A few days ago, I was travelling on a bus along one of Milan ringroads and at some point I heard a lady saying "No, thanks". When I turned towards her, wondering whether she was refusing the offer of a seat or what- on earth- could ever be sold on a bus, I realised, to my surprise, it wasn't a gentleman offering his seat (how weird!), nor a peddler selling his goods. It was a drunkard, just begging. Apparently, this is the new reply beggars are to get by well-to-do ladies in Milan. It wasn't the first time I'd heard it, so I couldn't help but wonder: What are these ladies thanking them for?
Are beggars selling anything? As far as my social skills tell me, one normally replies "No, thanks" to an offer, not to a request. Is it the beggar's dignity that the lady was refusing?
Or was this a Brechtian Verfremdungseffekt strategy the lady used to distance herself from the situation so as to avoid empathy?
One thing is sure: the beggar walked off looking pretty puzzled and so did I.
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