False Friends, False Histories: Italy in the American Imagination

Publication Date

Spring 4-22-2026

Presentation Length

30 minutes

College

College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences

Department

World Languages and Cultures

Student Level

Undergraduate

Faculty Mentor

Francesca Muccini

Presentation Type

Talk/Oral

Summary

This panel explores how Italian language and culture are often misunderstood, simplified, or reimagined in English-speaking contexts. Our presentation focuses on false cognates, food history, and literary adaptation—the event invites students to critically reflect on how translation, migration, and popular culture shape cultural perception.

Comments

Presenters: Maddox Hexter, Luke Bouchard, Daron Baltazar, Maddie Italiano, Eben Carson, Brooke Wheeler, Blake Nazarian

Presentations:

1.When English and Italian Look the Same but Mean Something Else

This presentation introduces the concept of false cognates—words that appear similar in English and Italian but differ in meaning (e.g., parents/parenti, actually/attualmente, library/libreria). Through examples, students will explore how shared linguistic roots evolved differently across cultures and how mistranslation can lead to misunderstanding. 

2.Pizza: An Italian Dish Americans Think They Invented

This talk traces the historical origins of pizza in Naples and examines how Italian American migration transformed it into a global—and often Americanized—food icon. By contrasting Neapolitan pizza with its U.S. adaptations, the presentation explores issues of cultural transmission, reinvention, and identity. 

3.Pinocchio Before Disney: From Italian Social Critique to Global Fairy Tale

This presentation revisits Carlo Collodi’s Le avventure di Pinocchio (1883) and contrasts the original text with its Disney adaptation. Students will discover how the darker, morally complex Italian story was softened and reinterpreted for American audiences. 

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