sordid
Disreputable and sleazy.
oblivious
Unaware or unmindful of what is taking place around one; ignorant of consequence.
Neorealism
A film genre popularized by Italian filmmakers in the wake of the end of World War II of which Nights of Cabiria is an example.
sanguinity
An outlook toward life characterized by buoyant optimism and the self-assurance that everything will eventually work out in the end.
stool pigeon
Someone who informs on associates to law enforcement officers.
madonna
An address to the Virgin Mary during Catholic prayer rituals.
Countess
The wife or widow of a man holding the rank of Count in an aristocratic society; a single woman holding the same rank; also a sarcastic address to a woman of no rank with a superior attitude toward others.
lecher
A man who leers after young women.
"Sweet Charity”
The title of English-version Broadway musical of Nights of Cabiria later adapted into a film.
mawkish
Maudlin; overly sentimental; syrupy and sappy in emotional manipulation.
streetwalker
One of the nicer terms for a woman who makes money by selling herself for sex; a prostitute.
desolate
Bleak, gloomy, isolated and depressing.
loquacious
Characterized by a sense of joy in the act of being chatty and talkative.
squalid
Filthy and unclean as the result of neglect with the potential to very shortly become rotten and repulsive.
sensualist
A person who embraces all things related to physical pleasures and tactile sensations.
idealist
One who embraces a philosophy of life willing to reject reality in order to embrace the impracticality of naïve optimism; a beautiful dreamer.
materialism
The belief that material goods are the source of greatest happiness.
Fascism
The totalitarian authoritarian political ideology from which Italy is recovering in the aftermath of the Allied victory in World War II.
indomitability
A spirit of perseverance in the face of adversity that tells the world it can’t bring you down.
opulence
A lavish and sumptuous display of prosperity.
