The Italian Cultural Foundation at Casa Belvedere presents "The Etruscans: One of Three Great Civilizations in Italy". A Presentation by Francesco Bonavita, PhD. Tuesday, July 11, 2017 @ 7:00 PM The Italian Cultural Foundation at Casa Belvedere, T. 718-273-7660, 79 Howard Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10301

Who are the Etruscans who are often labeled as enigmatic, gluttons, bon vivants, obscure, who gave us wine, the love for music and taught us to live life in style? This presentation tries to explore several questions. Is it possible that three major civilizations could flourish in the same area, during the course of twenty five hundred years? In a small geographical area, such as Tarquinia, the Etruscans left behind a vastly and highly decorated necropolis to honor their loved ones.

Although there is no question that the Etruscan society was clearly defined in terms aristocratic lines, vis-a-vis a much larger servant population, one has to assume that such a vast necropolis could not have been intended just for the upper echelon. Rather, might we presuppose a more egalitarian posture toward the lower classes? Might this attitude constitute a more benevolent disposition toward the working class at this early juncture of Western Civilization? Another question that is equally compelling is where do the Etruscans originate? Since their language is classified as non Indo-European, many historians have been intrigued by their origins. And last, but not least, we need to examine the legacy of the Etruscans and the degree to which studying these ancient people might give us a better appreciation of ourselves.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER
Francesco Bonavita is a native of Rome, Italy and the author of Giardinoitaliano: An Intermediate Language Program, published by Pearson Prentice Hall, 2012. He holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature and he is a linguist. He has taught Italian, French, German, Japanese, Spanish and Portuguese at the middle school level as well as high school and college. He is currently a professor of second language methodology at New York University where he trains second language teachers, from K-12. Together with his wife, Maria Raffaella Ascioti, he is completing a text for children, Italian for Children.

Please reserve in advance for this interesting program so that we can plan accordingly.

Donation for Lecture and Reception: $20 per person (Refreshments and light hors d'oeuvres)

Pre-payment is recommended and appreciated. We accept credit cards over the phone.

Parking will be located directly across the street at Notre Dame Academy Elementary School.

For any questions or to RSVP, please call 718-273-7660 or email [email protected]