The author, an Italian that has worked as an English journalist at The Economist and other venues, explains the difference between Italy and Italia - the former being an imaginative invention of the English later adopted by the Americans, and the latter being the real thing.

    Beppe Severgnini - Dreaming In Italian

    But, don't worry about remembering which is which, because after explaining both the difference Not so much a travel guide as a sociological exploration, this book is packed with fascinating insights and telling weaknesses. But, don't worry about remembering which is which, because after explaining both the difference and its importance, he then proceeds to refer to both ideas with the uniform monikor "Italy" for the rest of the text.

    Still, it was thrilling, as an American living in Italy, to see an Italian author write "Italians prefer good looks to good answers," "we like nice gestures so much we prefer them to good behavior" and "In Italy rules are not obeyed as elsewhere"! Oh, beautiful and soothing it is to see that it's not just me sensing these realities!!!

    La testa degli italiani

    On that last one he elaborates: We want to think about it. We want to decide whether a particular law applies to our specific case. In that place, at that time. There are many fascinating tidbits to be gleaned, such as a fascinating 2page history of the Vespa, the history of the word "ciao" and the fact that in the last 50 years the population of Italy has "risen by nine million but the number of available bedrooms has shot up from thirty-five million to one hundred and twenty-million.

    And, it would be funnier if he were exagerating.

    Then there's a characteristic of Italian journalism that he actually himself demonstrates when with very little pretense he writes, "Some people have even tried to play down the awful scene in the Champions League derby match with AC Milan, which was suspended live on television to the entire world in a deluge of rockets and bottles. Like most Italian journalists I find here, he doesn't actually tell what happened, he just gives his opinion about what happened. And it's the same in spoke communication as well: It doesn't matter if the listener or the reader understands nothing.

    Most useful and interesting to me were his spectacular clarification of the success of Silvio Berlusconi in Italy, his debunking of the dual legends of the luxurious Naples and slack jawed Naepolitians, and his the incredibly extensive list of cultural observations and affirmations that I fit only a small glimpse of here. I found many of the ideas not mentioned here to be either grossly-self delusional or typically glazed over, but that there was enough honesty and insight to more than counterbalance that, as in that this has become the most interesting cultural examination of Italy that I have yet come across.