Trace, Trauma and Tradition in The Sopranos

This paper uses gastrocriticism – literary criticism that draws on disciplines such as sociology, anthropology and cultural studies – as a lens to establish the use of food as a symbolic marker of traces, trauma and traditions in the HBO series, The Sopranos. The Sopranos is a story of an Italian-American crime family in which food is uniquely central to the plot: a mob-boss is in therapy due to food-related panic attacks. Food is used in a variety of ways; as a narrative device; as a symbol of greed, power and status; and as a token of ethnic and professional identity. In terms of tradition, the intertextual food tropes in The Sopranos continue the traditions of the classic Hollywood gangster genre, recalling expressions of Italian-American identity, family, esprit-de-corps and power. Trace elements are evident in further exploration of Italian-American identity: food offers insight into the nuances of Italian-American identity, and its evolution as the population becomes more assimilated, contrasting with their recollections of the “old country.” The traumatic premise of the series is uniquely food-related: Tony Soprano enters therapy to address blackouts triggered by the sight of meat. Early in the series Tony faints whilst grilling sausages and in season three, a “flashback” shows us the basis of his neurosis: as a child he witnessed his father punishing a debtor – the owner of Satriale’s Pork Store – by cutting off his fingers. The Sopranos is unique in its depiction and use of food, and this study shows how those depictions reflect traces, traditions and trauma.