This past week I finally sat down to watch an episode of the long(est)-running Dutch soap opera, “Goede Tijden, Slechte Tijden,” which has been beloved by 1.3 million viewers once a week since October 1990. \u00a0I wanted to watch because the show had been mentioned at my office: \u00a0one of my coworkers proposed that drama did not come naturally to the Dutch, and that the histrionics required by international soap opera standards seemed, in Dutch hands, a little artificial.<\/p>\n
I have to say, though, that one nice thing about soap operas is that they are nonspecific: \u00a0they only deal with the universals, like, you know, love, sex, death and kidnapping. \u00a0And for that reason, “Goede Tijden, Slechte Tijden” is a somewhat useful introduction to the Dutch language. \u00a0Its Dutch is conversational, yet simple, and the situations are recognizable to the least culturally cognizant of viewers.<\/p>\n
The clip I’m posting here is classic soap material if there was ever classic soap material: \u00a0a fight that dissolves into lovemaking, lovemaking that dissolves into guilt; a cuckold with suspicious eyes, and a cheating wife with guilty eyes. Klassiek!<\/em><\/p>\n If you’re a beginning Dutch student, watch and see how much you can understand, and I will list some of the key lines below. \u00a0And as for the native Dutch among you: \u00a0are there GTST fans out there? \u00a0Do you have favorite characters or episodes? \u00a0As with any TV show, I think I could get into it, with a little help.<\/p>\n