Interview with the Catalan lecturer at Monash University

Andreu Pedró. Born in Gata (La Marina Alta), he arrived in Melbourne last February to work as a lecturer in Catalan at Monash University. With 34 years on the clock, Andreu, qualified in translation and interpretating, has taught Catalan at Cambridge and Massachusetts. Now he’s come to Australia and hopes to stay here a good while.

Andreu, why did you decide to come to Melbourne?

Above all, it was because of the economic crisis in Spain and the precariousness and job insecurity that comes with it. As soon as I saw the position advertised by the Institut Ramon Llull, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and apply.

What links did you have to Australia before you came?

None; I’d never been to this continent before and I hardly knew anyone. I’m pleasantly surprised.

And what do you like most about the city?

Perhaps what I like most is the small things that remind me of Europe, like the cafés, the narrow streets and all the cultural activity that the city offers in general.

Had you lived in other places outside the Països Catalans before immigrating to Australia?

Yes, I’ve moved around a bit; I’ve spent long periods of time in Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States and also in Germany.

Did you lecture in Catalan in those countries?

I taught Catalan at Cambridge for two years, yes, and also at the University of Massachusetts.

What differences have you found between teaching Catalan at those universities and teaching it at Monash?

I think the Australian university lies halfway between a British university and an American one. It has a British base, but it’s taken many elements from the American university system, like the system of “majors” and “minors” in which students have to study two subjects – it’s the same as the United States. That is, students take two subjects (to take an example, journalism and biology); the major would be their main area of study and the minor like a specialisation.

As for the Catalan classes, how many students are there at Monash?

At the moment we have very few, only seven. But I have to say that I arrived a week before classes began and so had no time to promote them or do publicity… so hopefully, for the first semester of 2014, we can increase the number of students.

When did Catalan begin to be taught at the university?

In Melbourne, Catalan began to be taught in the 80s at La Trobe University, where they had a number of Catalan teachers, but I don’t know why they stopped… and this year at Monash, thanks to the support of the Institut Ramon Llull, we’ve resumed the teaching of the language.

And your students? What is their motivation to learn Catalan?

For a lot of them, Barcelona, either because they visited it and liked it a lot, or because they have heard about it and want to visit. They link Catalan with Barcelona and this is the attraction in most cases. Other students study Catalan because they speak many languages; they find it easy and learning another is appealing to them. For example I have a student who speaks 5 or 6 languages…

And also Barça! There’s a student who started learning Catalan because he knew the players and wanted to know more about the entire goings on of the club.

 And apart from Barcelona, do they know anything else about our culture?

Well in fact at Monash, Professor Stewart King teaches a Catalan culture subject. They learn a bit of literature and also about current issues, for example all the controversy going on right now with Minister Wert’s policy was discussed in the class.

 And what do you know about our Casal?

I knew that there was a Casal here in Melbourne, because before coming I was searching on the internet and I started following your Facebook page. And I think that the things you do are very interesting and very important for all people from Catalonia, Valencia and Balearic Islands alike – as thanks to you we can celebrate Sant Jordi, Sant Joan, La Diada… And in order to promote the language and culture, we can definitely do a lot of things together here in Australia.

 Well in fact I believe that you made a presentation not long ago about Catalan cinema here in Melbourne, many members of the Casal went.

Yes, I participated in one of the sessions that the Spanish Consulate organised and I chose to show the Catalan film “Pa negre” there. It was a real success in terms of the attendance and comments I received; in general I think that people liked it.

And in the month of July, Melbourne University and Monash University, in collaboration with the Casal, are organising a Symposium about Catalunya. How will you participate in this event?

This will be the Second Symposium of Catalunya organised in Australia and it will bring together various experts who will discuss our literature, culture, and Catalans that have emigrated to Australia… My role is a moderator of the first session, which is titled “Catalans abroad”.

 We wish you great success, thank you Andreu.