# Buonismo / buonista



## Gattafee

Does anyone know the English for buonismo (if there is any)?

Buonismo: word employed especially in the politic and journalistic language that shows an excessively moral and benevolent behaviour in the social relations; constant mediation between divergent views.

Thank you


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## Necsus

Hmm... ho paura che non ci sia. Il Garzanti usa una perifrasi:
*buonismo* - _s.m._ readiness to cooperate with political opponents.


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## Gattafee

Avevo pensato anch'io a qualcosa del genere... è che così non rende l'idea di excessively moral and benevolent behaviour.


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## TimLA

I've looked around and found no examples of a direct translation for "buonismo" (other than the pejorative "goody-goody"). But I have seen many explanations in Italian, so I _*think*_ I know what it means.

The are a variety of phrases that might be applied, but they are very context sensitive:

Overly sympathetic
Bleeding heart
Sentimental
Indulgent
Do gooder
Good Scout
Sympathizer
Soft / Softy
Social relativism
Triangulation
Centrism
Secular progressive

ProZ has actually given an example where it should not be translated and just left as "buonismo" and then explained as "bleeding heart".


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## Gattafee

Thank you TimLA, your list is wonderful.

I bow before you. 

Can politically correct be used too?


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## TimLA

I thought about adding PC, and maybe it should be part of the list.
Again, very context sensitive.

No bowing please...unwarranted, unnecessary, and we are not buonisti here!


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## Einstein

People who show off (sfoggiano) their charitable behaviour are often referred to as do-gooders.


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## mateintwo

I would be grateful for some phrases with “buonismo” that illustrate well the meaning of the word so we can try to pinpoint an English equivalent. Reading TimLa’s list it seems to almost mean all and nothing. 

Also would you say “buonismo” is similar to “perbenismo” that was recently discussed on another thread?


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## TimLA

If you google with the single word "buonismo", the hits are all italian with excellent sentences. If you do "buonismo" and "ProZ" you can see their example.

"Perbenismo" and "buonismo" can be seen in the same sentence, but apparently with subtley different meanings.

"All and nothing" sounds like a good interpretation...


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## mateintwo

Having read some Google search results, my try to define “buonismo” would be:

A naive and simplistic and/or idealistic view/belief in being able to change/solve political, social or humanitarian situations/problems.


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## Paulfromitaly

TimLA said:


> If you google with the single word "buonismo", the hits are all italian with excellent sentences. If you do "buonismo" and "ProZ" you can see their example.
> 
> "Perbenismo" and "buonismo" can be seen in the same sentence, but apparently with subtley different meanings.
> 
> "All and nothing" sounds like a good interpretation...



Perbenismo e buonismo have a very different meaning actually.
Buonismo is that particular behaviour which implies being always supportive, forgiving everyone for everything they have done, trying always to find a peaceful solution to any problem, turning the other cheek, being always too indulgent and understanding towards people's bad behaviours.
It often has a negative meaning, so that a buonista is can be seen as naive, softy and a sucker.


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## mateintwo

Reading the Google hits it seems most common nowadays to use the negative meaning of “buonismo”. Like politicians/judges being soft on crime by cuddling criminals instead of taking a hard line to curtail crime. 

But from your answer I guess the originally meaning of the word was what we were taught in religion to be compassionate and I also guess 50/100 years ago the negative connotation of the word did not exist


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## Gattafee

Yes nowadays it has a negative meaning.


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## Paulfromitaly

mateintwo said:


> Reading the Google hits it seems most common nowadays to use the negative meaning of “buonismo”. Like politicians/judges being soft on crime by cuddling criminals instead of taking a hard line to curtail crime.
> 
> But from your answer I guess the originally meaning of the word was what we were taught in religion to be compassionate and I also guess 50/100 years ago the negative connotation of the word did not exist



Well..that's true..buonismo can be used in many different contexts with different meanings of course, yet always negative.


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## Ranocchietta

mateintwo said:


> Reading the Google hits it seems most common nowadays to use the negative meaning of “buonismo”. Like politicians/judges being soft on crime by cuddling criminals instead of taking a hard line to curtail crime.
> 
> But from your answer I guess the originally meaning of the word was what we were taught in religion to be compassionate and I also guess 50/100 years ago the negative connotation of the word did not exist



I might be wrong, but it sounds to me like a neologism, a word appeared in the last years on the political scene with only a negative connotation.
I can't think of it used in classical literature, nor in a positive connotation.


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## luin253

Com'è possibile tradurre l'aggettivo "buonista" (riferito a una persona e simile per significato a "benpensante, moralista")? Grazie


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## MStraf

Sei sicuro che sia un aggettivo, e non un sostantivo?
_do-gooder_?


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## luin253

Personalmente l'ho trovato come aggettivo, e anche il dizionario hoepli lo indica sia come aggettivo che come sostantivo.


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## GavinW

MStraf said:


> _do-gooder_?


 
That's one of the translations I've often used. But it's context-specific. For instance, the (rather negative!) definition given above of buonista made me think of "holier-than-thou" (which I've never used before but probably shall, from time to time, from now on).
This fits with the image of Prodi when he was prime minister, and was often accused of buonismo... (!)


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## byrne

GavinW said:


> That's one of the translations I've often used. But it's context-specific. For instance, the (rather negative!) definition given above of buonista made me think of "holier-than-thou" (which I've never used before but probably shall, from time to time, from now on).
> This fits with the image of Prodi when he was prime minister, and was often accused of buonismo... (!)


 
how about (in certain contexts) a goody-two-shoes?


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## GavinW

byrne said:


> how about (in certain contexts) a goody-two-shoes?


 
I think so, certainly, that too! Adam Ant docet! ;-)


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## byrne

GavinW said:


> I think so, certainly, that too! Adam Ant docet! ;-)


 
ha spooky! my first ever concert aged 12!


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## GavinW

byrne said:


> ha spooky! my first ever concert aged 12!


 
;-)


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## terribilino

Oh my God, I've still got him on vinyl.  Twice.

People, we're dating ourselves...

BTW, there is the noun 'bleeding heart' (http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/bleeding-heart). "He's such a bleeding heart, I can't stand him".   Unfortuntately in the US it's used almost exclusively with 'liberal' (bleeding heart liberal) to refer to pretty much anyone to the left of a republican.  Nice word, though.


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## Paulfromitaly

luin253 said:


> Com'è possibile tradurre l'aggettivo "buonista" (riferito a una persona e simile per significato a "benpensante, moralista")? Grazie


Per esempio usando la funzione di ricerca

Buonismo


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## GavinW

terribilino said:


> BTW, there is the noun 'bleeding heart' (http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/bleeding-heart). Nice word, though.


 
Very nice, well done! It'll sometimes work for buonista, I think (but not always: buonismo/buonista is too much of an "umbrella term" to be pinned down to a universal term in English, I think).


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## cumano

I translated, in my context, "doing good-ism." Thank you all.


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## Odysseus54

Here we have the expression "bleeding heart liberalism" , which in my opinion is a very close match, length apart.


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## cumano

I put "doing good-ism," as closer to the form of the original. But I am not satisfied.


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## Giorgio Spizzi

Paul has found the right words to explain this phenomenon.
Mateinto,
the word did not exist 50/100 years ago. Not even 10 for that matter. 
The word has no positive connotations.
Best.
GS


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## GavinW

I have a range of translations that I tend to use for this. It's not always political, but is often used in political contexts. An example? Prodi was often criticized (by his critics, no less) for his buonismo. The same people used to allege that he was inspired by excessively Catholic values and principles, and that he always seemed to be seeking common ground with all sides, political and otherwise. Basically, the implicit criticism here is that he was ultimately unconvincing as a politician, since he allegedly sought to be all things to all people, and to please everybody all the time, which many people believe to be impossible.
I think Prodi is a useful specific example to illustrate this word.
I say "a Mr Nice Guy" (buonista), from which I derive the adjectival (premodifier) form "Mr Nice Guy stance/approach/attitude/politics".
I said I had a range of translations. I can't remember the others (I had found 2 or 3 in all). Sorry. But "bleeding heart (liberalism etc)" is both too strong and too specific. Shame, I know.
;-)


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## Giorgio Spizzi

Very convincing.
Best.
GS


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## GavinW

Cheers, GS!


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## cumano

I will have to translate "naive doing-good-ism" in my context:
Per noi cristiani, comunque, i poveri ben prima di essere un problema, sono nostri fratelli, nostri amici. E non si tratta di “buonismo”, come talora in tono dispregiativo si sente dire, ma dello sguardo stesso di Dio che gli uomini fanno fatica ad imitare.


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## GavinW

cumano said:


> I will have to translate "naive doing-good-ism" in my context:
> Per noi cristiani, comunque, i poveri ben prima di essere un problema, sono nostri fratelli, nostri amici. E non si tratta di “buonismo”, come talora in tono dispregiativo si sente dire, ma dello sguardo stesso di Dio che gli uomini fanno fatica ad imitare.


 
In your (religious/moral) context, a nice translation is this:

"And it is not a case of being 'do-gooders', to use that negative term that you sometimes hear used, but...".
However, given the specific connotation of the term "do-gooder" in English, it becomes rather tautologous (ie superfluous) to specify the precise "accettazione" which is defined in the Italian sentence you quote.

EDIT: We can also say "simple/simplistic do-gooders", to make it a bit clearer.


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## Odysseus54

cumano said:


> I will have to translate "naive doing-good-ism" in my context:
> Per noi cristiani, comunque, i poveri ben prima di essere un problema, sono nostri fratelli, nostri amici. E non si tratta di “buonismo”, come talora in tono dispregiativo si sente dire, ma dello sguardo stesso di Dio che gli uomini fanno fatica ad imitare.



In this context , which is very specific, in that it refers to the attitudes towards the poor, one of the traditional divides between left and right, I think I must stick to my guns.  

Here, I think, "bleeding heart liberalism" is appropriate.  At least the way I understand the term from hearing it used here, that is a somewhat emasculated attitude based on excessive and whiny empathy , seen as erosive of personal responsibility and the Second Amendment and whatnot.


Edit after seeing Gavin's last -  "do-gooders" is pretty good too.


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## GavinW

Also: "goody-goody" (noun and adjective) for the Christian/charitable context.


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## cumano

This is what I have put:
And it is not a matter of  a naive “doing-good-ism,” as at times one hears said in a disdainful tone, but rather of God’s own gaze which human beings are at pains to imitate.
I have wanted to keep close to the original. "Bleeding heart liberal" is an old expression which I don't want to use for this. I have permitted myself to coin a term to reflect the sound of the original, and added "naive" after seeing all the discussion on the original thread re "buonismo." Thank you all.


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## NewYorktoLA

Hi cumano,
Sorry but:  "doing good-ism" doesn't make sense in English.   
"And it is not a case of being 'do-gooders'/
It's not a matter of being  a do-gooder/bleeding heart liberal" works well.
This express isn't "outdated," especially in the context which you have quoted.


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## GavinW

NewYorktoLA said:


> Hi cumano,
> Sorry but: "doing good-ism" doesn't make sense in English.
> "And it is not a case of being 'do-gooders'/
> It's not a matter of being a do-gooder/bleeding heart liberal" works well.
> This expression isn't "outdated," especially in the context which you have quoted.


 
Just making spelling clearer so everyone is sure to understand. And I agree with the above, too. (Except maybe "bleeding heart liberal", which I'm now totally unsure of!)
;-)


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## cumano

Well, I think that if it can be understood it makes sense. As much sense as what was also at one time the neologism buonismo. Again, I tried to reproduce into English what was done with the Italian. Do you think "do-good-ism" makes less sense than "buonismo," or is a more improper neologism? If so, please explain. I don't think one should be restricted in translating to what is in the dictionary (at this time).


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## GavinW

cumano said:


> Well, I think that if it can be understood it makes sense. As much sense as what was also at one time the neologism buonismo. Again, I tried to reproduce into English what was done with the Italian. Do you think "do-good-ism" makes less sense than "buonismo," or is a more improper neologism? If so, please explain. I don't think one should be restricted in translating to what is in the dictionary (at this time).


 
Well, it's your call, but I also think it's a bad call! The term "buonismo" is fixed in the language, whereas the term you wish to coin is not. This is a crucial difference. The notion of the "fixedness" of a given term in a given language is pretty well understood, well explained elsewhere, and clear on first principles. Forgive me if I don't expand on it here. I mean that, by the way: I'd like to, but it's late, I'm tired and I'm busy with other things, otherwise I would probably do more to try to explain, to help you understand better.
By the way, this is in no way a criticism of you, or of your decision-making processes. It's simply a constructive (and possibly partly informative) objection. ;-)


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## cumano

Thanks, I've handed it in. It's for the Community of Sant'Egidio.


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## Akumasama

Paulfromitaly said:


> Perbenismo e buonismo have a very different meaning actually.


Well, like it has already been said, it all depends on the context. I'd rather say that while there is a difference, it's subtle.

"Perbenismo" has more to do with morals and so people with very conservative ideas, good manners and it has a bad connotation.

"Buonismo" usually (not always, but almost if I can dare?) is more about what other people already said in this thread. It usually ends up in hypocrisy, since it can be used as a form of euphemism to hide intolerance behind a mask of politically correct sentences and behaviours.


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## cumano

Thank you all for your kind and interesting responses.


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## Eqmeliten

Try "anything goes"
      "Pollyanna"
      "happy talk"
      "go along to get along"


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## LenorNoir

Gattafee said:


> Does anyone know the English for buonismo (if there is any)?
> 
> Buonismo: word employed especially in the politic and journalistic language that shows an excessively moral and benevolent behaviour in the social relations; constant mediation between divergent views.
> 
> Thank you



BUONISTA is an Italian and Spanish word that is ironic! It is a relatively recent "transformation" of the adjective Buono (Italian) .This term is used in politics to describe and mock those kind of people who want to "look good or act good" but in reality they do not have a real grasp of the situation or they just want to look the "good guy" because of their need for acceptance. This term is usually used in the political spectrum to refer ironically to the Leftists who just want to help all the world without to consider the consequences and without use their own money for it.


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

Looking back to the OP, I thought of the adjective "(overly) accomodating", but as for a noun...? "malleability", mabe?


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## theartichoke

LenorNoir said:


> BUONISTA is an Italian and Spanish word that is ironic! It is a relatively recent "transformation" of the adjective Buono (Italian) .This term is used in politics to describe and mock those kind of people who want to "look good or act good" but in reality they do not have a real grasp of the situation or they just want to look the "good guy" because of their need for acceptance. This term is usually used in the political spectrum to refer ironically to the Leftists who just want to help all the world without to consider the consequences and without use their own money for it.



You might want to look up "virtue signalling" and see how well it corresponds to this concept. I know it's used by the right to disparage the left for several of the things you mention above. It may also be used within the left for disparaging people considered insufficiently activist -- I'm not sure and don't feel like looking it up (too depressing ) .


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## LenorNoir

luin253 said:


> Com'è possibile tradurre l'aggettivo "buonista" (riferito a una persona e simile per significato a "benpensante, moralista")? Grazie



BUONISTA e' un aggettivo pero' uno dei miei followers ha suggerito la perfetta traduzione secondo me! "Virtue signaling" that is a verb, so you can change it into "virtue signaler"... someone who says something good just to "look like good"...yep!



theartichoke said:


> You might want to look up "virtue signalling" and see how well it corresponds to this concept. I know it's used by the right to disparage the left for several of the things you mention above. It may also be used within the left for disparaging people considered insufficiently activist -- I'm not sure and don't feel like looking it up (too depressing ) .


It's so coincidental that you said so! Someone just suggested that to me in another forum! It's the closest translation in my opinion! Thank you so much!!! I would translate BUONISTA into VIRTUE-SIGNALER!


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## ohbice

LenorNoir said:


> BUONISTA is an Italian and Spanish word that is ironic!


Non trovo sia un termine ironico. Buonismo è, come accade spesso per gli -ismi, un termine che esprime un punto di vista negativo.
In particolare significa che l'eccesso di bontà non è una caratteristica che conduce alla santità, bensì un atteggiamento che conduce al disastro. O quando va bene al grottesco.
Mi scuso se le cose che ho scritto sono già state dette in precedenza ma il thread è lunghissimo...


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