--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [On Italian:] One may almost call it a…" description: "\"[On Italian:] One may almost call it a language that talks of itself, and always seems more witty than its speakers.\" — Madame de Stael" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg" --- # \[On Italian:\] One may almost call it a language that talks… ![“[On Italian:] One may almost call it a language that talks of itself, and always seems more witty than its speakers.” quote by Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg) > “\[On Italian:\] One may almost call it a language that talks of itself, and always seems more witty than its speakers.” [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Italian language reflects itself, appearing wittier than its speakers. **In simple terms:** Italian is self‑referential and witty. Key Takeaway Appreciate language’s self‑awareness. Themes language culture self‑reference Mood reflective curious Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - Travel - language learning - literary analysis Key Concepts Linguistic identity meta‑communication national character Questions to Reflect On - How does a language shape its speakers? - Can self‑reference limit expression? A Different Perspective Wittiness may be stereotype, not universal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Italian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/italian/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Witty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witty/) ## Related quotes > [English dialogue is the best in the world. So dry and direct. The Italian language is beautiful, but it is too literary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernardo-bertolucci/english-dialogue-is-the-best-in-the-world-so-dry-and-direct-the/) [Bernardo Bertolucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernardo-bertolucci/) > [I speak a little bit of Italian, yeah. I understand more than I speak. I speak more of a dialect; my mum's from Naples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-pasqualino/i-speak-a-little-bit-of-italian-yeah-i-understand-more-than-i-speak-i/) [Luke Pasqualino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-pasqualino/) > [I want to learn how to speak Italian. For years, I'd wished I could speak Italian--a language I find more beautiful than roses :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-want-to-learn-how-to-speak-italian-for-years-i-d-wished-i-could/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Italian is the language of song. German is good for philosophy and English for poetry. French is best at precision; it has a rigour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-druon/italian-is-the-language-of-song-german-is-good-for-philosophy-and/) [Maurice Druon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-druon/) > [Italian language and culture are beloved throughout the U.S.A.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cuomo/italian-language-and-culture-are-beloved-throughout-the-u-s-a/) [Margaret Cuomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cuomo/) > [The AP Italian language program has been preserved. We would like to thank the scores of people who joined the effort to ensure that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cuomo/the-ap-italian-language-program-has-been-preserved-we-would-like-to/) [Margaret Cuomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cuomo/) > [Free speech isn't dead in Germany and Italy, merely the speakers...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hope/free-speech-isn-t-dead-in-germany-and-italy-merely-the-speakers/) [Bob Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hope/) > [I was raised in an Italian catholic family in Baltimore, Maryland. Our faith is very important to us, our patriotism, love of faith, love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/i-was-raised-in-an-italian-catholic-family-in-baltimore-maryland-our/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) > [Never trust an Italian who don't like pasta as his breakfast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/never-trust-an-italian-who-don-t-like-pasta-as-his-breakfast/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [My parents were both Spanish-speakers and they used to speak to me and my siblings in Spanish and we'd answer them in English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/america-ferrera/my-parents-were-both-spanish-speakers-and-they-used-to-speak-to-me/) [America Ferrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/america-ferrera/) > [Listening is seeking synchronicity with the speaker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rost/listening-is-seeking-synchronicity-with-the-speaker/) Michael Rost > [So in our shared mission to make America great again, I support and endorse our Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/so-in-our-shared-mission-to-make-america-great-again-i-support-and/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I can tell you this. It is not going to be evenly constituted and when she was Speaker Pelosi, she certainly showed no interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trey-gowdy/i-can-tell-you-this-it-is-not-going-to-be-evenly-constituted-and-when/) [Trey Gowdy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trey-gowdy/) > [Forcing modern speakers of English to not - whoops, not to split an infinitive because it isn't done in Latin makes about as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/forcing-modern-speakers-of-english-to-not-whoops-not-to-split-an/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/) [John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/) ## More by Madame de Stael > [Good taste cannot supply the place of genius in literature, for the best proof of taste, when there is no genius, would be, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/good-taste-cannot-supply-the-place-of-genius-in-literature-for-the/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [There is no reality on this earth except religion and the power of love; all the rest is even more fugitive than life itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/there-is-no-reality-on-this-earth-except-religion-and-the-power-of/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [in Italy, almost at every step, history and poetry add to the graces of nature, sweeten the memory of the past, and seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/in-italy-almost-at-every-step-history-and-poetry-add-to-the-graces-of/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [ \[Ridicule\] laughs at all those who see the earnestness of life and who still believe in true feelings and in serious thought ... It… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/ridicule-laughs-at-all-those-who-see-the-earnestness-of-life-and-who/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Ought not every woman, like every man, to follow the bent of her own talents?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/ought-not-every-woman-like-every-man-to-follow-the-bent-of-her-own/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [The more we know the better we forgive. Whoever feels deeply, feels for all who live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/the-more-we-know-the-better-we-forgive-whoever-feels-deeply-feels-for/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Let us then blend everything: love, religion, genius, with sunshine, perfume, music, and poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/let-us-then-blend-everything-love-religion-genius-with-sunshine/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Man's most valuable faculty is his imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/man-s-most-valuable-faculty-is-his-imagination/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Taste is to literature what bon ton is in society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/taste-is-to-literature-what-bon-ton-is-in-society/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [A voyage without companionship, that is to say without conversation, is one of the saddest pleasures of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/a-voyage-without-companionship-that-is-to-say-without-conversation-is/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [However old a conjugal union, it still garners some sweetness. Winter has some cloudless days, and under the snow a few flowers still bloom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/however-old-a-conjugal-union-it-still-garners-some-sweetness-winter/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [The sight of such a monument is like continual and stationary music, which one hears for one's good as one approaches it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/the-sight-of-such-a-monument-is-like-continual-and-stationary-music/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [If we would succeed in works of the imagination, we must offer a mild morality in the midst of rigid manners; but where the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/if-we-would-succeed-in-works-of-the-imagination-we-must-offer-a-mild/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [Innocence in genius, and candor in power, are both noble qualities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/innocence-in-genius-and-candor-in-power-are-both-noble-qualities/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) > [“The human mind always makes progress, but it is a progress made in spirals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/the-human-mind-always-makes-progress-but-it-is-a-progress-made-in/) [Madame de Stael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) [Explore all 187 Madame de Stael quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/) ## More Italian quotes > [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/) [Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/) > [If I had been an Italian I am sure that I should have been whole-heartedly with you from the start to finish in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-i-had-been-an-italian-i-am-sure-that-i-should-have-been-whole/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“Non poteva più vivere senza sapere e, soprattutto, non poteva morire senza sapere, in un'epoca in cui i ragazzi come lui erano chiamati più…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/non-poteva-pi-vivere-senza-sapere-e-soprattutto-non-poteva-morire/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I studied classical opera, so I was always singing in Italian and German and French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wang-leehom/i-studied-classical-opera-so-i-was-always-singing-in-italian-and/) [Wang Leehom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wang-leehom/) > [I like English football, Spanish football, Italian football. I like all of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hulk/i-like-english-football-spanish-football-italian-football-i-like-all/) [Hulk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hulk/) > [I watched a film called 'Elephant' recently. Its not stylish in the sense of expensive suits and Italian cars, but the styling on every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tinie-tempah/i-watched-a-film-called-elephant-recently-its-not-stylish-in-the/) [Tinie Tempah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tinie-tempah/) > [I'm a first generation American. My mother is Italian and Russian and a lot of other things, and my father is Uruguayan. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-arcelus/i-m-a-first-generation-american-my-mother-is-italian-and-russian-and/) [Sebastian Arcelus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-arcelus/) > [I speak three other languages - Serbian, French, and Italian - but typically read in English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stana-katic/i-speak-three-other-languages-serbian-french-and-italian-but/) [Stana Katic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stana-katic/) > [I'm very proud of being Italian-American, but people don't realize that the mafia is just this aberration. The real community is built on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chazz-palminteri/i-m-very-proud-of-being-italian-american-but-people-don-t-realize/) [Chazz Palminteri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chazz-palminteri/) > [My wife spoke perfect Italian and she was very beautiful and very suave Italian men were crowding around her, talking all the time and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/my-wife-spoke-perfect-italian-and-she-was-very-beautiful-and-very/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) > [My friend told me he was going to a fancy dress party as an Italian island. I said to him, ‘Don’t be Sicily’.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-vine/my-friend-told-me-he-was-going-to-a-fancy-dress-party-as-an-italian/) [Tim Vine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-vine/) > [“    Breakfast was ready. He could hear his father asking for coffee. Why did his father have to yell all the time? Couldn't he talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fante/breakfast-was-ready-he-could-hear-his-father-asking-for-coffee-why/) [John Fante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fante/) > [My favorite foods are anything Italian.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ainsley-earhardt/my-favorite-foods-are-anything-italian/) [Ainsley Earhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ainsley-earhardt/) > [Italian football is great but for me, for the style of player I am, I found it too tactical, too slow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djibril-cisse/italian-football-is-great-but-for-me-for-the-style-of-player-i-am-i/) Djibril Cisse > [Our last jam session was this past Christmas. Dad played his harmonica, mom sang in English and Italian, and I played guitar. I'm so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-visconti/our-last-jam-session-was-this-past-christmas-dad-played-his-harmonica/) [Tony Visconti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-visconti/) [Browse all 1,118 Italian quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/italian/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "[On Italian:] One may almost call it a language that talks of itself, and always seems more witty than its speakers.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Madame de Stael" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-language-that-talks-of-itself-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Italian" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-language-that-talks-of-itself-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d1/madame-de-stael-2069_italian_on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-lang_943533.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[On Italian:] One may almost call it a language that talks of itself, and always seems more witty than its…” — Madame de Stael", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Madame de Stael", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madame-de-stael/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "[On Italian:] One may almost call...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-language-that-talks-of-itself-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madame-de-stael/on-italian-one-may-almost-call-it-a-language-that-talks-of-itself-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```