“Occhio non vede / bocca non parla”: proverbs and the new generations. Analysis and educational perspectives

Abstract

This paper analyzes the phono-rhythmic and rhetorical features of incorrect responses provided by young people (ages 11–25) in a task involving the completion of a selection of well-known and widely used proverbs, of which only the first part was given. The results of the analysis offer a didactic perspective on the degree of familiarity with proverbs among younger generations, and serve as a basis for proposing classroom activities aimed at developing and reinforcing lexical, textual, and metalinguistic skills.