Tag Archives: saying

Italian…Proverb?

Nationality: Italian
Age: 35
Occupation: Event Planner Intern
Residence: San Diego, CA
Performance Date: 04.15.2016
Primary Language: Italian
Language: English

Original Script: “Meglio tardi che mai”

Literal Translation: “Better Late than that never”

Meaning: “It’s better to do a thing later than not to do it at all”

Background Information about the Piece by the informant: “When I came to America, I realized how different it is…Like the driving part. Americans are so angry when they are driving! They can be so impatient. Especially during, busy time, what is it called? Oh! The rush hour. I mean you cannot go anywhere, so just chill out and listen to music in the car. This is where I thought of the saying. Because you will get there, but you might be a little late.! People need to understand that! I have seen more accidents here than all my life in Italy!”

Silvia recently came to America about three weeks ago as an intern for an Event planning company. She grew up in Parma, Italy—which is a small town in Italy. She has adjusted greatly to the American culture but there are still some things that she is questionable about. The roads there are usually only one lane and even though it can get busy, people generally remain calm according to Silvia. She also said that compared to Italy, people are very reckless drivers in America.

Context of the Performance: Keeping Patience in the Italian Culture

Thoughts about the piece: When I first heard this saying, in the original Italian, and having learned Italian this semester, I knew the literal translation of the saying but not what it actually meant. In fact, I heard Silvia, murmur it when we were driving during rush hour, and that is when I conducted the interview with her.

Firstly, I believe this saying speaks volumes about the attitude Italians have. As the quote above suggests, not to stress about being on time, or to worry about things you cannot have control over. It is interesting how the translation is literally “that never” which means that there is only on never, and that it is singular. Thus, this also shows that Italians persevere in their everyday life and challenges that may come up during the day.

This saying, and the way it captures the Italian people’s attitudes, was encompassed my Silvia, again, during an event for the company we work for. During the event, Silvia kept repeating, “Meglio tardi che mai, Meglio tardi che mai, Meglio tardi che mai,” and while everyone was stressed out, Silvia kept calm and collected throughout the whole ordeal. Hence, this quote while encompassing Italian’s people way of life, it also perfectly encompasses Silvia’s personality. I can also vouch that many Italian people—specifically on the countryside, and where Silvia is coincidently from—are very much personified as being relaxed people because I had visited Italy in the past, and compared to the busy chaos of the big cities, like Verona and Venice, the countryside was very peaceful and seemingly stress-free. Perhaps, this would be a good saying for American’s to adapt to, particularly while driving. While it is not a proverb, but a saying, I believe the American people can benefit to making it a proverb, because as Silvia had mentioned, we do have a lot of car accidents precedent here.

Stress Free Life

Nationality: Italian
Age: 35
Occupation: Event Planner Intern
Residence: San Diego, CA
Performance Date: 04.20.2016
Primary Language: Italian
Language: English

Original Script: “Ma cosa vuoi che sia”

Literal Translation: “But what you want it would be”

Meaning: “Don’t worry about a thing that is not important”

Background Information about the Piece by the informant: “How do you say, I noticed, Americans can get very…stressed out…crazy…easily. Like the rush hour traffic I was telling you about! Pessimo! [very bad] And little things they cannot control. I mean your life is more important than wherever you are trying to go! If you are stressed in California, go to the beach! It’s very relaxful! But the food, come si dice [how do you say], I understand when they get mad about the food, when the order is wrong, or when it is gross tasting, because food is important in the Italian culture.”

Silvia recently came to America about three weeks ago as an intern for an Event planning company. She grew up in Parma, Italy—which is a small town in Italy. She has adjusted greatly to the American culture but there are still some things that she is questionable about. Like the amount of stress Americans carry to that in Italy.

Context of the Performance: Stressing in the Italian Culture

Thoughts about the piece: In accordance with another interview I conducted with Silvia, (please see the article titled Italian…Proverb?), this Italian saying furthers the implication of the stress free environment of the Italian people. Do not worry about things that are not important, or the little things, implies that to worry about such, is a waste of energy, and not only that, but time as well.

It is also important to look at the literal translation, “but you want, it would be” suggesting that one does have control over their life, and to make the best out of it, if you look at the meaning to Italians, it would be to not stress over the small things; the things that are not important in the big picture.

Please take note of the background information Silvia had provided that was in accordance to the Italian quote. She uses stress and anger interchangeably, which makes me wonder, if in Italian they mean the same thing. So, I asked Silvia in a follow up interview and she said, “yes, they do, even though we have different words for them, they do mean about the same thing.” Which is interesting since the Italians have many different words for calm and happy (positive attitudes such as allegro, calmo, simpatico), thus this furthers the notion that Italians try their best to keep “stress” out of their lives, even by doing something simple, as Silvia had noted, like going to the beach. Additionally, she states something specifically that both Americans and Italians have in common, and which they both “stress” about—food. Food is a very prominent cultural item in both the Italian and American culture in which it not only creates a social environment but also holds roots in the past. (For example American’s Turkey on Thanksgiving and Wine or Pasta—which different regions are known for different Pastas—for the Italians).

“Faith over fear.”

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Primary Language: English

Informant: At my gym, we always say, “Faith over fear.” And that was like something we used to say all the time, and that was the one point that I was even semi religious in my life.

 

My informant is a freshman at the University of Southern California. She is from San Diego, California. We had this conversation in the study room of my sorority house.

 

This is interesting because it somewhat can be related to a ritual before going out to perform. My informant was a cheerleader for a while, so this would work as a ritual and a superstition for some kind of performance she would ever do. It seems that many people have religious rituals they do before a performance, such as one of my informants doing the Catholic cross before going on in every ballet number she did. These manifest even in people who aren’t religious, and my informant is not religious anymore. This is interesting and shows some type of dependency on the idea of some hope for help from some other place, even without the belief that a God or higher power exists. It seems to be a type of mechanism that people just develop.

Ethiopian Food Serving

Nationality: Ethiopian
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: California
Performance Date: 04/21/15
Primary Language: English
Language: Amharic

The informant is a good friend from one of my clubs. We had met up for lunch and she shared many of her Ethiopian traditions and customs with me, as well as some superstitions of her people.

In Ethiopia, everyone at the dinner table eats the food from one dish, and no one has their own individual plate. The communal plate is very large, and an assortment of foods are served on it for everyone to share. Large pots of each type of food are made separately, and small portions are added to the communal plate at a time, since it’s not good to save leftovers that have been on the plate and touched. The saying is “it tastes like hands.” Therefore, leftovers are foods still in the pot that have yet to be touched, while the food on the communal plate is expected to be finished in that sitting.

ethiopian-food-1

The lesson is not overload the plate with food, since it can’t be eaten the next day because it will taste like the hands that touched it. Ethiopians eat their food with their hands instead of utensils, so the saying comes from this custom.

Background & Analysis

The informant is a student here at USC as well, and although her mother is from Ethiopia, she was born and raised here in California. However, she often goes back to Ethiopia with her mom to visit friends and family.

The meal serving tradition in Ethiopia is so different from what I’m used to here in America. We are accustomed to getting our own dish with a serving size of our own choice. Eating without utensils is also often seen as  mannerless behavior, unless the food is something such as chicken or corn on the cob. The Ethiopian dinner style is similar to the traditional Hawaiian way of eating, especially the eating with your hands part. The foods are in their own bowls, and the bowls are passed around to everyone present, who each in turn take one bite and pass the food along to the next person. This will continue until everyone is full or the food is gone. The sharing of food in such intimate ways in both cultures, definitely brings people together.

Tummy Full, Heart Happy

Nationality: American/Guatemalan
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Boston, MA
Performance Date: 04/25/15
Primary Language: English
Language: Spanish

The informant is a student from my folklore class, and we ended up meeting and exchanging stories and superstitions one night.

Original Script

“Barriga llena, corazón contento”

Transliteration

“Belly full, heart happy”

Translation

“If your stomach is full of food, then your heart is content”

Background & Analysis

This is a saying that the informant’s mom says, and that the informant herself will say after a meal. She describes it as a little happy thing you say after eating to give thanks or show appreciation.

The informant’s mother is from a small, secluded town that is surrounded by mountains called Monjas in Guatemala. Although the town has become more modernized over the past few decades, many of the traditions and superstitions still circulate. The informant is from Boston, MA, but attends USC, and she often travels to Guatemala to visit family.

My dad, who is from Chile, has a variation of this saying, “Guatita llena, corazón contento.” This is translated as “Tummy full, heart happy,” and is used the exact same way the informant uses her variation of the saying. My dad most likely learned this from his father, whose vocabulary was full of proverbs and sayings.