Communication Modes, <scp>I</scp> talian

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>This entry examines a number of modes of communication typical of Italian culture. What is common to all such modes is their theatrical nature: Italians speak as if they were acting—gesticulating and making use of iconic signs. The entry also addresses the issue of shouting and its symbolic and expressive potentialities; it examines a mode of communication (“vandiari”) that exploits both shouting and poetic language. The main idea is that communication tends to be an act of public performance and this performance therefore requires an audience for its enactment.</jats:p>