Devouring Cultures by Cammie M. Sublette Jennifer Martin

Author:Cammie M. Sublette, Jennifer Martin [Cammie M. Sublette, Jennifer Martin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781610755771
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: University of Arkansas Press
Published: 2015-12-30T00:00:00+00:00

Symbols in Film and Short Fiction: Four Kinds of Cooking in the Dialogic Kitchen

The mafia is a symbol of power, raw violence, hierarchy, and, perhaps most importantly, of family. However, while the concept of family seems like an inviting symbol of the unyielding bond between men, one who steps out of line in this family could experience a public dressing down, a smack across the face, or even a bullet in the back of the head. In “Eating with the Mafia: Belonging and Violence,” Martin Parker notes the irony of the desire to be in the mafia for its familial bonds: “Indeed, family is an odd metaphor to use to describe the sort of homosocial bonding that seems to characterize the day-to-day life of a wiseguy.”24 Parker points out that in this family, “there is violence continually lurking below the surface.”25 Yet, the lure of the mafia and its family ties has been sensationalized since its inception in America.

Mafia films are attractive, especially to men, because being in the family means honor, trust, and loyalty. And, of course, an assumption implied in these films is that if you (the viewer) were part of this opulent family, you wouldn’t be the stugots who steps out of line—you would follow the family rules. So, one major reason mafia films make money is because they represent a dark, powerful world of family relationships that hold within them an exciting sense of mystery. It is precisely this sense of mystery that first initiated the stereotype of Italian American men as mafiosi. Put simply, early in the twentieth century, the word “mafia” sold newspapers:

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