At the beginning of my semester abroad I wrote about how I disliked the capitalist nature of America. I spoke about being work and money-hungry. What I didn’t realize is how much those values influenced me. I thought because I did not have the survival mentality of needing to find the job that secures my life that I was more independent from capitalist ideals. However, my experiences abroad proved to me that I was very wrong, even more so, hypocritical.
The truth is, we are all heavily influenced by our environments and even though I might not be scourging for a job, I still have the capitalist survival tendency.
In Italy I worked at an internship. I worked with a chef who did cooking classes in Rome. Throughout my time, I grew very close to him. His name was Andrea. I consider him family and I love him with my whole heart. That being said, after working months with him, I could see his exhaustion and I wanted so much for him. I wanted him to spend more time with his kids and I wanted him to make enough money to go on vacation. Andrea made money just fine. He supported his family and had savings and enough to treat his family to a restaurant dinner every so often. He could be considered a healthy middle class. However, behind the scenes, he just started his business back up after a year and a half of a pandemic having him shut down. One night I helped him with an event. It was a 20-course meal for four people. He usually charges 75 a head for his classes which includes 4 courses. Him being generous and grateful would always produce more, offering 7 courses for the same price. The class is about 5 hours and is an irreplaceable experience. So when I found out that we made 20 courses for 4 people, I asked him how much were they paying. To my surprise he said he only charged them 50 euros a head. This meant, after the cost of ingredients and labor, he made nothing that night. I grew upset with him because he deserved so much more. He deserved more money and he deserved to not go home late, he deserved to better. We sat down and I began to tell him that I think he needs to be charging more. We went into cost of food and the experience itself. To be fair he could charge 100 euros a head for his regular classes and for 20 courses, he should have charged around 200 euros. I explained a whole new business model to him to which he said “Victoria, I love you, but this is not America”. “I booked this class months ago, when I thought I would not have business anymore because of the pandemic. To me 200 euros was better than nothing. And after being shut down for over a year, I am simply glad that I can make 20 courses for someone in my restaurant. I never thought I would be able to do that again. That is why we do what we do, I know I did not make money tonight. In fact, I even lost money. But I am grateful because it means we are living again”.
This humbled me quite greatly. It was in that moment that I understood that I was money hungry, I had the capitalist surviving mentality. I was selfish but not in the way you think. I was selfish in the sense, when I offer labor and experience, I am doing it for my profit. I know I can charge more for my labor because I know my experience and my worth and I know I can capitalize off of it. I am a product to be sold for the highest price. That is how I consider my labor and my view of money. But the same thing I loved about Italy being indulgent about life experiences was humbling me. Because I excused Italy’s lack of capitalist nature when it went against focusing your life around a job but I didn’t excuse it when I thought about how the job is an interaction in that life. I thought about how much I wanted for Andrea and how he could achieve it, but I didn’t think about his Italian love for life and experience would keep him from capitalizing off his product and labor. It is an even score in Italy. If they aren’t immensely job focused for survival, they also won’t capitalize in their own benefit off that job. They keep it attainable for society whereas in America, you have to reach and climb for what you want.
I guess what I have learned from being in Italy and being from America is that I have to find the balance between both those cultures. I also must admit to which parts I influenced and consumed by. I am a product to sell to the world, and while I can charge higher to climb to where I want, I can also be humble and remember that life is not always a climb but also an experience; a human experience to be indulged by.