L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 18 L'Italo-Americano E v e r y I t a l i a n k n o w s t h e word Galateo, but not many, I r e c k o n , a r e acquainted with its rules. Actually, some of us may even be a tad confused about what it actually is: a book, a series of social norms, a his- torical treatise? In fact, it is a bit of all these things. But let us proceed with some order, from the begin- ning. We should start by saying t h a t t h e i d e a o f t e a c h i n g " g o o d m a n n e r s " i s n ' t a n Italian invention but rather o f t h e G r e e k t h e o l o g i a n Clement of Alexandria who, some 200 years before C h r i s t , p r o p o s e d i n h i s P e d a g o g u e e a r l y r u l e s o f good behavior, from the way to dress properly and behave at the table, all the way to t h e u s e o f p e r f u m e s . T h e idea was embraced by the Romans, who were keen on the concept of decorum, a way of being and behaving that showed the moral and social status of the individ- u a l . I n f a c t , w e e v e n s t i l l have an adjective in Italian, decoroso, coming from the old Roman idea of decorum. However, it is undeniable that, when we think or speak about galateo, our minds go almost immediately to the Renaissance and to the ele- gant courts of Tuscany and Venice. To be fair, we should a l s o m e n t i o n t h e g r e a t h u m a n i s t E r a s m u s o f Rotterdam who discussed good manners for children in some of his works. But the first book entirely dedicated to the art of behaving well is all Italian and was published in Venice by the Aldine Press in 1528: it was The Book of the Courtier (Il Libro del Cortegiano), by courtier and d i p l o m a t C o u n t Baldassare Castiglione. His Cortegiano was one of the most influential publi- cations on etiquette in the 16th century, and its rules w e r e e m b r a c e d a c r o s s E u r o p e . G o o d c o u r t i e r s , Castiglione wrote, should be respected in society in name of their beautiful manners, mirror to the purity of their s o u l a n d h e i g h t o f t h e i r intellect. Some thirty years later, b e t w e e n 1 5 5 0 a n d 1 5 5 5 , Roman Catholic Monsignor G i o v a n n i d e l l a C a s a , f r o m F l o r e n c e , w r o t e h i s G a l a t e o o v e r o d e ' Costumi, a treatise on – you guessed it – good manners. Now, of course, della Casa's work is the one that gave the name to the "discipline," at least in Italy, where in spite of other, more international terms like bon-ton and eti- quette (we say etichetta), good manners are still wide- ly referred to as "galateo." But where does the word itself come from? Probably from a name, because the author dedicated his work to a dear friend, Monsignor Galeazzo Florimonte, bishop of Sessa Arunca (Campania), known for his impeccable m a n n e r s . I f y o u t a k e h i s name and latinize it, a prac- tice that was still quite popu- lar in the Renaissance, you'd get Galatheus: the step from i t t o G a l a t e o i s , i n d e e d , incredibly short. The text is structured as a traditional pedagogical text, where an o l d e r t e a c h e r , w h o o f t e n s p e a k s i n f i r s t p e r s o n , i n s t r u c t s a y o u n g p u p i l about specific subjects, in t h i s c a s e , g o o d m a n n e r s , ethics, and aesthetics. Some examples of what we'd find in it? Never speak too much nor too little, never look into t h e p l a t e o f o t h e r s , c h e w with your mouth shut, never put your elbows on the table. S o u n d s f a m i l i a r ? Y e s , indeed: we still follow these rules today! Of course, della Casa and Castiglione could not antici- p a t e t h e w a y o u r s o c i e t y evolved in time, so it's only normal that some of their suggestions became obso- lete. But fear not, because g a l a t e o h a s e v o l v e d w i t h time. In Italy, we tend to fol- low the work of Lina Sotis, a f a m o u s j o u r n a l i s t a t I l C o r r i e r e d e l l a S e r a w h o penned, back in the 1970s, her own etiquette manual, s i m p l y c a l l e d B o n - T o n . S o t i s r e m a i n s a n i c o n o f Italian journalism and eti- q u e t t e : s h e w a s t h e f i r s t woman to work in the cur- r e n t a f f a i r s s e c t i o n a t I l Corriere della Sera and kept w r i t i n g f o r t h e p o p u l a r Milan daily (it is the best selling daily in the country) until 2009 when she retired. However, she still keeps a column, Qui Lina, where she discusses with readers about a b i t o f e v e r y t h i n g , g o o d manners included. O ur special word t h i s w e e k i s a t r i c k y o n e because it can truly be inter- p r e t e d i n a m i l l i o n w a y s . Q u a n d o m a i – or quando mai, as an adver- bial locution– (koo-ahn-doh mah-ee) is formed by two s e p a r a t e t i m e a d v e r b s , quando (when) and mai (ever). We use it commonly, in all registers and, indeed, in a variety of occasions, because quandomai can indicate surprise or incredulity, but also feign disapproval and, sometimes, a whole lot of rhetorical flair. For instance, when you w a n t t o s h o w y o u c a n ' t believe something happened, and how surprised you are, you'd say, Quandomai può succedere qualcosa così!? ("When, if ever, can some- thing like that happen?!"), which means what you're talking about is so incredible y o u c a n ' t b e l i e v e i t h a p - pened. But you can also use quan- d o m a i t o s h o w y o u d o n ' t approve of something, or that you don't agree with it: Quandomai si mette la p a n n a n e l l a c a r b o n a r a ! ("But when ever would you put cream in carbonara!"), a phrase every Italian in the world is likely to have used at least once in their life. S o m e t i m e s , i t e v e n d e s c r i b e s t h e o b v i o u s through its contrary, just like when you say, Ma quando- m a i m i s o n o p i a c i u t i i dolci? ("When have I ever said I like candy?"), where the real meaning of the word is, perhaps, given more by the sentence's intonation than anything else. Last but not least, quan- domai is also useful when we are … fishing for compli - ments. You know the way it goes: you prepare a delicious lasagna from scratch and serve it for dinner to your g u e s t s , w h o p o l i s h t h e i r plates with gusto. One of them asks: "Have you made the lasagna, it was delicious!" a n d y o u g o : Q u a n d o m a i sarei capace di fare qualcosa di così buono! ("When would I be able to make something this good!"), with a hint of surprise and, perhaps, even of revenge, especially if you'd been accused, in the past, to be an awful cook! When it comes to translat- ing quandomai, you really need to be careful with the context: you can use when, when ever, why ever… the important is that you pick the right nuance of meaning! - Quandomai ti ho detto che potevi uscire stasera?! Vai in camera tua! - When have I ever said you could go out tonight?! Go back to your room! - Quandomai ti ho chiesto u n f a v o r e i n t u t t i q u e s t i anni? - In all these years, when h a v e I e v e r a s k e d y o u a favor? - Quandomai quel ragaz- zo si fa gli affari suoi! - Has that guy ever mind- ed his own business? LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE W o r d o f t h e d a y – q u a n d o m a i : surprising, obvious or incredible? Italian Curiosities: what is Galateo and where does it come from? How should we behave at the table? The Galateo tells us! (Photo: Alyona Buratsova/Dreamstime) © Roman Samborskyi | Dreamstime.com

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