Journal Post #8 (Dr. Masters)

Gomorrah Part I Response:

One of the more interesting components in the first section of Gomorrah is the superstructure’s need for women. True, many of the women learn early: they figure out which boys to flaunt skin and bat eyes—but the (power) dynamics of women seem much more a necessity in order for “the system” to uphold.

“The typical image of the Camorra women is of a female who does nothing but echo the pain and will of her men—her brothers, husband, and sons. But it’s not like that. The transformation of the Camorra in recent years has also meant a metamorphosis of the woman’s role, which has gone from that of a maternal figure and helper in times of misfortune to a serious manager who concerns herself almost exclusively with the business and financial end of things, delegating the fighting and illegal trafficking to others” (p.141).

On the one hand, the passage completely recognizes the façade and preconceived notion(s) of how these Camorra women are commercially (maybe that isn’t the best word, though) portrayed; but then the narrator immediately undercuts this “typical” domestic image. On the other, the passage makes sure to highlight and enunciate the Camorra women’s ability to change with the larger system, as the system evolves and expands. My initial image correlation to the Camorra women’s “job” description: kinds—composite bodies—of Joan of Arc/Mary Antoinette/Lady Roosevelt figures. I also think about those reality television shows back in the States: all those “Real Housewives of…” creation—but, for this text, the program(s) about American Mafia housewives. I wonder how these shows translate in Italy? Are they carbon copies? Meta-representations of the Camorra women? Are they knock-offs? Is it another issue/topic of discussion the narrator discusses later on in the chapter on “Hollywood” or entirely different? I would argue the two inextricably linked.

In thinking of this text with regards to the overarching seminar question (why Italy? why does Italy have to be the site?), I’m particularly fascinated by the portrayal of women—these stark binaries of women representations in Italy that we’ve been studying. We’ve also mostly been dealing with women who either come to Italy (from the States) in search of romance and a type of rejuvenation or British women who are traveling down to tour and find a particular something that’s “real” about Italy as a site, as a location. However, the women we’re introduced to in Gomorrah are exact opposites—they’re more unchiseled but more defined (if that makes sense).