In my efforts to learn Spanish, I'm watching a telenovela called Tanto Amor (So Much Love). So far, it's anything but. Greed. Infidelity. Murder. Mayhem. The first episode was somewhat shocking, and I wondered if I should look for another show, but I've stuck with this one. After all, there were bad guys in All My Children, too. Anyone remember Marco Dane? (Or am I dating myself again?)
The telenovela has all the intrigue. Murder. Stolen inheritance. A secret will. Arson. Cheating partners. Attempted rape. Do I understand the Spanish (which is the goal, after all)? Mas o menos. More or less. I'm not sure if it's helping with my comprehension or not, but several Spanish speakers have said it's the best way to practice listening. That's how many of them have learned English - by watching television, or so they tell me. The unexpected side effect, getting caught up in the stories! Mia saves Alberto after a motorcycle accident, and he's indebted (and slightly besotted). Except Alberto is engaged to a female toreador, who is cheating on him. The toreador pushes Mia down a staircase before she knows Mia is Alberto's salvador after his accident, but he sets her straight. Trigger the cheating fiancée's jealousy. Oh, and then there's Alberto's murderous brother Bruno, the arsonist who killed Mia's mother to prevent her from disclosing the new will to ensure his and his mother's inheritance after they killed their grandfather - the patriarch of the family. One thing I haven't figured out is whose baby Mia's blind sister Mary is taking care of. I get the idea the baby is Mia and Mary's sister, although that's quite an age gap. A fault in my comprehension, surely, but as I left off today, some evil man is holding the baby and Mary is cowering in the corner. The baby's father? Or more of the bad guys coming to ensure compliance with their evil schemes? I'll have to watch the next episode to find out...
I haven't watched a soap opera in a number of years, much less several episodes (or capitulos) in a row. They all end with a hook, much like authors need hooks at the end of chapters to keep their readers engaged and turning pages. "Tune in tomorrow to find out what happens!" In spite of the fact I don't understand all of what they're saying, I get the general idea/gist, and my ears always perk up when I catch words or phrases I understand.
So is daytime drama - in Spanish - helping? Well, it is entertaining. If nothing else, it's giving me the confidence to use the vocabulary I have. I even held a conversation about pets in my bilingual class last week!
Do the soap operas suck you in? Do you still watch?
