From Wiseguys to Wise Men: The Gangster and Italian American Masculinities

by Gardaphe; Fred

• ISBN13: 9780415946476
• ISBN10: 0415946476
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-03-03
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

As the real American gangsters of yesterday recede into the history books, their iconic figures loom larger than ever.From Wiseguys to Wise Menstudies the cultural figure of the gangster, and explores its social function in the construction and projection of masculinity in the United States. Gardaphe shows how the gangster can be seen as a 'trickster' figure. The trickster figure exists in many cultures and serves as a model of improper behavior. The gangster has served as that figure in American culture by showing what is and is not authentically American. It is not American to speak a language other than English. It is not American to use violence to secure business deals. It is not American to have both a mistress and a wife and family. However, in the hands of Italian-American artists, the gangster becomes a more telling figure in the tale of American race, gender, and ethnicity-a figure that reflects the autobiography of an immigrant group just as it reflects the fantasy of a nativepopulation. While this figure has been a part of American literature since even before Fitzgerald'sTheGreat Gatsby, it has only been with the revolution in cinema, and the work of Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese that the figure of the gangster has been humanized and disseminated on a large scale. Gardaphe investigates the role of the gangster in their films, as well as the literature of such great Italian American writers as Mario Puzo and Gay Talese. By looking at the cultural icon of the gangster through the lens of gender and masculinityFrom Wiseguys to Wise Menpresents new insights into material that has been part of American culture for close to 100 years.

Table of Contents

Introduction	xi
Part I: Romancing the Gangster
Origins of an Archetype	3	(18)
The Gangster as Culture Hero: Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola	21	(24)
Part II: Realizing the Gangster
The Truth about Gangsters: Gay Talese and Ben Morreale	45	(22)
Rough Boys: The Gangsters of Martin Scorsese and Michael Cimino	67	(22)
Part III: Reinventing the Gangster
Queering the Gangster: Giose Rimanelli and Frank Lentricchia	89	(20)
Female Masculinity and the Gangster: Louisa Ermelino	109	(20)
The Gangster as Public Intellectual: Anthony Valerio and Don DeLillo	129	(20)
Fresh Garbage: The Gangster as Today's Trickster --- David Chase and Tony Ardizzone	149	(22)
Part IV: Looking for a Few New Men
New Directions in Italian-American Manhood	171	(22)
From Macho to Zero: Redesigning Italian-American Masculinities	193	(22)
Notes	215	(22)
Index	237