Textbook Guido Culture and Italian American Youth From Bensonhurst To Jersey Shore Donald Tricarico Ebook All Chapter PDF

Guido Culture and Italian American
Youth: From Bensonhurst to Jersey

Shore Donald Tricarico
Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://textbookfull.com/product/guido-culture-and-italian-american-youth-from-benso
nhurst-to-jersey-shore-donald-tricarico/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant
download maybe you interests ...
Rising Dispatches from the New American Shore Elizabeth

Rush
https://textbookfull.com/product/rising-dispatches-from-the-new-
american-shore-elizabeth-rush/
Rising dispatches from the new American shore First

Paperback Edition University Of South Alabama
https://textbookfull.com/product/rising-dispatches-from-the-new-
american-shore-first-paperback-edition-university-of-south-
alabama/
Far country scenes from American culture First Edition

Moretti
https://textbookfull.com/product/far-country-scenes-from-
american-culture-first-edition-moretti/
American Cultural Studies An Introduction to American

Culture Neil Campbell
https://textbookfull.com/product/american-cultural-studies-an-
introduction-to-american-culture-neil-campbell/
The Italian Literature Of The Axis War: Memories Of
Self-Absolution And The Quest For Responsibility Guido
Bartolini
https://textbookfull.com/product/the-italian-literature-of-the-
axis-war-memories-of-self-absolution-and-the-quest-for-
responsibility-guido-bartolini/
MRI from Picture to Proton 3rd Edition Donald W.

Mcrobbie
https://textbookfull.com/product/mri-from-picture-to-proton-3rd-
edition-donald-w-mcrobbie/
Youth Studies in Transition Culture Generation and New

Learning Processes Thomas Johansson
https://textbookfull.com/product/youth-studies-in-transition-
culture-generation-and-new-learning-processes-thomas-johansson/
Insight Pocket Guide Jersey Insight Guides
https://textbookfull.com/product/insight-pocket-guide-jersey-
insight-guides/
Life Narratives and Youth Culture: Representation,

Agency and Participation 1st Edition Kate Douglas
https://textbookfull.com/product/life-narratives-and-youth-
culture-representation-agency-and-participation-1st-edition-kate-
douglas/
GUIDO CULTURE
AND ITALIAN
AMERICAN YOUTH
S T U D I E S
From Bensonhurst to Jersey Shore
Donald Tricarico
A M E R I C A N
I T A L I A N
A N D
I T A L I A N
Italian and Italian American Studies
Series Editor
Stanislao G. Pugliese
Hofstra University
Hempstead, NY, USA
This series brings the latest scholarship in Italian and Italian American
history, literature, cinema, and cultural studies to a large audience of spe-
cialists, general readers, and students. Featuring works on modern Italy
(Renaissance to the present) and Italian American culture and society
by established scholars as well as new voices, it has been a longstand-
ing force in shaping the evolving fields of Italian and Italian American
Studies by re-emphasizing their connection to one another.
Editorial Board
Rebecca West, University of Chicago
Josephine Gattuso Hendin, New York University
Fred Gardaphé, Queens College, CUNY
Phillip V. Cannistraro (Deceased), Queens College and the Graduate
School, CUNY
Alessandro Portelli, Università di Roma “La Sapienza”
William J. Connell, Seton Hall University
More information about this series at

http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/14835
Donald Tricarico
Guido Culture
and Italian American
Youth
From Bensonhurst to Jersey Shore
Donald Tricarico
Queensborough Community College,
CUNY
Bayside, NY, USA
Italian and Italian American Studies

ISBN 978-3-030-03292-0 ISBN 978-3-030-03293-7 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03293-7
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018962905
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the
Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights
of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction
on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and
retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are
exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and
information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication.
Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied,
with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have
been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published
maps and institutional affiliations.
Cover credit: iStock/Getty Images Plus
This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature
Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
For Nina, Marina, and Dominique
Preface
This book is a product of a career-long interest in Italian American cul-

ture in New York City. My doctoral dissertation, published as a book in
1984, was a community study of an Italian neighborhood in Greenwich
Village where my mother’s side of the family had resided since the
1880s. Like the Italian neighborhood, Guido youth culture is an adapta-
tion beyond the immigrant generation on the level of culture and social
structure. It has held my scholarly interest since the late 1980s.
The volume is an adaptation of five book chapters and two journal
articles published from 1991 to 2017. I began to entertain the possibility
of a book when Guido was named by MTV in 2009 for the commer-
cially successful reality TV series “Jersey Shore”. Earlier material is incor-
porated in a narrative that aspires to be comprehensive and concise. New
insights are included from a standpoint in the present. There is ample
room to expand on topics crimped by other formats. I remain funda-
mentally concerned with enriching the discussion about Italian American
ethnicity, both empirically and theoretically, in academic sociology and
Italian American studies. The book is also submitted as having relevance
for a youth culture field that has overlooked Italian Americans and other
European ancestry groups.
vii
viii Preface
I would like to thank the following publishers for granting permis-

sions to adapt my earlier work: Fairchild, Fordham University, Illinois
University, McGraw Hill, and the Italian American Review.1
I would like to thank Palgrave Macmillan for the opportunity to make
my work accessible, in particular Megan Laddusaw who escorted me
through the early stages and Christine Pardue who was diligent, patient,
and expert throughout the production process. Stanislao Pugliese, the
general editor of the Italian and Italian American Studies series, as well
as an Italian American studies scholar, expressed confidence in my ability
to write an important book. It is unlikely that this book would have been
written without his commitment.
I would like to thank Dan Pucciarelli, a gentleman from Bath Beach,
who patiently escorted me down memory lane to reconstruct the feel of
the disco movement in southern Brooklyn in the 1970s. I would like to
acknowledge the support of The Calandra Institute for Italian American
Studies at The City University of New York and affiliated scholars Joseph
Sciorra, Laura Ruperto, Anthony Tamburri, and James Pasto. I am
grateful to Amy Traver for her surgical edits and loyal friendship. There
is the constant love of my wife, Nina and our daughters Marina and
Dominique. Marina’s fiancé Dimitri Vastardis generously volunteered his
word processing acumen and earnest sports talk.
Bayside, USA Donald Tricarico
1Portions of Chapters 4 and 10 were adapted from New Italian Migrations to the United
States, copyright 2017 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois and used with
permission of the University of Illinois Press. Portions of Chapter 5 were adapted from
Making Italian America, publishing in 2014 by Fordham University Press. Chapter 5
was also adapted from The Men’s Fashion Reader, edited by Andrew Reilly and Sarah
Crosbey and published in 2008 by Fairchild Books, an imprint of Bloomsbury. Material
in Chapters 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 was drawn from the essay “Bellas and Fellas in Cyberspace:
Mobilizing Italian Ethnicity for Online Youth Culture,” from the Italian American Review
1. 1 (Winter 2001), pp. 1–34. Reprinted by permission by the John D. Calandra Italian
American Institute, Queens College, City University of New York. Finally, Chapter 8
was adapted from Sources: Notable Selections in Race and Ethnicity, edited by Adalberto
Aguirre, Jr., and David V. Baker, copyright 2001 by McGraw-Hill Education.
Contents
1 Theorizing Italian American Youth Culture 1
2 A Local Italian American Youth Style Tradition:

Anticipating Guido 31
3 The Turn to Disco and Other Subcultural Developments 55
4 Becoming Guido: Identifying a Youth Subculture 87
5 Performing Style 115
6 “It’s Cool Being Italian”: Fashioning an Ethnic Youth

Style 143
7 The Local Struggle for Cool 173
8 GUIDOVILLE: Labeling Italian Americans Deviant 207
9 A Party Culture Becomes a Media Spectacle 237
ix
x Contents
10 Rethinking Italian American Ethnicity: A Middle Space 271
Bibliography 305
Index 327
List of Figures
Fig. 2.1 John Travolta plays the lead greaser in a film that was a box
office hit one year after SNF. His character demonstrates
the makings of a free-floating style in the popular culture
(e.g., black leather jacket, DA haircut). Like Happy Days, the
musical comedy subdues the male greaser through contact
with middle-class respectability (Source Grease—4 Movie
Clips + Trailer, JoBlo Movie Clips, published on April 18, 2018,
3:45. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atZLEN7dEWw,
accessed 9.5.2018) 49
Fig. 3.1 John Travolta as Tony Manero in opening sequence establishes
the authenticity of Italian American Bensonhurst in the disco
myth (Source Saturday Night Fever [Opening Credits], 3:57,
YouTube, published on 1.26.2018, https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=HVEqy6K18Yo, accessed 9.19.2018) 59
Fig. 3.2 Disco Dan in the DJ booth at Gatsby’s in southern Brooklyn,
1979 (Courtesy of Dan Pucciarelli) 66
Fig. 3.3 The 2001 Odyssey dance floor as it appears in SNF as the iconic
ritual space for the Italian American turn to disco. The expen-
sive lighting for the dance floor became a fixture at the club
(Source “Saturday Night Fever [Disco Inferno The Trammps]”,
1:57, YouTube, published six years ago, https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=BPV6kpNnr3c, accessed 9.5.2018) 70
xi
xii List of Figures
Fig. 3.4 Matt Saladino performing at L’Amour, a Queens club circa

1987 (Source Guido Matt Saladino, Guido: The Guido MCs
Live. The Guido Rap/Bensonhurst 86th Street, 12:19,
published on YouTube by Mighty 1221 on Jan. 9, 2011,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F89N1kVg0OU,
accessed 8.21.2018) 72
Fig. 3.5 In this image, Causi makes a signature appearance at the most
prominent Bensonhurst street festa, Santa Rosalia
(Source Medugno, Vincent “Brooklyn’s Own Joe Causi Visits
the Feast of 18th Avenue”, 6:04. Published on Sept. 5, 2009,
YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
O6wZOVx8xiU&t=14s, accessed 8.21.2018) 75
Fig. 4.1 Map of Bensonhurst and southern Brooklyn (Source Brooklyn
Neighborhoods Map, Wikimedia Commons, July 18, 2009.
Based on content from OpenStreet Map, author Peter
Fitzgerald, accessed 8.21.2018) 90
Fig. 4.2 The “thick” ethnicity of Bensonhurst Italian Americans was
performed collectively and in public when the Italian national
team won the 2006 World Cup (Bensonhurst Home of the
Italians, 2:29, published by BkLynGuiDo718 on Jan. 16,
2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eN_6nRja-ZA,
accessed 8.21.2018) 91
Fig. 5.1 Guido MC Matt the Horse in style (Source Guido Matt
Saladino, “Guido: The Guido MCs Live. The Guido Rap/
Bensonhurst 86th Street”, 12:19, published by Mighty
1221 on Jan. 9, 2011, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=F89N1kVg0OU, accessed 8.21.2018) 119
Fig. 5.2 Guidettes dressed for the club circa late 1980s
(Source “Cruisin’ 86th Street [movie trailer]”, a documentary
film by Willian DeMeo/West Street Productions,
published on Nov. 9, 2015 by MrRobDale, https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=CqeSBNuae_Y, accessed 8.21.2018) 121
Fig. 5.3 The new look of Italian American youth culture in a Queens
club is reserved for 1987 (Source Guido Matt Saladino,
“Guido: The Guido MCs Live. The Guido Rap/
Bensonhurst 86th Street”, 12:19, YouTube, published by
Mighty 1221 on Jan. 9, 2011, https://www.youtube.com/
Fig. 5.4 Mint Caddy Fleetwood with Red Ribbon tied to Rear-View
Mirror at Astoria Park for the weekend cruisin’ scene
(Source “Astoria Park 80s”, 13:41, published by cos1965
on Jan. 13, 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
wXyKpukNKy8&t=2s, accessed 8.21.2018) 132
List of Figures xiii
Fig. 6.1 The Guido MCs called attention to being Italian in the
context of American youth popular culture (Source Guido
Matt Saladino, “Guido: The Guido MCs Live. The Guido
Rap/Bensonhurst 86th Street”, YouTube, published by
Mighty 1221 on Jan. 9, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/
Fig. 7.1 Despite unvarnished challenges to Black youth culture, the
Guido MCs cross an ethnic boundary with a Black DJ
(Source Guido Matt Saladino, “Guido: The Guido MCs Live.
The Guido Rap/Bensonhurst 86th Street”, 12:19, YouTube,
published by Mighty 1221 on Jan. 9, 2011, https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=F89N1kVg0OU, accessed 8.21.2018) 183
Fig. 9.1 Growing Up Gotti disseminated Guido style in the mass media
leading up to Jersey Shore (Source Growing Up Gotti:
10 Years Later: The Hair [Season 4, Episode 1], published
by A + E 11.12.14, 1:51, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=pAqEuGwPuk8, accessed 8.21.2018) 248
Fig. 9.2 Pauly D explaining the connection between Guido and being
Italian (Source “Welcome to Jersey Shore”, recap season 1
episode 1 12/1/2009, 6:27, MTV, http://www.mtv.com/
video-clips/8go1h7/jersey-shore-welcome-to-jersey-shore,
accessed 8.21.2018) 251
Fig. 9.3 JS meets Pygmalion as the taste makers at Harper’s Bazaar
rehabilitate Guidette style (Source “The Jersey Shore Goes
to Charm School by Harper’s BAZAAR US”, Elisa
Lipsky-Karasz, 4.14.2010, 2:03, https://www.harpersbazaar.
com/celebrity/red-carpet-dresses/a527/jersey-shore-
makeover-0510/, accessed 8.18.2018) 254
Fig. 9.4 Jojo and his Staten Italy Homies (Source “Jojo Pellegrino –
Where I’m From Part 2”, 5:43, published on YouTube by
JojoPellegrinoVEVO on Jan. 9, 2012, https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=BlNbAaqWtG0, accessed 8.21.2018) 262
Fig. 9.5 G Fella proclaims “I’m a Guido” in the suburbs
(Source “Guido – G Fella (Members Only)”, published by
Gfella on July 22, 2016, 4:16, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=RA_KGprJv7k, accessed 8.21.2018) 263
CHAPTER 1
Theorizing Italian American Youth Culture
The cat was out of the bag. A commercial on MTV in December 2009
announced the channel’s new reality show that would feature “Guidos”.
The promise of a show immediately grabbed the attention of a national
audience and the mainstream media. Jersey Shore represented Guido
as a party culture revolving around a beach house and dance clubs
in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, a resort with an amusement park and
boardwalk that had become popular with summer “grouper” shares. It
portrayed the “self-professed ‘guidos’” as a youth subculture identified
with Italian American ethnicity as well as with hedonistic style (Roberts
2010; Brooks 2009). American audience response was robust with 4.8
million viewers for the Season 1 finale (Roberts 2010) and ballooning
to 8.9 million viewers for an episode in January 2011 which was “more
than most of the network shows on that night” (Denhart 2011). High
audience ratings reverberated throughout the commercial media includ-
ing national television talk shows and fashion magazines like Vogue,
Harper’s Bazaar, and GQ (Alston 2010). This commercial synergy fur-
ther hyped the series and Guido style was merchandised in myriad direc-
tions including workout videos, clothing lines, and hair gel (Roberts
2010). Meteoric ratings success turned JS into “an iconic franchise”, the
blueprint for “character-driven reality series” that continues to inspire
MTV’s search for other “subcultures” like white southerner youth on the
Florida-Alabama gulf shore and justified a “reunion” show in April 2018
(Angelo 2017).
© The Author(s) 2019 1

D. Tricarico, Guido Culture and Italian American
Youth, Italian and Italian American Studies,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03293-7_1
2 D. TRICARICO
An Italian American youth culture called Guido became the focus of

my scholarly research in the late 1980s. It fit into my broader interest in
Italian American culture in New York City beyond the immigrant gen-
eration, an ethnic agency aligned with urban institutions. An ethnogra-
phy conducted in the southern Brooklyn community of Bensonhurst,
its ritual and symbolic center, and other outer borough Italian American
neighborhoods complemented by participant interviews led to a jour-
nal publication that described Guido as “an urban youth subculture,
comparable to Hip Hop and Metal, primarily engaged in the spectacle
of style” (Tricarico 1991: 43). I was especially interested in the signif-
icance of ethnicity which was “rooted in urban social structure” and
“expressed in youth culture symbols and meanings” (44). I was fairly
convinced that Guido would remain local and well off the pop culture
radar in contrast to Hip Hop and Metal. I based this opinion on the low
impact of Guido style to that point, a style that was without musical dis-
tinction, a point that left it unrepresented on MTV. Thus, I assumed that
it would go quietly into the good night of assimilation with the decline
in Italian ancestry population in outer borough areas like Bensonhurst
and Howard Beach; in particular, I did not envision staying power com-
parable to Hip Hop and other racialized youth subcultures. Guido and
the Bensonhurst Italian American community had also been framed
by “images of moral panic in the mass media” in reference to a “racial
killing” in 1989: “labelled as a moral problem, in the manner of Black
youth defined by ‘wolfpack’ violence and ‘wilding’ episodes, it may be
difficult to sustain the claim that it is ‘in’ to be Guido”.
Guido was not neither fragile nor ephemeral and, thus, indicative of
a more bounded subculture. Although preoccupied with dance club
culture, it not only outlived the demise of the “disco movement” it was
instrumental in the revival of a local dance music radio station, WKTU
FM, in the late 1990s. It survived the damaging association with racist
“wolfpack” violence in the mainstream press, even drawing on outsider
enmity to strengthen insider cohesion (see Chapter 8). It colonized new
scenes including a social media scene on the Internet (“chat rooms”)
when service became available in the late 1990s. I did not expect the
transplanting of Guido style to the suburbs, in effect a second-generation
style of consumption that absorbed new pop culture trends like tanning
and bodybuilding. Above all, I never anticipated the mainstream media
showcase initiated by MTV which slighted dance music in the 1980s and
1990s in favor of rock and, then, Hip Hop. Jersey Shore accorded Guido
1 THEORIZING ITALIAN AMERICAN YOUTH CULTURE 3
a pop culture credential that it lacked. My miscalculation did not foresee

the impact of a commercial project that married reality TV and youth
culture. When its business model was exclusively based on music videos,
there was no room for Guido on MTV and Guido did not seem to leave
much room for MTV. We will see that there has historically been ample
room for the representation of urban Italian American youth culture in
the mass media. However, Guido awaited the right media vehicle.
MTV brought the noise in more ways than one. JS immediately
invited a bias complaint with the flagrant use of Guido. Before the first
episode aired, Dominos Pizza pulled its advertisements when Italian
American organizations complained that Guido was an ethnic slur
(Brooks 2009). Although my research continued the conversation about
Guido at low decibel levels in academic circles, it suddenly touched a
political nerve. MTV defended itself from anti-defamation protests by
arguing that Guido was a youth culture and, therefore, its métier. Ethnic
identity politics remained a background noise that greatly subsided after
the first season and failed to prevent Guido from becoming a category of
popular American culture.
This book is about Guido as an Italian American youth culture prac-
tice based in New York City. It tells a story about being Italian American
in and through the engagement with popular American culture at a par-
ticular historical juncture, beginning with a turn to disco in the 1970s,
including the appropriation of their own image in the film Saturday
Night Fever which fueled a national trend. The “disco movement” is one
of many critical transactions with the mass media, a dialogue or feedback
loop of appropriations by youth agents on the one hand and commercial
media texts and outlets on the other. SNF and JS are the textual book-
ends for the development of an Italian American youth subculture called
Guido. SNF, which functions more as a blueprint for Italian American
youth on the margins of contemporary youth culture, created the prom-
ise of enfranchisement in contemporary youth culture through media
recognition despite being anti-disco and portraying a dysfunctional
Italian American urban culture. JS documents a youth style that is largely
unknown in the mainstream, affording a measure of recognition thirty-
two years after SNF marginalized Italian American youth culture in
southern Brooklyn although still leaving the issue of respect or inclusion
unresolved.
Italian American youth continue to appropriate a popular American
culture that is still appropriating them. This book situates this dialogic
4 D. TRICARICO
process in a local culture. Therefore, it is necessary to place these trans-

actions within a system of urban social stratification—status hierarchies
based on the intersections of class, race, and ethnicity. This entails the
recognition of a minority ethnic group culture (Marger 2012), rooted in
the mass immigration from Italy, and replenished by recent arrivals after
1945 which produced important nodes of internal differentiation. In
New York City and other urban centers in the Northeast and Midwest,
this ethnic culture was distilled in the Italian American neighborhood.
Youth culture identity reflected this segmentation and stratification,
negotiating differences with communities on their borders. Guido is not
just an ethnic label imposed from the outside to stigmatize a youth cat-
egory. It is, more importantly, a collective identity embraced by Italian
American youth, not in an act of ethnic self-loathing but as a symbolic
reversal mediated by popular American culture; here, Guido reevalu-
ates being Italian American for being “in style”. Having Italian ethnicity
was necessary but not sufficient in this equation, it had to be mediated
and authenticated by youth popular culture. A new, collective Italian
American subject not only surfaced in urban style markets but later in the
mainstream culture and in global markets (Roberts 2010).
The story of Guido has been branded by MTV so it is in the service of
commercial power. It has appropriated a youth style based on the appro-
priation of popular American culture into a global commodity. As a gate-
keeper to mainstream youth culture, Jersey Shore Guido is no match for
the anti-defamation efforts of Italian American organizations that pro-
tested the MTV narrative that, in their view, gave Italian Americans a bad
name. At the same time, these “official” views are, themselves predicated
on certain positions inside the ethnic boundary. Because Guido is now
in the popular culture, it has emerged as a dominant motif for construct-
ing Italian American identity; it is the anti-defamation fear that JS pro-
motes the perception, not just that Guidos are Italian Americans but that
Italian Americans are Guidos. With this intervention, the story became
bigger than youth culture.
This book takes up these new questions about Guido. However, it is
principally motivated by an old story, a theoretical concern with Italian
American difference. Guido does not register in the conversation about
Italian American ethnicity in academic sociology specifically in the field
of racial and ethnic relations which has viewed European immigrant
groups from the perspective of straight-line assimilation (Sandberg 1973;
Marger 2012). The classic statement envisions a linear development in
which ethnicity inversely declines for successive generations. In the case

of European ancestry groups, there a reasonable expectation that the
third generation has become “post-ethnic whites” (Doane 1998). Italian
Americans have been slotted into this paradigm. Their assimilation time-
line is adjusted to mass immigration which began around 1880 and
ended in 1924, when legislative quotas drastically restricted the outflow
from Italy. Almost 100 years removed from the imposition of immi-
grant quotas, Italian Americans have completely vanished from many of
the newly published texts on ethnicity and ethnic groups (Iceland 2017;
Fitzgerald 2017).
Italian American Difference in New York City

This book presents Guido as an Italian American story that, when care-
fully unpacked, can be read as a narrative of roots and routes that define
an urban Italian American culture in the outer boroughs of New York
City at a particular historical juncture. It is a collective agency, an assimi-
lation strategy oriented to popular youth culture which is a response that
is typical for an age fraction in contemporary society but, at the same
time, reflecting the position of Italian Americans in a system of ethnic
stratification that dovetails with status hierarchies of class and race. The
construction of ethnic identity is located in the process of assimilation
not as “symbolic ethnicity”, but in response to status dilemmas associ-
ated with an ethnic minority group culture. Guido—the style of young
Italian Americans—symbolizes the negotiation of a negatively privileged
ethnicity with American society. This is a departure from straight-line
assimilation theory which only allows “traditional” culture to decline.
Guido, and Italian American youth culture more generally, is a break
with tradition that is not a break with Italian ethnicity.
This is not a scenario that resonates with establishment sociology in
no small part because scant attention has been paid to Italian American
culture beyond the immigrant generation. There are only a handful of
empirical studies with two classic ethnographies conducted in the 1930s
and 1950s enshrined as definitive statements. Whyte’s study of the North
End of Boston during the Depression (1993) and Gans’ study of the
West End of Boston in the 1950s (1984) have come to represent the
urban Italian American experience by default although both are fun-
damentally slum social studies and, thus, apprehend Italian American
culture through the prism of social class. They are also trained in specific
6 D. TRICARICO
slum social institutions although both studies recognize institutional

change. Neither studied ethnic community culture from a historical per-
spective that registers social and cultural change. Whyte focused on male
peer groups and Gans looked at family-centered peer group networks.
Whyte shows male peer groups tilting to mainstream American culture.
Gans shows age peer relationships as a generational divide within the kin-
ship group although West Enders are depicted as too family-centered to
form communal connections, even the streetcorner kind, resonating with
Edward Banfield’s (1958) “amoral familism” thesis that southern Italians
in the 1950s were culturally and perhaps congenitally incapable of wider
solidarity.
It is remarkable that Italian American culture in New York City is
largely left out of the conversation in academic sociology even though
it was the “golden door” for Italian immigrants in this country and
the group has impacted the life of the city for over 100 years. When
I entered the field in the 1970s as a graduate student, there were two
major sociological studies of Italians in the city although neither had
the stature accorded to the studies by Whyte of Gans in the literature.
Leonard Covello’s The Social Background of the Italo American
Schoolchild (1970) was an insider examination of the southern Italian
family as the “central institution” of immigrant life in the period before
World War Two. It was focused on Italian East Harlem, the largest
Italian immigrant settlement in the city, but there is little on ethnic com-
munity culture and institutional adaptations beyond the immigrant gen-
eration. Another influential study was Caroline Ware’s book, Greenwich
Village: 1920 to 1930 (1965) which provided a snapshot of “Italians”
as the largest ethnic group in the area. Writing from a “social welfare”
perspective, Ware argued that the Italian community was left “disor-
ganized” by the end of mass immigration and the “Americanization”
of the second generation. Whereas Covello was content to inhabit the
immigrant experience and even underscored its durability, Ware por-
trayed first-generation traditions as the end of the line.
My doctoral dissertation was a direct response to Ware. It set out to
document that an Italian immigrant community organized along paesani
ties was restructured in the years that followed. As in East Harlem, the
central institution of Italian American life was the kinship group but I
found that it promoted rather than inhibited community solidarity—a
case of communal familism rather than the amoral familism depicted by
Banfield and intimated by Gans. Italian family culture articulated with
locality-based institutions including a Catholic parish, political clubs, a

Mafia syndicate, and a social neighborhood that focused on age-based
peer groups. The institutions of a neighborhood-based Italian American
community were still discernible in the late 1970s when I conducted
an ethnography. My study of Italian American neighborhood culture in
Greenwich Village, subtitled “The Social Structure and Transformation
of an Ethnic Community”, was too little and too late to register in estab-
lishment sociology. It was published in 1984 by a small press that spe-
cialized in immigration, The Center for Migration Studies, the same year
that the Urban Villagers was reissued by a major publisher in a second
edition. It has become the final word on the subject, the default cita-
tion for Italian Americans in the academic literature on race and ethnicity
(Marger 2012: 304–305).
There was a gathering storm on the horizon for Italian American
studies. The following year, the publication of a book by Richard Alba
(1985) announced that Italian Americans had entered a “twilight of
ethnicity”. Aligning Italian Americans with straight-line assimilation
theory as the accepted paradigm for European immigrant populations
(Sandberg 1973), it sent the signal that there is little Italian ethnicity
left and very likely nothing worth studying. The metaphor of “twilight”
implies a steady decline until darkness descended; there is no room for
meaningful change. Although Crispino (1980: 164) acknowledged “the
changing face of ethnicity” in a study of Bridgeport Italian Americans in
the 1970s it was “at most a detour on the road to complete assimilation”
and thus warranting only passing interest. At best, assimilated “European
Americans” are allowed a “symbolic ethnicity” based on “personal feel-
ings” or “nostalgia” for selected “symbols” within a traditional herit-
age, and accessed as “individualized” lifestyle choices within mainstream
“leisure” and “taste cultures” (e.g., ethnic cuisine or art) rather than as
“cultural practices” and “group relationships” (Gans 1998). Since “sym-
bolic ethnicity” is based on “individual psychology” and specifically
“feelings” rather than social structure it is “unlikely to sustain ethnic-
group cohesion” and to prevent the individual from “mixing freely with
others of different backgrounds” (Alba 1985: 173).
The “twilight” perspective is impervious to mounting research evi-
dence that supports objective ethnic change beyond the immigrant gen-
eration. The anthropologist Micaela Di Leonardo (1984) demonstrates
that Italian American kinship in the suburbs of Northern California is
evidenced in the reciprocal transfer of resources notably finances and
8 D. TRICARICO
services like childcare and handy work; notwithstanding greater individ-

ualization, suburban children derive material benefits by staying close
to the family—benefits that articulate with distinctive affective ties. In
a study of 301 Italian American women in Nassau County in the early
1980s, Capozzoli (1987) depicts an agenda to reconcile accultura-
tion with traditional family norms which, for example, restricted educa-
tional and occupational choices in favor of kinship solidarity for males
as well as females. Similar to Gans’ findings for the West End, Johnson
(1982: 206–213) singles out the sibling relationship rather than “gen-
erational linkage” as key to Italian American kinship solidarity; cousins
also become close as the children of adult siblings. Goode et al. (1984:
175) note the adaptation of Italian American foodways in an older sub-
urb of Philadelphia. They characterize this change as “syncretization”,
a blending of culture to produce a “new result”; thus, through “menu
negotiation” mainstream food items are reconciled with “good maternal
nurturance” and other traditional rules.
There is also research that supports change at the level of Italian
American community. Moreover, traditional food practices that persist
because they are learned early and represent ethnic family bonds were
reinforced “above the level of the household” when shared with fellow
ethnics in informal placed-based networks—findings that point to capac-
ity of Italian American family culture to germinate wider ethnic solidar-
ity as in the city (Goode et al. 1984). A study by Susan Eckstein (2001)
of an “inner suburb” in metropolitan Boston documents the emergence
of a placed-based ethnic community that coalesced between 1920 and
the mid-1960s. Eckstein discerns thriving communal solidarity mani-
fest in formal groups organized around fund-raising and volunteer labor
such as a local chapter of the Sons of Italy and immigrant mutual ben-
efit societies, the Catholic parish, and national voluntary organizations
like the American Legion and the Boys Club (834). Eckstein attributes
the high level of communal solidarity to the distinctive demography of
the suburb, in particular, ethnic and class homogeneity. The dense social
networks characterized by strong rather than weak social ties supported
an ethnic heritage of local family values that encouraged reciprocity and
even a “generosity” that tended to “blur boundaries between kin (vol-
untary) group, and neighborhood” (844). Eckstein calls attention to
changes in ethnicity in “successive generations” which engaged them
in local group patterns “even though many residents by the 1990s had
the human capital and economic resources to assimilate fully” (848). In
marked contrast to the Banfield legacy of “amoral familism” Eckstein

contends that the creation of “residential bonds conducive to group-
based community giving appear to be exceptionally strong among Italian
Americans” relative to other white ethnics (848). M.P. Baumgartner’s
(1988) ethnography of an “outlying suburb” of New York City with a
population of 16,000 in 1980 focuses on a normative, or moral, order
among blue-collar and lower-middle-class Italian Americans based on
strong ties that imparted an intensity to both their consensus and their
disputes. A system of social control that extends from the household into
relations to neighbors, many of whom are kin (98), contrasted with the
“distinctive pattern of interpersonal attachment” or “social morphology”
of the suburbs characterized by weak ties and transiency (6).
Italian Americans in New York City, in particular, have not slipped
quietly into “twilight”. Despite ongoing out-migration and legislative
restrictions on immigration in 1924, there were still over 600,000 per-
sons of Italian ancestry in the city in 2000. Although first settlement
enclaves like the south Village were in eclipse in the 1970s, there were
large Italian communities, a subway ride from Manhattan in the outer
boroughs. These communities were second settlements within city lim-
its but their populations were buttressed by new immigration from Italy
after 1945. Italian immigration to the United States dramatically fell off
after quotas were enforced in 1924. However, a total of 466,545 Italian
immigrants came to the United States between 1946 and 1973 and it is
estimated that approximately one-third settled in New York City upon
arrival (Tomasi 1977: 488). Bensonhurst Italian American youth culture
was the epicenter of new Italian settlement and the arrival of new immi-
grants “transformed” it into the largest Italian community in the city in
1980 with about 100,000, with 54,923 persons foreign born (Infoshare
2014); it was also the densest with 80% of the local population in 1980
(Jackson 1998: 18). Although that population began to decline after
1980, there were still 78,402 persons reporting a single Italian ancestry in
1990 (Infoshare 2014). It became the unofficial “Little Italy” at the very
moment that the city awarded that designation to the Mulberry Street
neighborhood in lower Manhattan. The size and density of Bensonhurst
at century’s end “stands out” in relation to other “white ethnic neighbor-
hoods” in the city during this period (Alba et al. 1998: 894).
Outer borough communities evidenced social class mobility pivoting
on high rates of home ownership; one-third of households headed by a
person born in Italy owned homes as early as 1930, overwhelmingly in
10 D. TRICARICO
the outer boroughs (Cinotto 2014: 9; see also Lizzi 2016). In 1998, the
Community District dominated by Bensonhurst had 44% of its area allo-
cated to 1 and 2 family residences, typically attached or semi-detached
frame structures on narrow lots. Twenty-nine percent of the area held
multifamily residences which included small apartment buildings and
three-story/six family houses (Brooklyn Community District 11 1998:
213). While Bensonhurst presented an advance in housing class and res-
idential amenities in relation to tenement districts, the relative short-
comings of the local housing market were thrown into relief by the
post-1945 tract developments in the Long Island and New Jersey sub-
urbs that were targeted by older cohorts.
Actually, suburban living has been available inside city limits. Italian
Americans have concentrated in outer borough locations with suburban
amenities like one-family houses and tree-lined streets. The Verranzano
Bridge which connected southern Brooklyn by car to Staten Island in
the mid-1960s put pressure on Bensonhurst although it also facilitated
a “greater Bensonhurst” that was socially and culturally connected to the
center for shopping and family visits, religious feste—and youth culture.
Staten Island had an Italian ancestry population of 133,337 in 1980
(Infoshare). Another notable example is Howard Beach in southeast-
ern Queens, hard by the boundary with suburban Nassau County and
across the Belt Parkway from East New York, with an Italian ancestry
population of 4751 in 1980, by far the largest ethnic group in the area
(Infoshare 2014).
High rates of home ownership likely enhanced the investment in
outer borough localities. This can explain racial strife with Blacks and
new immigrants that persisted into the recent period. More work-
ing-class Italian American communities like Bensonhurst were espe-
cially tense in the 1970s and 1980s, focused on the Marlboro Houses
in Gravesend, a complex of 28 buildings which went from 93% white in
1958 to 84% Black in 1988 (Lowenstein 1988). Grassroots interethnic
conflict had city-wide political reverberations felt in Mayoral elections
between 1989 and 1993; Italian Americans were 17% of Republican vot-
ers in the city in 1989 and one-third of white Roman Catholics (Roberts
1989). Under increasing pressure from the Federal government, there
was ruthless competition through the 1990s among local Mafia syndi-
cates embedded in the fabric of the city’s Italian American communities.
Then, there was the gathering noise of a youth subculture, similarly res-
onating with outer borough Italian American culture and spreading to
the suburbs, reaching a crescendo with a reality TV show that made the
mainstream take notice.
Italian Americans have been distinguished by their ethnicity in a
city where whiteness intersected with a high social class status. Italian
American communities were marginal to the process of gentrification
that was transforming the city’s social and physical landscape. Not only
were they not the gentrifiers, their neighborhoods were prime targets
for gentrification including the south Village as an extension of SoHo
(Tricarico 1984). Structural transformations related to gentrification
made urban Italian American culture, including local youth styles, more
susceptible to “moral panic” (see Chapter 8). Resulting identity crises
in the closing decades of the twentieth century have likely increased the
demand for ethnic closure. As an outcome of “new pluralism” identity
politics, Italian Americans have been an affirmative action category at the
City University of New York since 1976, complicating a determination of
their racial status. The contradictions of this position were foregrounded
when Rudy Giuliani ran for Mayor against David Dinkins in November
1989, with the result impacted by a racial killing of a Black teenager in
Bensonhurst three months earlier. It is easy to read the Mayoral contest
as a referendum on the city’s Italian American neighborhood culture
although Giuliani infringed on some ethnic neighborhood institutions
notably the Mafia which maintained a prominent profile into the twen-
ty-first century. Although the current Mayor (de Blasio) does not have
organic support in outer borough neighborhoods, Italian Americans
occupy a category of privilege within the rank and file of the NYPD not
to mention Sanitation. Not only is the current Commissioner Italian, it
has been alleged in a complaint by Black detectives that “officers who
had vowels at the end of their names, as Italian American detectives did,
were more likely to get promotions” (Mueller 2017). Demography and
social structure have continued to throw Italian American ethnicity into
relief in New York City vis-à-vis race in contrast to Philadelphia where
electoral politics occasioned the consolidation of whiteness in the 1960s
through the 1980s (Luconi 2003).
As a counterpoint to the blinders worn by establishment sociology,
Italian American difference in the city is embellished in the popular cul-
ture imaginary. Italian American neighborhoods like Howard Beach and
Bensonhurst Italian American youth culture have been made famous
for infamous street crimes (see Chapter 8). The reality of an Italian
American presence is exaggerated by fictional media narratives that
12 D. TRICARICO
saturate the popular culture; the fast food restaurant, Subway ran a TV
commercial in 2017 for an “Italian Sub” that showcases Italian neigh-
borhood street culture of yesteryear, taciturn Mafioso included, and A
Bronx Tale has been adapted as a Broadway play. The mass media creates
the perception that the Italian American presence in New York City via
Hollywood productions like The Godfather, Goodfellas, The Sopranos (the
latter has a New Jersey tilt) is more formidable than warranted. Indeed,
Italian American identity in this society may be “overdetermined” by the
experience of New York City Italian Americans—that is represented in
the mass media. The flow of mass media images of New York City Italian
Americans can be traced to locally based image producers in filmmak-
ing and advertising, including those of Italian American ancestry (see
Chapter 9). The blurring of media and urban culture was apparent in the
2002 Columbus Day parade that evoked the ire of Italian American civic
leaders when Mayor Michael Bloomberg invited two Italian American
actors playing Italian American characters on The Sopranos to march
down Fifth Avenue at his side.
At the very moment, that Italian ethnicity was relegated to a mori-
bund state in academic sociology, a style-based youth culture identified
with “being Italian” was coalescing in Bensonhurst. I first heard about
Guido from students at a CUNY campus in Queens in 1985 although
it had been brewing for some time, an outgrowth of a local youth style
tradition (see Chapter 2). The students described a style of consump-
tion oriented to electronic dance music (“disco”) and a related club
scene. Against the backdrop of a traditional immigrant culture support-
ing mutual aid societies and public religious rituals like the Santa Rosalia
festa, what caught my eye was the stylized performance of a new Italian
identity in the city oriented to American youth culture. It became estab-
lished in local style markets, notably the local club scene, and imprinted
on the public discourse for the first time in 1989 in the middle of a racial
killing in Bensonhurst that reverberated throughout the country. When
Jersey Shore debuted on MTV in December 2009, Guido was well into a
second generation as a youth style, foraying deeper into mainstream con-
sumer markets for new commodity symbols like designer fashions, tan-
ning, health clubs, tourism, and summer resorts.
Guido is an anomaly in straight-line theory; there was no mention
of it in the article on Bensonhurst by Alba et al. (1997) even though it
was ground zero for a local youth style performed by Italian Americans
since the 1970s. It engendered an effervescent feeling, reminiscent of the
youth counterculture percolating in the streets of the West Village in the

late 1960s and early 1970s; like the weekend hippies emptying out of
the subway trains pulling onto the Fourth Street station from uptown
or the suburbs, youth from throughout the city and the suburbs trekked
to Bensonhurst where Guidomobiles cruised on the weekend, returning
home to cultivate “a Brooklyn accent” and related performances that
reflected the symbolic importance of Italian Bensonhurst. The driving
energy was supplied by electronic dance music and a related club scene
located in southern Brooklyn, which galvanized an Italian American style
and a new Italian American subject. Alba et al. (1997) also failed to note
the intense national press coverage of a racial killing in Bensonhurst in
1989 that placed Guido and the local Italian American community out-
side the moral pale.
The straight-line model is a “grand theory” that assigns vernacular,
micro-sociological outcomes the status of an accident. More than a
decade after proclaiming an ethnic “twilight”, an article by Alba et al.
(1997: 110–116) acknowledged the impressive size and density of Italian
Bensonhurst but only as an accidental footnote in the grand theory of
white European assimilation. Attributed to “renewed immigration”,
Bensonhurst was depicted as “marked by foreign cultural practices like
the use of Italian language at home”. Its larger significance was seen as
merely creating another timeline, a new layer of “thick” Italian ethnicity
juxtaposed to the “thin” ethnicity of later generations that are becom-
ing more and more like WASPs (Alba 1985). In this theoretical scenario,
vernacular Italian American culture can be disregarded for the whole,
macro-sociological cloth, namely “movement toward more complete
assimilation” and an ethnicity that is “fast disappearing” (Marger 2012:
306). Rather than ask about ethnic community and the new second gen-
eration in Bensonhurst, what matters to Alba et al. (1997) is the erosion
of traditional culture (e.g., language loss) together along with the gra-
tuitous assumption that suburbanization is just a marker of assimilation
(Tricarico 2017b).
A book about Guido presents another opportunity to shine a light on
Italian American neighborhood culture in New York City. The neigh-
borhood has historically been the focal point of Italian American life not
just in New York City but throughout the northeast and in the Midwest;
the Italian (American) neighborhood is to the second and third gener-
ation what the paese is to the immigrant—a reference for ethnic group
identity and cultural difference (Tricarico 1984). However, the Italian
14 D. TRICARICO
American neighborhood continued to absorb social and cultural changes.

The emergence of a youth subculture called Guido represents social and
cultural change in a second generation rooted in Italian neighborhood
culture. Further, a collective ethnic strategy did not primarily reference
a traditional heritage, neither as a “return” or “revival” or as nostalgia
(i.e., “symbolic ethnicity”). The appropriation of American popular cul-
ture was not corrosive of ethnicity (Ware 1965) but, instead, occasioned
the construction of ethnicity in new youth spaces (e.g., the dance club)
that transcend the ethnic neighborhood. Youth agency was the well-
spring of a new ethnic agency and vice versa.
Theorizing Italian American Youth Culture

In the Ninth Edition of his textbook, Race and Ethnic Relations, Martin
Marger (2012) calls attention to “the reality series Jersey Shore, shown
on MTV”, likely in a nod to a youthful demographic. This latest revision
has retained a treatment of Italian Americans but it is only a small part of
the chapter entitled “White Ethnic Americans”. It predictably relies on a
small and trusty sample of the literature that validates the “twilight” par-
adigm. Marger briefly entertains the possibility of “Guido culture” as an
“ethnic style” but he only cites an article in The New York Times (Cohen
2010) that covered an Italian American studies colloquium on the sub-
ject of Guido and ridiculed the entire idea of a serious study of Guido.
Out on a limb theoretically, Marger (2012: 302) is left to attribute Jersey
Shore Guido to “the obdurate nature of [ethnic] stereotypes”, a bump on
the straight-line road to assimilation.
While assimilation has undoubtedly been occurring for Italian
Americans as individuals and in the aggregate, there is a gap in the treat-
ment of a middle space between immigration and full absorption into
the larger society further down the road. As noted, this is a space worth
exploring in the case of Italian Americans in New York City. It holds
the possibility for an ethnic culture, for social institutions that mobilize
Italian ethnicity to meet instrumental as well as expressive needs within
assimilation trajectories. Like the urban Italian American neighborhood,
Guido happens in this space as a vernacular or “common culture” (Willis
1990). The straight-line model with its macro-sociological bias finds it
methodologically difficult to comprehend this informal, vernacular space.
Whereas the straight-line model prefers to deal in absolutes, ethnicity can
be compelling when it is not as “thick” as it used to be, even when it is it
“thin” and thinning (Cornell and Hartmann 2007).
Straight-line theory effectively vacates the possibility of collective

agency identified with Italian ethnicity beyond the immigrant genera-
tion. This is predicated on the assumption that ethnicity is in “decline”,
making it impossible to mobilize collectively, a possibility that would also
permit adaptation and change in ethnic social and cultural forms. The
theoretical noose of straight-line assimilation is predicated on the nar-
row equivalence of ethnicity with a traditional culture, and specifically
the heritage that immigrants brought with them to the United States
between 1880 and 1924. In the case of Italian Americans, the baseline
for having Italian ethnicity is measured by this world of mass Italian
immigration. While immigrant ethnicity has declined, this does not pre-
clude the reworking of ethnicity in subsequent generations. Unable to
theorize ethnic change, the straight-line paradigm characterized 1970s
political activism by white ethnics as a “resurgence of ethnicity” which
was, then, dismissed as either a “dying gasp” of immigrant culture or
an “inauthentic” pose, mere “image-making” (Steinberg 1981: 62).
Without a structural basis, European immigrant groups were left with a
“symbolic ethnicity” (Gans 1979), an individual “affectation”, charac-
terized by “nostalgia” or “feelings” for an ethnic past and mediated by
the “consumption” of ethnic symbols compatible with mainstream, mid-
dle-class lifestyles or taste cultures (e.g., ethnic art and cuisine).
In this scenario, sociologists have moved from the study of ethnic
collectivities to the study of individual ethnic identity and have adapted
methodologically by relying on survey research rather than ethnogra-
phy (Waters 1990: 12). However, a perspective that privileges individ-
ual identity is particularly inadequate for the study of Italians in New
York City. It ignores real, “objective ethnicity” at the level of institutions
(Henry and Bankston 1999). It also mutes the significance of histor-
ical events. In New York City, post-1945 Italian immigration not only
replenished the population numbers, it complicated Italian American
urban culture (Ruperto and Sciorra 2017). In contrast to “symbolic eth-
nicity”, Guido consumption style is localized in the city’s Italian neigh-
borhoods. Because it reflects a minority ethnic culture in a system of
ethnic stratification, Guido represents a position that is not “costless”
and is ascribed as well as optional, and transcends leisure (Waters 1990:
1–15). In contrast to “symbolic ethnicity”, consumption is configured
around popular American culture rather than “ethnic cultural goods”
(Henry and Bankston 1999: 245). Because it is embedded in a minor-
ity group culture, it is enlisted in a collective “struggle for recognition
16 D. TRICARICO
and respect” (Lipsitz 1994: 121). An “objective” ethnicity is deployed to

compete for access to scarce youth culture rewards like sexual partners.
A youth culture position identified as Italian American is problematic
for straight-line theory because it combines two discourses in ethnicity
and style that are contradictory. On the one hand, ethnicity is a narra-
tive grounded in primordial meanings specifically what is given or inher-
ited in the form of cultural traditions and shared ancestry (Cornell and
Hartmann 2007). On the other hand, style narrates meanings that are
fabricated and ephemeral and always on the surface (Ewen 1988). Rather
than dismiss ethnic youth culture as “mere image-making”, “preexist-
ing cultural forms” can be put to “new uses” (Nagel 1998: 69), in this
case stylized performances that are the signature of contemporary youth
agency. The study of an ethnic youth subculture, then, requires a the-
oretical departure from straight-line assimilation. The “symbolic work”
that is a defining marker of contemporary youth culture (Willis 1990)
is not “symbolic ethnicity” but a reflection of ethnic cultural difference
that has a structural basis.
While the straight-line model rushes to a conclusion that precludes
ethnic cultural and social change in that middle space, a social construc-
tionist perspective on ethnicity allows groups to “construct” ethnicity in
specific social sites under particular circumstances. A classic statement is
found in Cornell and Hartmann (2007: 90):
The constructionist approach, then, sees ethnic and racial identities as

highly variable and contingent products of ongoing interaction between,
on one hand, the circumstances groups encounter – including the concep-
tions and actions of outsiders – and, on the other, the actions and con-
ceptions of group members – of insiders. It makes groups active agents in
the making and remaking of their own identities, and it views construction
not as a one-time event, but as continuous and historical. The construc-
tion of identity has no end point short of the disappearance of the identity
altogether.
Cornell and Hartmann (ibid.: xvii) emphasize that ethnicity is con-

structed by groups “trying to solve problems, defend or enhance their
positions…establish meaning, achieve understanding, or otherwise
negotiate the world in which they live”. They add that this includes the
creation of “institutions” or “sets of relationships” committed to instru-
mental and expressive purposes (ibid.: xvii). A constructionist perspec-
tive is further elaborated in the work of Joanne Nagel (2017: 5). Nagel
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
the great white canvas? There are adventures galore,
enough to satisfy any healthy youngster.
PHIL THE SHOWMAN, or LIFE IN THE

SAWDUST RING. By Stanley Norris.
YOUNG SHOWMAN’S RIVALS, or UPS
AND DOWNS OF THE ROAD. By Stanley
Norris.
YOUNG SHOWMAN’S PLUCK, or AN
UNKNOWN RIDER IN THE RING. By
Stanley Norris.
YOUNG SHOWMAN’S TRIUMPH, or A
GRAND TOUR ON THE ROAD. By Stanley
Norris.
ZIG-ZAG, THE BOY CONJURER, or LIFE
ON AND OFF THE STAGE. By Victor St.
Clair.
ZIP, THE ACROBAT, or THE OLD
SHOWMAN’S SECRET. By Victor St. Clair.
Price, 50 cents per volume
THE MATTHEW WHITE SERIES

These books are full of good, clean adventure, thrilling
enough to please the full-blooded wide-awake boy, yet
containing nothing to which there can be any objection
from those who are careful as to the kind of books they
put into the hands of the young.
ADVENTURES OF A YOUNG ATHLETE.—

A story of how a boy saved his father’s
name and fortune.
ERIC DANE.—Interesting experiences of a
boy of means.
GUY HAMMERSLEY.—How an energetic
boy cleared his name.
MY MYSTERIOUS FORTUNE.—An
extremely interesting story of a $100,000
check.
THE TOUR OF A PRIVATE CAR.—
Interesting experiences of a young private
secretary.
THE YOUNG EDITOR.—Experiences of a
bright boy editing a weekly paper.
Price, 50 cents per volume
For sale by all booksellers, or sent, postpaid, on receipt of price by
the publisher
DAVID McKAY, Philadelphia

The Famous Adventure Series
An ideal series of books for boys of all ages. The stories
are of the bright and sparkling kind, full of adventures on
land and sea and not over-burdened with lengthy
descriptions; in fact, just the sort that must appeal to every
healthy boy who is fond of thrilling exploits and deeds of
heroism.
The names of the authors give sufficient guarantee to their
merits. Among these may be mentioned Henry Harrison
Lewis, who is a graduate of the Naval Academy at
Annapolis, and has written a great many books for boys.
A VOYAGE TO THE GOLD COAST. By

Frank H. Converse.
An adventurous trip of New England boys to Africa.
CAMP IN THE SNOW. By Wm. Murray

Graydon.
Boys’ winter camp life in northern New England.
CENTREBOARD JIM. By Henry Harrison

Lewis.
The secret of Sargasso Sea.
FROM LAKE TO WILDERNESS. By Wm.

Murray Graydon.
Adventures around the northern lakes.
HOW HE WON. By Brooks McCormick.

Triumphs of a plucky boy afloat and ashore.
IN SEARCH OF AN UNKNOWN RACE. By
Frank H. Converse.
A thrilling story of exploration in Brazil.
KING OF THE ISLAND. By Henry Harrison

Lewis.
Strange adventures on a South Sea Island.
TOM HAVEN WITH THE WHITE

SQUADRON. By Lieut. James K. Orton.
The adventures of a young inventor of a submarine
boat.
Illustrated, cloth binding, 50 cents per volume

the publisher

THE ANNAPOLIS SERIES
By ENSIGN CLARKE FITCH, U. S. N.
A graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, and
thoroughly familiar with all naval matters Mr. Fitch has
devoted himself to literature, and has written a series of
books for boys that every young American should read.
His stories are full of interesting information about the
navy, training ships, etc.
BOUND FOR ANNAPOLIS, or The Trials of

a Sailor Boy.
CLIF, THE NAVAL CADET, or Exciting
Days at Annapolis.
THE CRUISE OF THE TRAINING SHIP, or
Clif Faraday’s Pluck.
FROM PORT TO PORT, or Clif Faraday in
Many Waters.
A STRANGE CRUISE, or Clif Faraday’s
Yacht Chase.
The WEST POINT SERIES

By LIEUT. FREDERICK GARRISON, U. S. A.
Every American boy takes a keen interest in the affairs of
West Point. No more capable writer on this popular
subject could be found than Lieut. Garrison, who vividly
describes the life, adventures and unique incidents that
have occurred in that great institution—in these famous
West Point stories.
OFF FOR WEST POINT, or Mark Mallory’s

Struggle.
A CADET’S HONOR, or Mark Mallory’s
Heroism.
ON GUARD, or Mark Mallory’s
Celebration.
THE WEST POINT TREASURE, or Mark
Mallory’s Strange Find.
THE WEST POINT RIVALS, or Mark
Mallory’s Stratagem.
the publisher

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:
Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.
Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been
standardized.
Archaic or variant spelling has been retained.
The Table of Contents was created by the transcriber
for the reader’s convenience and is granted to the
public domain.
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FRANK
MERRIWELL'S BROTHER ***
Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions

will be renamed.
Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S.

copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright
in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and
distribute it in the United States without permission and without
paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General
Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and
distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the
PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if
you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the
trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the
Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for
copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is
very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such
as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and
printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in
the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright
law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially
commercial redistribution.
START: FULL LICENSE

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the

free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this
work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase
“Project Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of
the Full Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or
online at www.gutenberg.org/license.
Section 1. General Terms of Use and

Redistributing Project Gutenberg™
electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand,
agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual
property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to
abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using
and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™
electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for
obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg™
electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms
of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only

be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by
people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.
There are a few things that you can do with most Project
Gutenberg™ electronic works even without complying with the
full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There
are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg™
electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and
help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™
electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the
Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the
collection of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the
individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the
United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright
law in the United States and you are located in the United
States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying,
distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works
based on the work as long as all references to Project
Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will
support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting free
access to electronic works by freely sharing Project
Gutenberg™ works in compliance with the terms of this
agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg™ name
associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms
of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with
its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when you share it
without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also
govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most
countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside
the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to
the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying,
displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works
based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg™ work. The
Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright
status of any work in any country other than the United States.
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project

Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other

immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must
appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project
Gutenberg™ work (any work on which the phrase “Project
Gutenberg” appears, or with which the phrase “Project
Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed,
viewed, copied or distributed:
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United

States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it
away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg
License included with this eBook or online at
www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United
States, you will have to check the laws of the country where
you are located before using this eBook.
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is

derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to
anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges.
If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the
phrase “Project Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the
work, you must comply either with the requirements of
paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use
of the work and the Project Gutenberg™ trademark as set forth
in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is

posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and
distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through
1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder.
Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™
License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright
holder found at the beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project

Gutenberg™ License terms from this work, or any files
containing a part of this work or any other work associated with
Project Gutenberg™.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute
this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1
with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the
Project Gutenberg™ License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form,
including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if
you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project
Gutenberg™ work in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or
other format used in the official version posted on the official
Project Gutenberg™ website (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at
no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a
means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
request, of the work in its original “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other
form. Any alternate format must include the full Project
Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,

performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™
works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or

providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™
electronic works provided that:
• You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the
method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The
fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark,
but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty
payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on
which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your
periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked
as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information
about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation.”
• You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who

notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that
s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™
License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and
discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project
Gutenberg™ works.
• You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of

any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in
the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90
days of receipt of the work.
• You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project

Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different
terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain
permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg™
trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3
below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend

considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on,
transcribe and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright
law in creating the Project Gutenberg™ collection. Despite
these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the
medium on which they may be stored, may contain “Defects,”
such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt
data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other
medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
cannot be read by your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES -

Except for the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in
paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark,
and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg™ electronic
work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for
damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU
AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE,
STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH
OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH
1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER
THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR
ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE
OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF
THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If

you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of
receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you
paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you
received the work from. If you received the work on a physical
medium, you must return the medium with your written
explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the
defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu
of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or
entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.
If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund
in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set

forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’,
WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS
OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR
ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied

warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this
agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this
agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the
maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable
state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of
this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the

Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the
Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™
electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any
volunteers associated with the production, promotion and
distribution of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, harmless
from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that
arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project
Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or
deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any Defect
you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of

Project Gutenberg™
Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new
computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of
volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the

assistance they need are critical to reaching Project
Gutenberg™’s goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™
collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In
2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was
created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project
Gutenberg™ and future generations. To learn more about the
Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your
efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the
Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org.
Section 3. Information about the Project

Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-
profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the
laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by
the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal
tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the
Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax
deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and
your state’s laws.
The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500

West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact
links and up to date contact information can be found at the
Foundation’s website and official page at
www.gutenberg.org/contact
Section 4. Information about Donations to

the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
Foundation
Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without
widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission
of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works
that can be freely distributed in machine-readable form
accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated
equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly
important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws

regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of
the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform
and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many
fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not
solicit donations in locations where we have not received written
confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or
determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit
www.gutenberg.org/donate.
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states

where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know
of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from
donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot

make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations
received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp
our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current

donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a
number of other ways including checks, online payments and
credit card donations. To donate, please visit:
www.gutenberg.org/donate.
Section 5. General Information About Project

Gutenberg™ electronic works
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could
be freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose
network of volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several

printed editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by
copyright in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus,
we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any
particular paper edition.
Most people start at our website which has the main PG search
facility: www.gutenberg.org.
This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™,

including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new
eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear
about new eBooks.

Textbook Guido Culture and Italian American Youth From Bensonhurst To Jersey Shore Donald Tricarico Ebook All Chapter PDF

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Textbook Guido Culture and Italian American Youth From Bensonhurst To Jersey Shore Donald Tricarico Ebook All Chapter PDF

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Guido Culture and Italian American

Youth: From Bensonhurst to Jersey

Rising Dispatches from the New American Shore Elizabeth

Rising dispatches from the new American shore First

Far country scenes from American culture First Edition

American Cultural Studies An Introduction to American

MRI from Picture to Proton 3rd Edition Donald W.

Youth Studies in Transition Culture Generation and New

Insight Pocket Guide Jersey Insight Guides

Life Narratives and Youth Culture: Representation,

From Bensonhurst to Jersey Shore

More information about this series at

Italian and Italian American Studies

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018962905

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019

Cover credit: iStock/Getty Images Plus

This book is a product of a career-long interest in Italian American cul-

I would like to thank the following publishers for granting permis-

Bayside, USA Donald Tricarico

1 Theorizing Italian American Youth Culture 1

2 A Local Italian American Youth Style Tradition:

3 The Turn to Disco and Other Subcultural Developments 55

4 Becoming Guido: Identifying a Youth Subculture 87

5 Performing Style 115

6 “It’s Cool Being Italian”: Fashioning an Ethnic Youth

7 The Local Struggle for Cool 173

8 GUIDOVILLE: Labeling Italian Americans Deviant 207

9 A Party Culture Becomes a Media Spectacle 237

10 Rethinking Italian American Ethnicity: A Middle Space 271

Fig. 3.4 Matt Saladino performing at L’Amour, a Queens club circa

Theorizing Italian American Youth Culture

© The Author(s) 2019 1

An Italian American youth culture called Guido became the focus of

a pop culture credential that it lacked. My miscalculation did not foresee

process in a local culture. Therefore, it is necessary to place these trans-

which ethnicity inversely declines for successive generations. In the case

Italian American Difference in New York City

slum social institutions although both studies recognize institutional

locality-based institutions including a Catholic parish, political clubs, a

services like childcare and handy work; notwithstanding greater individ-

marked contrast to the Banfield legacy of “amoral familism” Eckstein

youth counterculture percolating in the streets of the West Village in the

American neighborhood continued to absorb social and cultural changes.

Theorizing Italian American Youth Culture

Straight-line theory effectively vacates the possibility of collective

and respect” (Lipsitz 1994: 121). An “objective” ethnicity is deployed to

The constructionist approach, then, sees ethnic and racial identities as

Cornell and Hartmann (ibid.: xvii) emphasize that ethnicity is con-

PHIL THE SHOWMAN, or LIFE IN THE

THE MATTHEW WHITE SERIES

ADVENTURES OF A YOUNG ATHLETE.—

DAVID McKAY, Philadelphia

A VOYAGE TO THE GOLD COAST. By

CAMP IN THE SNOW. By Wm. Murray

CENTREBOARD JIM. By Henry Harrison

FROM LAKE TO WILDERNESS. By Wm.

HOW HE WON. By Brooks McCormick.

KING OF THE ISLAND. By Henry Harrison

TOM HAVEN WITH THE WHITE

Illustrated, cloth binding, 50 cents per volume

DAVID McKAY, Philadelphia

BOUND FOR ANNAPOLIS, or The Trials of

The WEST POINT SERIES

Italian American Difference in New York City