| At the time of unification, between 1848 and 1870, Italian was spoken by only ten per cent of the population and written by one per cent. It became the first language for most Italians during the 1950s, but Italy remains a jigsaw puzzle of different dialects. After a long period of misconception of their socio-cultural role, dialects are finally respected as evidence of social and local identity, as an authentic and spontaneous expression of the historical and socio-cultural pluralism that characterizes Italy.; This study arises from the fact that among so many dialects spoken in Italy, the Neapolitan is one of the most known in the world. The reason of that can be found in the diffusion throughout many countries of Neapolitan songs, music, poems, that have become representative of very important historical events and socio-cultural changes.; In chapter one the reader will become more acquainted with some historical notions regarding the history and diffusion of the Italian language, since the unification; the relation between official language and dialects; and the literary revaluation of the dialects through the affirmation of the intellectual and literal movement of the "Neodialettali".; Chapters two and three set the historical background to contextualize some of the most significant poems and songs written in Neapolitan about emigration and the I and II World Wars. In these chapters, texts in Neapolitan dialect are presented as a realistic and authentic material to use for students who want to be more aware of crucial changes and events that characterize the history and development of Naples, and Italy in general.; Chapter four is about songs in the Neapolitan dialect and their authors, who are very popular nowadays. Once again the focus is on the social and historical information that each song can transmit about Naples.; Finally, chapter five demonstrates with specific teaching methods and activities that these songs and poems in dialect can be successfully incorporated into a foreign language classroom to engage students on the discussion of very important historical and socio-cultural events. The focus is specifically on the contents of the selected texts. |
