The era of the Italian stereotype has to end: it is time for healthy revisionism.
(Original article by Manuela Andaloro published on Corriere dell’Italianita’)
We have seen it all – from Madonna’s T-shirt to videos showing gesticulating Italians, from the passion for fashion and elegance to the idea of the most passionate language in the world, from the idea of not knowing how to drive to that of being noisy or mammoni (mama’s boys), from the concept that it is always hot in Italy, to that of being very friendly, from the passion for coffee, to cooking, to the idea that the country is bankrupt or is full of mafiosi.
In 2015, a few months before the World Expo took place in Milan, the Italian government presented in Davos a video with a strong impact on the erroneousness of many, too many, stereotypes about Italy, aimed at highlighting the strengths and debunking some of the main clichés about Italy. The video “ITALY THE EXTRAORDINARY COMMONPLACE” refutes stereotypes about Italy and tells the country as it is: a major producer of technological goods, the second European exporter in the mechanical and automation sector.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a stereotype as the simplified idea or image of a particular type of person or thing. Often, stereotypes are referred to erroneously to make sense of a complex and multifaceted world. Yet these prejudices can become oppressive, wrong and even very harmful, and do not help to understand the facets of a society, a country, a culture and an economy.
There are many stereotypes and myths related to the Italian economy. Recently, the authoritative German weekly Der Spiegel published an analysis by the famous columnist Thomas Fricke who addresses Italian stereotypes and discusses in no uncertain terms the great question of the Italian public debt, perfectly explaining the thirty-year virtuosity of the country.
What is the status quo?
The Italian economy is the third-richest of the European Union, and Italy is one of the founding members of the European Union, the Eurozone, the OECD, the G7, and the G20.
In the aftermath of World War II, Italy was transformed from an agriculture-based economy that had been severely affected by the aftermath of the world wars, into one of the most advanced nations in the world, and a leading country in world trade and export. According to the Human Development Index, the country enjoys a very high standard of living and has the eighth highest quality of life in the world according to The Economist , has the third-largest gold reserve in the world, and is the third net contributor to the budget of the European Union. In addition, private wealth per capita is one of the highest in the world among advanced countries and second in the EU (sources: Wikipedia and Credit Suisse).
Der Spiegel's analysis impresses with its precise clarity. Frike writes:
“Maybe it’s a consequence of so many Mafia movies. Perhaps it is simply envy that Italy has better weather, better food, more sun and more sea. Something, however, must explain this preoccupation with pointing to the fact that the Germans would be more prudent, more serious and more reliable. And in this regard show the inadequacy of Italy”. These few lines would be enough to disintegrate decades of prejudice, but Fricke continues.
Quoting economist Antonella Stirati of the Roma Tre University, he explains that “if you do not calculate the interest payments, since 1992 the Italian governments have had budget surpluses year after year”. In short, the cancer of debt made us stop spending, rather than having an attitude to waste: “Dolce vita? Nonsense. Since 2000, Italian public investments have fallen by 40%, a collapse regulated by law. Public spending has stagnated since 2006. In Germany it has increased by almost 20%”.
A warning to Germany follows: “It is not a direct fault of German politics. Clear. But the time has come to stop with erroneous teachings, and to contribute to the repair of the disaster”. The reference to the twenty-year-old guardian of German finances (and of European rigor) serves to invoke a healthy revisionism: “Perhaps to save Europe first of all we would need new experts in Germany”.
Words of great clarity from such an important newspaper, which confirms that Germany is not a monolith but a great country that knows how to discuss itself. And the great leader who guides the country knows how to modulate the steps forward with wisdom, determination and rationality. (Sources: Der Spiegel, Corriere della Sera).
Up close.
I have lived abroad for 15 years, after 26 years in Milan, I lived for 5 years in the United Kingdom and I have lived in Switzerland for 10 years, I have a German husband and a bi-cultural, tri-lingual family, and of course I have heard every obvious falseness and stereotype based on absurd and erroneous clichés. I have chosen a selection of funny anecdotes that over the years I have experienced or was asked, mostly absurdities with ironic implications but based on a profound lack of objectivity, understanding and respect for a country among the 7 richest and developed in the world.
1. Is it true that Italy is as corrupt and dangerous as Brazil?
Like many with an international background, I have witnessed corruption phenomena in equal measure in Switzerland, the UK and Italy. The statistics speak for themselves, as well as human behavior studies: if you still associate the mafia with Italy then you have no clue of what happens in the world. In Rio de Janeiro – a city I visited and found fascinating – neither private cars nor taxis stop at red traffic lights, because the risk of being attacked, robbed, kidnapped or worse, is commonplace. In Italy the maximum risk at the red light is that your dashboard is washed. Italy is a G7 country, among the 7 richest countries in the world, highly industrialized and according to The Economist among the 8 countries with the highest living standards in the world. As confirmed by Investopedia among others, Brazil is not a developed country. Although it has the largest economy in South America, Brazil is still considered a developing country due to its low GDP per capita, low standard of living, high infant mortality rate, and other factors.
2. But the country is bankrupt and in recession.
This is a common misconception, and a very serious one. The country, as confirmed by the famous Der Spiegel, is not bankrupt, far from it, and has been avoiding recession for years thanks to leading sectors such as luxury and the Made in Italy sector. Since April 2020, due to the COVID crisis, the entire planet with the possible exception of China has been in recession as explained in detail in an interesting article by la Repubblica on the subject.
3. Can you sunbathe on the terrace in Milan in December?
Question truly asked to me by my Swiss midwife after the birth of my first child in mid-November. I was advised during the upcoming Christmas holidays in Milan to absorb vitamin D in a t-shirt from the terrace of my parents’ house. Milan sits at the foot of the snow-capped Alps and in the winter it records average daytime temperatures from -2°C to 5°C.
4. The cross-border workers are desperate.
I will not get into the merits of an issue that is difficult to manage and which must be understood from multiple points of view, but I shall limit myself to pointing out that the GDP of Lombardy is equivalent to that of Switzerland, and that only Porta Nuova of Milan is the richest business district out of all European cities, with a GDP of 400 billion euros in 2017, more than Israel’s GDP, and comparable to the GDP of Ireland and Peru, respectively the 47th and 48th richest countries in the world (see the global list here). Cross-border commuters move due to the attractiveness of tax regimes, which are in turn used by Swiss-based companies to carry out little appreciated wage dumping at the expense of the local population. This happens with cross-border workers from Germany, France, and Italy. Unfortunately, the famous saying of the full bottle and drunk wife is not feasible even in Switzerland.
One of the main problems? Italians.
I could go on with the funny anecdotes but let’s address one of the salient points of the stereotyping issue: Italians. Italians residing in Italy or Italians residing abroad who in large numbers, systematically, unlike what their Swiss cousins do for cultural reasons, not only do not paint the complete picture of a country that unwillingly or willingly has stood out for decades and perhaps millennia, but they seem to be the country’s worst detractors.
How many times have we heard compatriots complain about dynamics or even denigrate the country, based in turn, very often, on false, incorrect or stereotypical notions and on lack of knowledge of the realities of other countries? The damage done to the image of an entire country, of an economy, is incalculable. As comedian Enrico Brignano said in his show a few years ago “The worst detractors of our country are us, Italians, but with destructive pessimism you can’t go anywhere. Even with all the defects we have – common to every country – this world without Italy would be worse”.
So what can we do to reverse the trend? By reading up, educating ourselves, and only then expressing our opinion based on actual facts, social and economic indicators, as Thomas Fricke teaches us. It would also not hurt to cultivate a little bit of healthy – long forgotten and feebly rediscovered during the COVID crisis – national pride. Take it from me, not only the neighbor’s grass is not greener, it’s often only painted in shiny propagandist colors.
M.