ITAL 3005 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Helen Barolini, Wally Lamb, Fatalism
Assignment 7
In this collection of readings from “Don’t Tell Mama!” by Regina Barreca, the
audience gets to learn the perspective of what it is like to grow up as an Italian
American. Although “Umbertina” by Helen Barolini is a fictional story, the other two
pieces are non-fiction. This personal, truthful element of storytelling adds a newfound
perspective to the ideas presented in the stories. In “Food and Fatalism” by Wally Lamb,
the author begins by narrating what it was like going to his grandmother’s house for
Christmas as a child. Right away the audience can notice the define roles that each
family member plays. The father loaded the car with presents while the mother baked
and cooked. The father and sons impatiently waited in the car for the women to exit the
house and then the family was on their way to “Nonna’s” house for the holiday
celebrations. The house itself showed a lot of character and, even from the outside as
the author described it as being “Pepto-bismol pink”. Nonna’s house was on the East
Side of the city which was described to be home to “tradesmen, tailors” and other
service based professionals. The author noted that the West Side of town, conversely,
was more diverse. Nonna’s house was always packed full of extended relatives and
friends when it came time to sit down and have the Christmas meal. A cultural indicator
of tradition was made apparent when the author noted that the adults sat at the dining
room tables while the children scattered into other rooms and sat at small card tables.
Everyone in the house enjoyed Nonna’s cooking which consisted of multiple courses
and desserts which left guests “loosening their belts” to make room for more. “After
dinner, the women cleaned while the men played pitch” and the children played with
artifacts in the cellar. These seem to be typical gendered actions that follow along with
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Document Summary
In this collection of readings from don"t tell mama! by regina barreca, the audience gets to learn the perspective of what it is like to grow up as an italian. Although umbertina by helen barolini is a fictional story, the other two pieces are non-fiction. This personal, truthful element of storytelling adds a newfound perspective to the ideas presented in the stories. In food and fatalism by wally lamb, the author begins by narrating what it was like going to his grandmother"s house for. Right away the audience can notice the define roles that each family member plays. The father loaded the car with presents while the mother baked and cooked. The father and sons impatiently waited in the car for the women to exit the house and then the family was on their way to nonna"s house for the holiday celebrations.
