The Italian language is dynamite: word of Mariangela De Luca

Mariangela De Luca, teacher, popularizer and, above all, in love with the Italian language has no doubts: “Language is dynamite in its pure state, it bursts and changes dramatically; it makes itself heard, it roars, it is more alive than ever. With words, a few friends can be transformed into a passionate audience and, conversely, an entire audience could rediscover the intimacy of a conversation between a few, capable of reaching straight to the heart. Because words have alchemical powers that are only waiting to be discovered and savored ”.

To confirm all this, here is his latest book "The language speaks (of you)" (Sperling & Kupfer, 2022, pp. 192, also e-book), an agile and entertaining essay, yet capable of opening an infinite number of doors : a happy and cultured exploration of our language, of the uses, of the distortions, of the neologisms and of the changes that make it an incandescent material. And not only. Because the words we choose to communicate do not simply testify to the current state of Italian, but say a lot about who we are.

In short, the language speaks of us, to paraphrase the title of the book, and this is confirmed by Mariangela De Luca:

“Through the language we go to give space and voice to all the imagery we hold within us. It is clear then that if I use words capable of nourishing this imaginary, I will benefit fully from it in everyday life ".

In the book, you argue that speaking and writing well helps you live better. But is it really so?

“Sure, I firmly believe that. Especially in an era like ours - marked by a strong propensity to verbal aggression and, on the contrary, characterized by a lack of desire to listen - it is even more important to decide how important we give to words. But it is not only this: we must pay attention not only to the words we choose, but also to how we connect them. We have to put effort into the construction of the discourse, decide which dress we want to 'sew' on to what we say so that it can be received and understood ”.

What do you mean by the word "dress"?

“Very important is how we are used to speaking, the way we express ourselves on a daily basis. Habit has its etymological root in the Latin habitus. So it's important how we package our speech. If we talk about oral language which intonation we use, what is our intent… in short, we want to narrate something or open ourselves to dialogue. I can also speak correctly, but if my attitude and tone of voice are aggressive then I will hardly be able to talk to someone. In fact, language possesses a particular strength, capable of investing and changing our social and working relationships for the better ".

In the book you also talk about writing as well as verbal language. As a teacher, doesn't it seem to you that in the Italian school there is little attention to writing?

“Answering this question is truly complex. Surely even in the high schools where I teach we find that children have great difficulties with writing. It is a problem that arises already in primary school where, for example, little or no teaching is made to use italics. This heavily affects not only the fluency of writing, but also the fluidity of thought and reasoning. If I always use capital letters, I get used to a 'sobbing' writing, in which the pen does not flow, but continually detaches itself from the sheet. This will lead me to search for ever less flowing and concatenated constructs. Another issue is that of the transposition into the language of instant messaging, the one that children and young people learn to use on smartphones using social media. It is a new problem, of our times that the school has to deal with ".

Yet, there seems to be curiosity around the world of the Italian language and writing. The success of his books testifies to this ...

“There is certainly curiosity and interest, but it is useless to hide the fact that young people are increasingly distant from the world of writing and reading, two activities that go hand in hand. They prefer more fluid, faster, more instant areas. Too bad that culture, study, reading serve to decode all this speed… they serve to make sense of things. In short, a person does not study for simple notions but to be aware of what is happening around him and to intervene accordingly, in the best possible way depending on the context and events. As I also write in the book, if we become masters of our words, we will automatically be masters of ourselves. Language is a continuous transit between us and the world, a doubling between who we are and who we would like to be, between who we are and who we have been ”.