Chi vuole imparare l’italiano? – Part Two

This is part two of my two-part blog “Chi vuole imparare l’italiano?” about the types of students I met during my autumn of intensive language classes in the heart of Naples…

The language collectors

This is a large category, especially since I was taking classes with a number of European students, who are the crème-de-la-crème of language collectors. Along with my subsequently shattered preconceived notion that Gio and I are a unique couple, I also came to the Centro with a sense that learning a third language was impressive. This is a very Canadian thing to think. For some of my European companions, they came to the Centro with four or more perfectly mastered languages already under their belt. Perhaps my feelings will change when I go back to Canada, but here in Europe, I can’t help but feel like knowing three languages is rather… ho-hum.

  

I don’t know what the statistics are, but I’m sure there is a much higher percentage of Europeans than Canadians who can speak (at least) a second language. When attending a school such as the Centro Italiano, it really seems like all Europeans are polyglots! I know this isn’t true, because I have also met a number of monolingual Europeans (and thank goodness for them, or else I don’t know who I’d practice my imperfect French/Italian with). At the Centro, it was not unusual for me to meet someone whose laundry list of languages is: “Swedish, English, French, Italian” or “Russian, Ukrainian, English, Italian” or “German, English, French, Italian” and even one fellow from the Netherlands whose list of languages was so long, I can’t even recall the whole list!

I’m not ready to add a fourth language to my list, but I could see, somewhere down the road after I’ve sufficiently tackled Italian (and recuperated the French that is currently hiding being the mammoth of Italian in my brain) adding to my list. The language collectors I’ve met in the past few months have shown that this is not the impossible task that I thought it was. These people came to study Italian simply because: it’s a language, it’s beautiful, it’s there, and therefore, it should be mastered. They are a beautiful example of exploring something for the pure joy of it.

The workers

Italy is one of those countries where it is near impossible to work if you don’t speak the language proficiently. However, there are some exceptions where you can get by with a lower language level, such as: being an au pair, teaching English, working for the military, and one final category that, for some reason, I hadn’t thought of before attending classes – being a Catholic clergyman.

On my first day of language classes, I was put in a class with an older German gentleman, who was dressed in a traditional brown monk’s robe. Later on in the day, after some more students took their placement tests, we were joined by a Polish priest (dressed in conservative street clothes) and a young British woman who was about to embark on a year’s journey of teaching English in a high school in a suburb of Naples. The priest and monk’s motivation for learning Italian differed from the English woman, but that’s what is so interesting about coming to a class like this – people’s different backgrounds all become united under the common goal to learn Italian.

I don’t know why I was shocked to see the German monk walk into the classroom on the first day. It makes perfect sense that someone who has dedicated his life to Catholicism would come to Italy. It also makes perfect sense to want to learn Italian. I can see how knowing Italian (and Latin) could enrich the Catholic experience. Languages are so nuanced, and translators often make baffling choices, so going straight to the language source is a smart choice to gain profound appreciation for an original language text. As for the Polish priest, who had decided to stay at least a few years working in a church outside of Naples, the need to learn the language was that much greater.

As for those who do not work for the church, working in Italy means either learning the language, fast, or sinking. Teaching English is a good way to buy some time, because Italian isn’t needed to teach, but it sure is useful. Teaching one of my classes to some fairly low-level Italian teens back before the summer, I was quite thankful that I knew enough Italian to understand their constant Italian chit-chat, and to know exactly what they were confused about if there was a problem. I also remember being extremely frustrated in Spain, when I was working at an English language camp, because I had no idea what any of the campers were saying to each other. While I don’t think talking to language learners in their native language helps them learn any better or faster (actually, I believe the contrary), it is a lot less isolating for the teacher if she has a basic comprehension of the language. 

Sooner or later, even if teaching English, anyone coming to Italy should gain a solid language level, because Italy is truly a different country when you can speak the language.

The italophiles – gli innamorati d’Italia

The people who belong to this category would certainly agree with my last sentence, because these people actively seek every way possible to immerse themselves in anything and everything Italia. To give you an example, imagine the first time you fell in love. Imagine: the intense emotions, the obsession, the desire, and those chemicals that run through the brain that make logical thought near-impossible. Now, imagine if you had these feelings about an entire country. I love this category, because only someone with an enormous heart can have enough love to bestow upon an entire country. The italophiles are, quite simply, a lot of fun to be around.

Usually, though, the italophiles also belong to one of my other categories. It’s all well and good to love an entire country, but as with any love affair, after the honeymoon period, reality sets in and real life must go on. But, for those who are truly and deeply in love, they have to find another way to get their fill of Italy. One good way to extend this love is to find an Italian man (or, more difficultly, a woman), and funnel this ex-patriotic love into a person. This is probably the easiest solution. However, I’ve met some creative students, such as a wonderful Japanese woman whose dedication to Italy and Naples is unbelievable. She holds down two jobs, which are both, incredibly (because of the Naples immigrant situation), legal, as well as attending courses whenever she can. She has paid for an entire year of courses to obtain a student visa, though she is only able to attend about 10%-25% of what she has paid for. This was the solution she could come up with in order to stay, and so this is what she has done.

Then there are those italophiles who belong only to this category. A few students came for a week or two of lessons because it was their vacation period, and Naples is where they always come when they get time off. Their love of Italy, and the chaotic jungle of Naples, is pure and simple. They just love it here, and that’s all the explanation they need to give.

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Thus sums up the five broad categories that give a sample of the interesting, inspiring, thoughtful and educated people who I met past an antique one-meter door, up three flights of marble stairs, at the Centro Italiano in the heart of Naples. Tackling the half-hour walk twice each day in Naples was either trying or delightful (depending on the day) but the educational oasis that sat right in the thick of the bustling Napolitano culture was a constant pleasure of my autumn days. I attribute half of this pleasure to my own personal linguistic journey, and the other half to being able to share the experience with my classmates. Out of all the amazing things I’ve been able to do in Italy, making the decision to continue my education at the Centro was the most rewarding.