Giuseppe Antonelli, Giacomo Micheletti, Anna Stella Poli (a cura di)
Verso il museo multimediale della lingua italiana
DOI: 10.1401/9788815410283/c9
Reflections on everyday metaphors and the changes of meaning that constantly occur in language can be worked
{p. 95}with imagery and sound resources. Here the aim is to show the fluidity of meanings and point out to the language users their competence in decoding them due to predictable scales of meaning extension.
The linguistic research that focuses on the production process was not the target of the first long-term exhibition but is part of the collection of the Estação da Luz Museum of Portuguese Language. Overall, attention was paid to linguistic products, perhaps because they were more spectacular. We understand, however, that it would be interesting to use interactive supports to illustrate the production process, especially in those cases that are directly related to changes and updates in sociocultural practices. It would be appropriate for the multimedia language museum to give visibility to the productivity and creativity of lexical constructions produced in everyday life, in order to show the dynamism of the language and thus prepare the speaker to capture the sensitivity and suggestive power of the linguistic and thematic universe that covers our literature. An activity that showed creativity would build the bridge to the third floor of the museum, which is dedicated to Brazilian literature.
We therefore understand that reflections on the language structure are an important part of the language celebration mission. The visitor is led to understand that he is constantly operating with rules or schemes that are unconsciously acquired. Hopefully, he will gain confidence about his language ability with this exercise. Such activity could also bridge the fun side of the museum centered on the alley of words, where, through an interactive electronic game, the public is invited to form words from pieces that move on a board. This game, which was designed by professors Mário Viaro and Marcelo Taz, was intended to stimulate the perception of the order of elements that structure the words and their etymological meaning. In our opinion, the experience in the production process would be an important step for the playful game to reach the objective it proposed. In any case, it must be pointed out that the activities in the {p. 96}alley of words, located at the end of the gallery, foster an engaging interactive participation.
From this point on, visitors are guided to the third floor, the museum’s apotheosis space. After the projection of a video that recounts the origin of human language, presents the world’s existing languages, and situates BP, visitors are invited to occupy the Praça da Língua. With the help of technological supports, the space resembles a planetarium from which literary creation echoes: excerpts of literary texts are projected on the vault and floor. In addition to arousing a sense of mastery of the language itself, this sensory journey provokes the visitor’s immersion in the aesthetic experience of the language, whether through listening to poetry or through textual projections. The projection of the lexicon and listening to the sounds and voices of emblematic artists and singers of Brazilian culture raise the rite of communion that enlivens the public and creates a feeling of mastery of the Portuguese language.
In short, those who observe the visitors’ attitude realize that, in the end, under the delight of the artists’ voices, reciting poetry, hearing every word (parodying Guimarães Rosa) make language emerge from the depths of time and open the door to infinity. Empathy for their language begins to rise in visitors. And as the misfit Christian Buddenbrook would seek relief from his existential problems in a house with a little sign saying Quisisana, a visit to the museum is also a source of energy to overcome language barriers. The Estação da Luz Museum of Portuguese Language is, therefore, a «space where (qui) is healed (si sana)» the identity crisis of Brazilians with their own language.