Posted on March 24th, 2009 by james
I recently got back from Italy for work purposes. Not much touring was done, but several stereotypes were done away with.
| Stereotype: |
Italians eat pasta everyday. |
| Veracity: |
TRUE mostly |
| Observations: |
Italians do eat pasta everyday, sometimes twice a day depending on the phase of the moon and the direction of the wind. Unless it’s risotto. And comparing these foods to the strand shaped sludge of the same name in China is like peeing into a hurricane. |
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| Stereotype: |
The roads are just like spaghetti, with nothing but Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Maseratis whipping around at 300KM/h. |
| Veracity: |
FALSE mostly |
| Observations: |
I only saw one Maserati, and it was stationary. Italians do however have an affinity for hatchbacks and station wagons. They make these things go much faster than your 70s era woody wagon, and take diesel turbocharging to the theoretical limit. 200+ on long stretches of highway was common. |
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| Stereotype: |
There is an amazing coffee culture, exemplified by Starbucks. |
| Veracity: |
FALSE, but the coffee is still GOOD |
| Observations: |
Starbucks is NOTHING like Italian coffee. The fact that the place is somehow based on Italian coffee culture is akin to Nazism being based on the Carebears. Italian coffee IS espresso, but no one calls it that, they just call it coffee. People don’t lounge around and sip on it, they cruise into a coffee bar, order it, talk about last night’s soccer match, take it back in one shot and they’re out, cruising around in their turbo diesel wagon through the countryside at 200. |
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| Stereotype: |
Pizza was invented in Italy. |
| Veracity: |
WHO THE FUCK KNOWS? |
| Observations: |
While many sources indicate to modern pizza being developed in NYC by Italian immigrants, the Pizza in Italy may as well be the same thing, in fact, you could even say that Italian Pizza exists of some kind of 4th dimensional plane where it is actually NYC pizza and NYC pizza is actually Italian pizza. An infinite number of super fresh ingredients are always available, and versions from ultra thin crust to pizza pie are easily acquired at prices that make me sad that the only thing available in QD is made by people who wouldn’t know what pizza was if they made sweet love to it in the back of a Ford Taurus. Wagon. |
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| Stereotype: |
Italian people are fashionable. |
| Veracity: |
TRUE |
| Observations: |
Indeed. No sequins, rhinestones, acid wash or flowers embroidered into the jeans here. No dresses that look like garbage bags either. I once remember reading a Japanese (of course) fashion magazine that ONLY featured trendy middle-aged pimps from Italy. It was exactly like that everywhere you went. I guess I shoulda brought more than just grey track suits, nickelback t-shirts and purple crocs eh!?! |
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| Stereotype: |
Italian people often say: “mamma mia!” “va fan culo!” and “thatsa spicy meataball!” |
| Veracity: |
TRUE mostly |
| Observations: |
Italian people really do say these things, quite often. With the exception of the last one. I made that part up. |
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| Stereotype: |
Everyone cruises pounding their heads back and forth listening to euro –dance tunes like it’s 1991. |
| Veracity: |
FALSE |
| Observations: |
I secretly wanted to be whisked away to some land that was the basis for Night at the Roxbury, if nothing just so that I could actually see the douchebaggery oozing at it’s very pores. Yet there’s none of that. Mostly people drinking…gasp…draft beers! And playing foosball…lots and lots of foosball. |
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| Stereotype: |
All Italian girls are smoking hot and straight out of Vogue and Vanity Fair advertisements. |
| Veracity: |
FALSE mostly |
| Observations: |
There are definitely some attractive girls, but no more or no less than anywhere else in the world. Every single one of them has a boyfriend though. That is confirmed. ☹ |
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| Stereotype: |
Italian is just like French. |
| Veracity: |
FALSE, but reading TRUE, and CHINESE not SO MUCH |
| Observations: |
Italian is just like Italian. Being fluent in French, I tried adding on O and I to the end of French words hoping for the best, but receiving looks as if I was speaking Chinese, which I ended up doing anyways out of frustration. Ironically I could read most things without difficulty, with the exception of the most important item you need to read in that country…menus. |
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| Stereotype: |
Most Italian men are plumbers, and spend the working day jumping on turtles, eating mushrooms, and saving princesses. |
| Veracity: |
THE POPE SAID IT HIMSELF |
| Observations: |
They also all wear overalls, and can increase their productivity 10 fold if they jump to the top right corner of the screen in level 1-2 and get to the warp zone. |
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Filed under: dragons
you gotta get this stuff published
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Haha, that was funny.
I don’t even know where some stereotypes come from. “Everyone cruises pounding their heads back and forth listening to euro –dance tunes like it’s 1991”… lol. In other people’s eyes we are having fun all day, while actually we work in offices 9-6 (yep, 6, not 5) to pay our mortgages and such. And we’ve been facing the crisis for years now, so there’s less room for cheerfulness.
And unfortunately even culture can’t save us anymore, ignorance is high, most Italians declare they read *one* book a year. Trash TV is their main interest (and shady TV moguls get elected in the Parliament…)
Italians are considered warm and friendly to everyone, but really they can be very individualistic and narrow-minded (and xenophobes unfortunately).
Anyway the stereotypes are truer the souther you go - North and South are 2 different realities. People from the North, like me, are more reserved, for example. I reckon that Southerners are warmer than us, though they are also too nosy… I couldn’t live where there’s no privacy.
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Guy From India , on January 17th, 2010 at 12:39 am
You just gave a concise description of Indians.
::And unfortunately even culture can’t save us anymore, ignorance is high, most Italians declare they read *one* book a year. :: CHECK
::Trash TV is their main interest (and shady TV moguls get elected in the Parliament…):: CHECK (replace TV moguls with Bollywood stars)
::Italians are considered warm and friendly to everyone, but really they can be very individualistic and narrow-minded (and xenophobes unfortunately).:: CHECK
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i have to admit it’s true…we are very noisy in South Italy. but it is part of our way of being. and i dont’ consider this a lack of education, but part of our culture. u won’t never find people as lively as us. u wouldn’t appreciate the strong feelings that link all the members of a Southern family if u never jioned it!
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Wow, that is some INTERESTING info on Italians.
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It is sad(more than amusing) reading James’ very narrow-minded summary of Italian streotypes.
I wander whether James is from the UK or the US. Anyway, he must be Anglosaxon, I am sure. I have lived half of my life in the UK and one thing is certain: Anglosaxons love slagging off every other culture but themselves. They appear to have the arrogance to consider themselves better than everyone else. Even if this is quite untrue. Nothing could make one feel better than rubbishing somebody else.
Being well familiar with the Anglosaxon/English culture I could, in fact, write a long list of Anglosaxon stereotypes but I don’t wish to sound as narrow-minded, ignorant and stupid like James, who has probably spend 2 weeks in Rimini, getting pissed most evenings and desperately chasing Italian girls. Who, by the way, must have found him rather boring and unattractive if after his search all he was left with were those girls who cannot get a boyfriend because of their looks!! Sounds just like a loooooser!
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james , on November 15th, 2009 at 7:53 am
I like how you accuse me of making fun of Italians, then go on to over generalize about Anglo-Saxons. You sir, win at irony.
Also if you could point out in this post where exactly it is that I’m “rubbishing” Italians, as you so eloquently put it, I might even give you a bonus.
The remainder of your rant made me ROFL. “but I don’t wish to sound as narrow-minded, ignorant and stupid”…….TOO LATE!!!
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brrrr , on February 19th, 2010 at 5:53 pm
The mockery of other nationalities is a part of English culture- the thing to realise is that it is not intended to be serious.
We know that there are some Italians who aren’t greasy, womanising, pasta guzzling mafioso with an unhealthy obsession with their mothers- it’s just that the other 99% give them a bad name.
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I’m with James. I Find the post quite funny…
Marco take it easy, you sound a bit tens maybe you should have a couple of weeks off maybe in Rimini and have some fun…
James just a note pizza=Italy let’s not mess around with it…;)
Cheerio
Fede
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Wow… really? italians eat pasta everday? bullsh*t! and italians don’t say mamma mia AT ALL! It’s a stupid phrase that NO Italian says these days… just cause Super Mario uses it doesn’t mean us REAL Italians say it… I honestly hate these stereotypes… Like I haven’t heard them a million times… and besides, these things were made up by stupid people… and I find that by creating this “page” that you are somewhat insulting Italians… are you American anyways???
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james , on February 5th, 2010 at 1:26 pm
You’re right, they don’t eat pasta EVERY day. Sometimes they eat risotto too! And yes, just because a video game character uses a phrase, doesn’t mean a group of people does, however, it also doesn’t mean they don’t either! I find that googling this page via “Italian Stereotypes” and hoping not to find Italian Stereotypes is somewhat absurd. Listen, most of these things aren’t even bad, if you’re so worried about the reputation of Italians, perhaps you should do something about Jersey Shore.
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Iti , on February 22nd, 2010 at 2:29 pm
I do not like Jersey Shore I HATE IT so much I’m Italian and that show makes most of us Italians mad!
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I love the humor in this. I am in Northern Italy, (Trento) and while most people around here are more reserved, I am quite friendly, myself. I think a lot of it does have to do with culture, but in my case, it’s just me as an individual. And LOL to “mama mia.” I say it all of the time, just because I feel entitled to say it, haha. Oh, and from now on, I WILL say ”that’s a spicy meatball!” just for you, James.
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james , on February 21st, 2010 at 10:25 am
Grazie mille Desiree!
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The pope said it himself part was too much, rotfl X’D
Imo Marco’s post was too exaggerated. As for the stereotypes, all the italian-stereotype bundle is based on (and came out because of) southern italians, period. Applying those to the whole Boot doesn’t make any sense to me, still that’s what everybody does everytime (it’s understandable). Think about the whole stereotype list, that could only match the south of the country.
lol’d @ eating pasta depending on moon phases and the wind’s direction.
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I thought that the stereotype was that Italian was like Spanish. Despite the fact that French is also a Romance language, Italian and Spanish have a lot more in common. II speak Spanish and I can understand about 40-50% of what an Italian speaking person says.
Anyway, stereotypes exist about all cultures and peoples. For instance, Americans are considered egocentric by almost every culture on Earth. The fact that James had to go all the way to Italy to either confirm or debunk Italian stereotypes speaks of the fact that it was impossible for him to do that in the good US of A. Why? I guess because all he knows about them comes by way from the Jersey Shore (note to James, the most famous of the bunch, Snooki, is not even Italian) or some Super Mario videogame.
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