Can Italian American Culture Be Saved?
by Anthony Maulucci
Most people can name at least one prominent Italian American figure in the world of business, politics, sports and entertainment, but how many people, Italian Americans included, can identify a single great American author of Italian descent? My guess is very few. In fact, the only Italian American novel known to the majority of Americans is Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, the most popular novel ever published in the U.S. but far from an authentic depiction of Italian American life.
Sadly, most Italian Americans under the age of 50 seem to have no clear idea what Italian American culture really is and tend to define it in terms of the self-parodies and stereotypes borrowed from the mainstream media. Most Little Italy’s, including the one in New York City, have been transformed by the departure of second or third-generation Italians to the suburbs and the influx of other ethnic groups — they are no longer the vibrant centers of a living Italian American culture. At best, these once-culturally-rich neighborhoods now offer an annual festival or are home to shops and restaurants that are watered-down versions of the real thing which were run by Italian-speaking immigrant families. Not knowing where to look for inspiration, knowledge and guidance about their cultural heritage, younger Italian Americans have turned to Hollywood movies and television shows for information about their ethnic identity.
Can Italian American culture be saved from this pernicious disease? Can a return to its roots produce an Italian American cultural renaissance? If so, then where are these roots to be found? Where do you go to experience a heritage on the verge of extinction? Italian American literature is the wellspring of our culture and the richest, perhaps only, source of its renewal.
But in order for the is renewal to take hold and flourish, Italian Americans must be willing to embrace their history and their uniquely ethnic literature.
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