MovieChat Forums > Un tè con Mussolini (1999) Discussion > Why didn't they learn Italian?

Why didn't they learn Italian?

posted 18 years ago by sdsungod
15 replies | jump to latest

So these old English ladies have lived in Italy for many years, there are at least four years actually shown in the story and who knows how long they lived there before the story began. Certainly Hester Random, as the wife of the British Ambassador, had been in Italy for many many years prior to her husband's death, not to mention remaining there many years after his death.

Yet, she could not understand any Italian, and in fact, only one of the old ladies could understand any Italian at all. Are we expected to believe that, in all this time living in Italy, none of them ever learned any Italian?

"Enough of that technical talk, Foo!"

[–] AnkleStrap 18 years ago

I thought of that also, but could you really imagine Hester Random learning Italian when all of the "best" people would know English anyway? In one of the opening scenes when Mary Wallace is typing a letter for her boss, she seems to be translating his jumble of English and Italian into a prim and proper business letter. She must be able to understand some of the language, in addition to Arabella.

[–] lacrimosa10 18 years ago

Well, consider this: I know a lady who has lived in a certain foreign country for nearly twenty years, by choice, and out of a feeling of love and belonging. She is not yet sure of the alphabet.

[–] hugh1971 17 years ago

Certainly. In fact it would be less believable if all the ladies did speak Italian. Even today, there are similar 'colonies' of Brits in places like France and Spain where people cannot speak the native language even after years of residence. It's a mixture of laziness (other people speak English so why bother) and a desire not to want to 'go native' and to preserve one's own traditions. Most of the ladies in the film seem to understand a little Italian but not well - this would be the bare minimum required to deal with shopkeepers etc.

[–] linda303 17 years ago

My housekeeper, from Central America, has lived in the States for over 20 years and still only speaks a few words of English. She expects social and business services to be given to her in Spanish. And she is a citizen! This is so arrogant. It is just as arrogant as Americans who live abroad and do not learn the language (I am American). I have lived in several countries, and learn the languages well within a year! And I certainly do not expect social services there to be given to me free in English.

[–] TheEtiquette 17 years ago

You will do with English! If somewhere you can't get along with English, that place isn't civilized. And I'm Finnish btw!

If you can say "Thank you very much" in some other language than English, it's enough.

[–] DBloodnok 17 years ago

To the OP - you've clearly never met British ex-pats living abroad! To learn the local lingo would go against the grain - sad, but true.

"Someone has been tampering with Hank's memories."

[–] Mandyjam 17 years ago

I'm living in Australia. Many migrant woman that I know can only speak a few words of English (I'm referring to migrants who have been here between 20 and 50 years.) My nearest neighbour has almost no English after 30 years and cannot hold a conversation.

I don't think I have any talent at all for lerning another language.

In the case of the English women, they would have either lived in private hotels, or had a servant. The cooking and shopping would simply proceed in the Italian manner, taken care of by Italian staff, so they would never have to think about practicalities such as purchasing difficult items. Catalogues from "Home" would have been used for many purchases. And because Florence has been a major destination for English tourists since about 1790, there are always people who cater to the needs of English speakers.

"great minds think differently"

[–] thebabe3 9 years ago

we were in Spain...the English have not learned Spanish yet in this time either. The common joke is this in Spain. English woman says about the Spanish, you'd think that since the English have been here for 20 years vacationing that the Spanish would have learned English!

[–] angelofvic 15 years ago

No, the British move to warmer climates not to assimilate, but simply to keep warm and escape the horrid English climate. They don't want to go native; they just want to keep to their own kind.

You're exaggerating when you say "only one of the old ladies could understand any Italian at all." They all knew at least a little Italian; they just preferred to speak English. Even Lady Hester says, "Avanti!" to the soldiers.
. . . . . . . .

[–] Zuider_Zee 12 years ago

British arrogance.

[–] gillesxpsg 12 years ago

It's British laziness more than anything, one of the negative traits of my people.

[–] Mandyjam 12 years ago

I rather object to TheWholeEnchilada's comment "British Arrogance". Are the British more arrogant than the Italians? The French? The Spanish? The Germans? The Japanese? The Americans? .....oh, I don't think so.....

Arrogance is certainly expressed by Lady Hester, but both Arabella and Mary appear to speak Italian, and neither strike one as arrogant. Presumably Georgie speaks Italian as she would need to, being an archaeologist. ..... and Elsa, being extremely rich, has a different form of arrogance to Lady Hester's.

"great minds think differently"

[–] kino66 8 years ago

It's British laziness more than anything

Well, Thank Goodness for that! This alleged "British laziness" provides me with an English speaking community abroad!!

[–] 8 years ago

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[–] Dog112 7 years ago

It's usually much easier to translate your second language into English than it is to try to say what you mean in your second language. In other words, it's easier to listen to it than it is to speak it.

I learned Spanish in high school. But that was a long time ago, so I get many words mixed up and I have forgotten many of the correct conjugations of verbs. But I can read it and I understand conversational Spanish when it is spoken clearly.

My next door neighbor is a Mexican immigrant. She has lived in the US for 20 years. She does not speak much English, but she understands enough to get by.

So when we talk, she speaks Spanish and I speak English.

But when I listen to Mexicans having a conversation, I understand very little. I can't tell where one word ends and the next one begins. And some sounds are often omitted, so many otherwise obvious words become unrecognizable.

Remember how Mary Wallace (Joan Plowright) interpreted what the Italian guy (Paolo) was saying at the beginning of the movie and typed his letters for him? Half of what he said was in Italian. But she knew what he meant.

No doubt, the Americans and English threw in a few Italian words when they spoke, as well. But it gets kind of clunky when you talk that way in a movie.

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