Mr. Bill Tonelli, previously "famous" for the "Amazing Tonellis", has announced the imminent release of the anthology of writings of Italian-Americans (Tonelli, B.,  Ed. [2003]. "Italian American Reader: A Collection of Outstanding Stories, Memoirs, Journalism, Essays and Poetry." New York: Harpercollins). The anthology will contain pieces selected from the works of  DeLillo, Talese, Paglia, Puzo, Pileggi, Auletta, Russo, Lupica, as well as many other Italian-American writers.

Professor Emeritus James Mancuso makes the following observations and
comments.

    I am pleased that Bill Tonelli has been given the opportunity, by the National Italian American Foundation, to preview and to promote his anthology of Italian-American writing ( Tonelli, B., Ambassador Magazine, Winter, 2003, pp. 2-6).

     We can look forward to having that anthology made available to supplement other anthologies, such as the Tamburri, Giordano, Gardarphe collection ("From the Margin: Writings in Italian Americana") or Barolini ("The Dream Book: An Anthology of Writings by Italian-American Women") and the two anthologies mentioned on page 19 of the latest NIAF NEWS ( Barreca, R.  Ed [2002] "Don't Tell Mamma: The Penguin Book of Italian American Writing;"  and Ciongoli, A. K. and Parini, J.,  Eds. [1997]  "Beyond the Godfather: Italian American Writers on the Real Italian American
Experience").

   By studying these anthologies, under the guidance of  the insightful analyses of Italian-American art and literature brought together by D'Acierno (1998, "The Italian American Heritage: A Companion to Literature and Arts"), Italian-Americans can begin to feel that Italian-American writers now have built a base "of writing that defines us and describes us and expresses who and what we are - not just as individuals but as a group" (Tonelli, p. 2).

    I anticipate Tonelli's efforts to have Italian-Americans become acquainted with a developing genre of "reconnection literature" such as that that has been produced by Maria Laurino, Paul Paolicelli, Joe Fiorito, Roland Merullo, and George Cuomo.

Those writings, readers will see, can stand as contemporary writing that balances and contrasts to the constant stream of negative portrayals of Italian-American life written by people who appear to share an Italian-American background.

    We can hope that some of the readings in Tonelli's collection will explain why the existing anthologies can be regarded as "worthy but unsung collections published by small, scholarly houses" (Tonelli, p. 5).  That is, why has there been little effort by descendants of l'avventura to stampede writers and publishers to produce a full exploration of "how deeply World War II drove Italian American culture into hiding" Tonelli, p. 5)?

    We can hope that Tonelli's anthology will include examples of and explorations of the works of Italian-American writers who have contributed to driving Italian Americans to disconnect from their heritage by (1) touting the "advantages" of something called "assimilation," and (2) by producing one after another piece that satisfies those who think that they gain insight into Italian-American heritage when they read portrayals of Italian-Americans as ungovernable, over passionate, and primitively violent.

    If Tonelli, as one would expect, limits the entries in his anthology to Italian American writers, the anthology will unfortunately omit some of the current writing by British scholars (Schneider, J., Ed. [1998] "Italy's 'Southern Question:' Orientalism in One Country;"  Dickie, J. [1999], "Darkest Italy: The Nation and Stereotypes of the Mezzogiorno - 1860-1900") who have worked to document and to clarify the process of generating the stereotype of Southern Italians and Sicilians as primitive, over passionate, and violent.

   The perspective that one can develop by reading these works would offer illumination to the writings of Italian-Americans who have documented the ways in which that stereotype has been transplanted to The USA, and would lend clarity to understanding how the pervasive use of that stereotype has convinced the descendants of l'avventura to gamble on following the psychologically confusing "assimilationist" route to escape being construedby use of the stereotype.

   I hereby register my doubt that there will be much utility in attempting to trace out the roots of why "our literary output seems to pale next to what Italian Americans have achieved in cinema and popular music" (Tonelli, [p. 3) by making reference to the claim that "even in Italy, the greatest storytellers have not tilled the fields of the long written narrative" (p.3).

   Our doubts arise, in the first place, on grounds that Italy has not lacked great storytellers who have written great novels.

   A novel, "I Promessi Sposi," that is regarded as the turning point in writing "verismo" was written by a most celebrated Italian writer... Alessandro Manzoni (for whom Verdi wrote his superb Requiem). Giovanni Verga wrote a series of great novels, the most famous of which is "I Malvoglia," translated by D. H. Lawrence with the title "The House Under the Medlar Tree."  Pirandello, whom Tonelli mentions as a Nobel Prize winning playwright, wrote hundreds of novelle, and at least one very famous novel -- "I Fu Mattia Pasqual." Lampadeusa wrote a world famous novel, "Il
Gattopardo." Umberto Eco has certainly made his mark not only as a great
semiotician, but also as an outstanding novelist, e. g, "The Name of the Rose".

    Then one must recognize the world wide fame of Ignazio Silone's novel "Bread and Wine." Then we cannot ignore Leonardo Sciascia, whose string of novels have been highly influential in offering a perspective on life in Sicily. And one could go on..... with other less well known, but highly talented Italian writers.

    Further, it is doubtful whether this string of great novels would have been of significance in prompting writing among Italian-Americans, most of whom descended from illiterate participants in l'avventura.

    In that Tonelli's Amassador article contains a large photo of Richard Russo, with a caption that informs the reader that the work of Russo will appear in Tonelli's anthology, I  look forward to seeing which of Richard Russo's work might be included in Tonelli's anthology.  In my reading of Russo, I have found no text that would directly help to clarify my self identity as an Italian-American.  Indeed, I never had a response when I tried to communicate with Russo,  by various means, to inquire if he would comment on how an Italian-American background had influenced his literary
work. I look forward to seeing whether or not Tonelli had greater success in tracing out any such effects in Russo's writing.

    One can cogently claim,  as Tonelli points out, that Russo is among those writers who share an Italian-American background, who "are well known to all attentive American readers" (p. 2). I would find it useful to have well founded discussion of well known writers who share an Italian-American background and also share, with John Ciardi, a sincere and vehement desire to avoid being labeled as "Italian-American" writers.

    I believe that a well-written discussion, especially if written by one of those writers, would be very useful in trying to understand problems of self identity as a
descendent of the illiterate and impoverished participants in l'avventura, who have been surrounded by members of a society that readily construed Italian-Americans by using a well promulgated stereotype..

    I hope that the "15 million Americans of Italian ancestry" (p. 6) will greet the publication of Tonelli's anthology with the high excitement with which I will greet that event.

= . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = . = .= . = . =
Emeritus Prof. of Psychology         15 Oakwood Place
Department of Psychology             Delmar, New York    12054
Univ. at Albany  SUNY                    (518) 439-4416
Albany, NY 12222
http://www.capital.net/~soialban    http://www.capital.net/~mancusoj
Italian-Amer.interests site               Personal Construct Psychol. site