Voices of Italian America: A History of Early Italian American Literature with a Critical Anthology

Contents

7 Contents Acknowledgments 11 Introduction 15 1. The Novel of the Italian in America 22 Anthology The Kid from Genoa 46 (Anonymous) The Mysteries of Mulberry Street 52 The Underworld of New York 62 Bernardino Ciambelli The Mysteries of New York 65 Menotti Pellegrino The Blond Devil 70 Italo Stanco The Flapper 78 Caterina Avella The Two Friends 91 Dora Colonna Hold Up! 103 Eugenio Camillo Branchi The Diary of an Immigrant 113 Camillo Cianfarra Toward the Ideal 121 (A. Perotti) On the Island of Tears: Ellis Island 125 Ludovico Caminita President Scoppetta 131 Pasquale Seneca A. PEROTTI 8 contents You Must Be Rough 139 Michael Fiaschetti Faraway People 148 Corrado Altavilla 2. Stowaway on Board: Ezio Taddei 152 Anthology The Gates of Hell 165 I Gave Up Freedom 167 Ezio Taddei 3. The New World of the Second Generation: Pietro di Donato and John Fante 178 Anthology The World of Tomorrow 184 Pietro di Donato A Letter from John Fante to Giuseppe Prezzolini 190 4. Poetry of the Italian Americans 191 Anthology May Day 208 To Alarico 208 The 20th of September Parade in New York 210 Publius Ovid 212 Riccardo Cordiferro “O Labor of America: Heartbeat of Mankind” 217 The Day of War 219 Words Without Song 221 The Walker 222 Samnite Cradle Song 226 Arturo Giovannitti The Bricklayers Came 231 Simplicio Righi Proletarian Nostalgias 232 Efrem Bartoletti 9 contents Neapolitan Rhapsody 234 Federico Mennella The Dream 239 Advertising Sonnets 241 Alfredo Borgianini My Summer Vacation: A Scherzo 242 In Union Square Park 248 Onorio Ruotolo 5. Prose of Testimony: the Color Line 254 Anthology Whites and Blacks: An Analysis by Prof. Prezzolini 265 Giuseppe Prezzolini 6. At Ellis Island 270 Anthology A Picture of 1907 276 Racketeers and Human Contraband 281 Edward Corsi 7. Italian Americans and Italian Writers 292 Notes 307 Bibliography 322 Index 337 ...