Speak the culture : Italy : be fluent in Italian life and culture

Speak the Culture: Italy" offers a rich and engaging insight into the events, people and movements that have shaped Italy and the Italians. A guidebook can show you where to go, a phrase-book what to say, but only "Speak the Culture: Italy" will lead you to the nation s soul. The Italian character is complex, contradictory, alluring and infinitely variable: heirs to the greatest empire of the ancient world but almost ungovernable; cradle of western civilization as well as the Mafia; maestros of modern design, mired in old-fashioned bureaucracy; epicentre of the Catholic Church and exemplars of la dolce vita. Where do you start? Giotto? Caravaggio? Murky Etruscan tombs or the mighty Roman Pantheon? "Speak the Culture: Italy" sifts through a sprawling 3,000 year saga and makes sense of it, dissecting architecture, music, food, art, literature, cinema, family and much more. Culture is covered in its broadest sense, extending into every aspect of Italian life food and drink, religion, politics, sport, manners, character and so on. While the Italian peninsula has its ancient history, it s been a unified nation for less than 150 years. Lo Stivale, or the famous Boot, is young: the nuances of strong, surviving regional identities are important and revealed. Taken as a whole, "Speak the Culture: Italy" gives you an insight into what it means to be Italian, but it s also a book to dip into, to learn, for instance, about Giuseppe Verdi, Sophia Loren or Umberto Eco. Easily read and beautifully illustrated, this, the fourth in the "Speak the Culture"series, offers an intimate understanding of Italian life and culture for new residents, second home-owners, holidaymakers, business travelers, students and lovers of Italy everywhere.

Speak the Culture: Italy offers a rich and engaging insight into the events, people and movements that have shaped Italy and the Italians. A guidebook can show you where to go, a phrase-book what to say, but only Speak the Culture: Italy will lead you to the nation’s soul.

The Italian character is complex, contradictory, alluring and infinitely variable: heirs to the greatest empire of the ancient world but almost ungovernable; cradle of western civilization as well as the Mafia; maestros of modern design, mired in old-fashioned bureaucracy; epicentre of the Catholic Church and exemplars of la dolce vita.

Where do you start? Giotto? Caravaggio? Murky Etruscan tombs or the mighty Roman Pantheon?

Speak the Culture: Italy sifts through a sprawling 3,000 year saga and makes sense of it, dissecting architecture, music, food, art, literature, cinema, family and much more.

Culture is covered in its broadest sense, extending into every aspect of Italian life—food and drink, religion, politics, sport, manners, character and so on. While the Italian peninsula has its ancient history, it’s been a unified nation for less than 150 years. Lo Stivale, or the famous Boot, is young: the nuances of strong, surviving regional identities are important and revealed.

Taken as a whole, Speak the Culture: Italy gives you an insight into what it means to be Italian, but it’s also a book to dip into, to learn, for instance, about Giuseppe Verdi, Sophia Loren or Umberto Eco. Easily read and beautifully illustrated, this, the fourth in the Speak the Cultureseries, offers an intimate understanding of Italian life and culture for new residents, second home-owners, holidaymakers, business travelers, students and lovers of Italy everywhere.

'Italy has a bewildering cultural patrimony. Where do you start? With Giotto? With Caravaggio? In murky Etruscan tombs or the mighty Roman Pantheon? Speak the Culture: Italy sifts through a sprawling 3,000 year saga and makes sense of it; dissecting architecture, music, food, art, literature, cinema and much more. Michelangelo, Machiavelli and Mussolini: you've heard of them, but how did they live? What were their achievements and failings, and how are they remembered in Italy today? Speak the Culture: Italy explores the place of these and other figures in the national identity, in the story that made the modern nation. Culture is covered in its broadest sense, extending into the everyday modes of life - the food and drink, religion, politics, sport, character and so on. On one side lies the famous lust for life, expressed in everything from the Carnevale Di Venezia to the family mealtime; on the other lies a darker story of organised crime, corruption and political transience. And while the Italian peninsula has its ancient history, as a state the famous boot, or Lo Stivale, remains young, so the nuances of strong, surviving regional identities are also revealed.'--Publisher's description. Contents 1 Identity: the foundations of Italian culture 2 Literature and philosophy 3 Art, architecture and design 4 Music, theatre, dance and comedy 5 Cinema and fashion 6 Media and communications 7 Food and drink 8 Living culture: the state of modern Italy An essential cultural guide to Italy and the Italians, outlining the figures, events and movements that have shaped the nation's rich culture