{"id":271,"date":"2012-11-23T06:19:43","date_gmt":"2012-11-23T05:19:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rickzullo.com\/?p=271"},"modified":"2017-06-20T19:48:56","modified_gmt":"2017-06-20T17:48:56","slug":"teaching-english-to-italians-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/teaching-english-to-italians-2\/","title":{"rendered":"A Few More Thoughts on Teaching English to Italians"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the spirit of fair play, I will eventually invite an Italian teacher to my blog so that she can make fun of all us Americans who are trying to master the language of Dante.\u00a0 Every population has its unique challenges when learning a foreign language.\u00a0 Perhaps we Americans are the most tongue-tied of all, living in a country that is more or less linguistically isolated and culturally\u00a0homogeneous.\u00a0 What we sometimes refer to as \u201cdialects\u201d in the U.S. are really not much more than minor regional accents, and even these have very little variation relative to the size of our country.\u00a0 Especially when compared to Italians, we all speak the exact same language in the United States.<\/p>\n

\"teaching<\/a><\/p>\n

When we learn our first language, not only do we acquire vocabulary and grammar rules, but we also train our lips, tongue, teeth, and palate to produce the sounds that are necessary and often unique to that language.\u00a0 As many of you might have already discovered, there are sounds present in the Italian language that we Americans have a difficult time producing (for example, the rolling \u201cr\u201d comes to mind).\u00a0 Likewise there are many sounds in English that Italians simply can\u2019t produce because these sounds do not exist in their mother tongue.\u00a0 See my earlier blog post on this topic here: https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/teaching-english-to-italians\/<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Furthermore, it\u2019s difficult to convince an Italian that the same letter can be pronounced in a variety of different ways depending on\u2026well, often depending on no exact rule, really. \u00a0In Italian, the rules for pronunciation are very precise with few, if any, exceptions.\u00a0 Not so in English.\u00a0 For example: in English, when we say the word \u201cidiot\u201d and the word \u201cidea,\u201d the \u201ci<\/strong>\u201d is pronounced in two different ways.\u00a0 It just so happens that these two words are almost identical when translated into Italian: \u201cidiota<\/em>\u201d and \u201cidea<\/em>,\u201d where the \u201ci<\/strong>\u201d always sounds like a long \u201ce<\/strong>\u201d in English (as in the word \u201ce<\/span><\/strong>mail\u201d). \u00a0I’ve\u00a0seen an Italian woman who taught English at a public school in Italy invent an explanation for this phenomenon for her students.\u00a0 She said, \u201cRagazzi<\/em>, the \u2018i<\/strong>\u2019<\/em> sounds differently depending on where the accent falls: in idiot<\/em> the accent is on the \u2018i<\/strong>\u2019<\/em> itself, whereas for idea<\/em> it\u2019s on the \u2018e<\/strong>\u2019<\/em> that follows.\u201d Ha! Imagine her confusion when a student promptly asked her to explain the difference between \u201cidle\u201d and \u201cidol.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teaching English to Italians<\/h2>\n

If vowel sounds present some lingering questions, then groups of letters only worsen the situation for the Italian beginner. \u00a0Above all, the double consonants. \u00a0For the Italians it will always remain a mystery why Americans waste paper and ink by writing double consonants that have only one sound. \u00a0Now, this is a difficult concept for us English speakers to understand. \u00a0For example, you might know that \u201cpane<\/em>\u201d is the Italian word for \u201cbread.\u201d\u00a0 But if you hear an Italian exclaim that he\u2019s in \u201cpanne<\/em>,\u201d you might think that he\u2019s eating too much and needs to go on a diet.\u00a0 But in fact, when pronounced, \u201cpan-ne,\u201d it means that he\u2019s having some serious trouble at the moment.\u00a0 There are many more examples of this, some of which can be quite embarrassing.\u00a0 Try looking up the difference between \u201canno<\/em>\u201d and \u201cano<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 Preferably before<\/span> you ask someone how old they are.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Perhaps this phenomenon might start to make sense when you consider it from the other point of view.\u00a0 When an American says the word \u201cbutter,\u201d it sounds like \u201cbuder.\u201d\u00a0 Then listen to an Italian pronounce words like \u201cbutter,\u201d or \u201chappy,\u201d or \u201csunny.\u201d\u00a0 They pronounce both of the double consonants distinctly in every case.\u00a0 It can be very \u201cfun-ny\u201d to listen to, but you have to admit that they have a point.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Lost in Translation?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Idiomatic expressions<\/strong><\/p>\n

We all know that when we say \u201cIt\u2019s raining cats and dogs,\u201d there are no Chihuahua puppies or Persian kittens responsible for the traffic jam on the highway. \u00a0This is the definition of an idiomatic expression: a phrase that makes no sense in its literal meaning, but it describes something that\u00a0we’ve\u00a0conventionally agreed upon as a culture. The fun-ny part comes when these nonsense phrases, which after years and years are taken as absolutes, are literally translated into another language to the confusion (and\/or amusement) of our listener. \u00a0For example, in Italy it never rains like cats and dogs. \u00a0Instead, it rains like sheep.\u00a0 Huh?<\/p>\n

Your student might \u201cnot see the hour\u201d (non vedo l\u2019ora<\/em>) until he meets you again; or, in idiomatic English, \u201che can\u2019t wait.\u201d \u00a0If he\u2019s a bit upset at his classmate who likes to show off his linguistic skills, he might tell him to \u201clower his wings\u201d (or \u201ceat some humble pie\u201d in English). \u00a0If he tells you \u201cTeacher, you went to Rome and did not see the Pope,\u201d don\u2019t waste time explaining that you haven\u2019t had a chance to visit The Vatican yet; he\u2019s just telling you that you\u2019ve neglected something important. \u00a0If he fails a test, he\u2019s obviously \u201cgone white.\u201d \u00a0But if he cheated, he knows he has \u201ca tail made of straw.\u201d \u00a0The list is endless. \u00a0So don\u2019t worry if some things \u201chave<\/span> no sense\u201d (non ha<\/span> senso<\/em>) in the beginning, because sooner or later, they will make<\/span> sense.<\/p>\n

“Stranger” words: They are no friends of mine!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Last but not least, the dreaded false friends. There are many of them between our two languages. \u00a0Here are a few of the most common among our Italian amici<\/em>:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Actually<\/span>. It sounds very similar to \u201cattualmente<\/em>,\u201d and it probably derives from the same root word, except in Italian, \u201cattualmente<\/em>\u201d means \u201cat the present time.\u201d<\/li>\n
  • Eventually<\/span>. Similar to \u201ceventualmente<\/em>\u201d but instead of \u201csooner or later\u201d (\u201cprimo o poi<\/em>\u201d), it means \u201cin case,\u201d or \u201cin the event of.\u201d<\/li>\n
  • Corpse<\/span>. Sounds a lot like \u201ccorpo<\/em>,\u201d which in Italian is simply a \u201cbody.\u201d \u00a0In English, reporting \u201ca dead corpse\u201d to the police would be redundant.\u00a0 Not so in Italian.<\/li>\n
  • Cream<\/span>.\u00a0 So close to \u201ccrema<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 When asking for \u201ccream\u201d an Italian probably wants custard.\u00a0 \u201cPanna<\/em>,\u201d is the Italian word for the cream that goes on top of your gelato\u2014\u201cwhipped\u201d cream.<\/li>\n
  • Definitely<\/span>. Definitivamente<\/em>: that means forever, definitively.<\/li>\n
  • Stranger<\/span>. I know some Italians who have a lot of “stranger” friends. \u00a0What they mean to say is “foreign”\u00a0friends. \u00a0Hopefully they count me among the latter group. \u00a0Straniero<\/em>\u00a0means\u00a0foreigner in Italian, while a\u00a0stranger is “sconosciuto<\/em>.” \u00a0So don’t be offended if they say that you’re strange. \u00a0But if they do, it’s probably best not to ask them to clarify; just let it go.<\/li>\n
  • Magazine<\/span>.\u00a0 Magazzino<\/em>: which means a department store or warehouse.\u00a0 \u201cRivista<\/em>\u201d is the word for the many gossip rags on sale at the newsstand.<\/li>\n
  • Factory<\/span>. Fattoria<\/em>. Ever heard of an assembling line in a farm? \u00a0No, me either, but that\u2019s what a \u201cfattoria<\/em>\u201d is: a farm, not a factory.\u00a0 \u201cFabbrica<\/em>,\u201d is the word for factory, while fabric is \u201cstoffa<\/em>,\u201d in Italian.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Confused yet?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 OK, just one more.\u00a0 But it\u2019s an important one.<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Preservative<\/span>.\u00a0 Preservativo<\/em>.\u00a0 No, no, and no! \u00a0Not<\/span> the chemicals that they put in your food, but rather a condom.\u00a0 Try not to let your students make this mistake!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Well, once again I\u2019m having some fun at the expense of my amici italiani.\u00a0 But I promise to give equal time to my Italian teacher sooner or later so that she may exact some revenge on\u00a0behalf\u00a0of Italians world-wide.\u00a0 And if you think that I can be sarcastic, wait until you hear \u00a0from her!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      In the spirit of fair play, I will eventually invite an Italian teacher to my blog so that she can make fun of all us Americans who are trying to master the language of Dante.\u00a0 Every population has its unique challenges when learning a foreign language.\u00a0 Perhaps we Americans are the most tongue-tied of all, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,6,29],"tags":[49,35,39,57,28,48,32,12,14,34,13],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/271"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=271"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/271\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=271"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=271"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rickzullo.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=271"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}