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The Sopranos is recognized as the most successful cable series in the history of television. The Washington Post has called the popular series, winner of twenty-one Emmys and five Golden Globes, "the television landmark that leaves other landmarks in the dust." In every aspect—narrative structure, visual artistry, writing, intertextuality, ensemble acting, controversial themes, dark humor, and unflinching examinations of American life—The Sopranos has had few equals. Offering a definitive final assessment of the series, The Essential Sopranos Reader aims to comprehensively examine the show's themes and enduring cultural significance. Gender and ethnicity, the role of dreams, the rebirth of HBO, the series' controversial finale, and other topics come under scrutiny in this highly accessible, engaging collection. The book concludes with an interview with Dominic Chianese, who played Uncle Junior in all six seasons of the show.

Table of Contents

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  1. Front cover
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  1. Copyright
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  1. Contents
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  1. Foreword
  2. pp. ix-xi
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  1. Introduction
  2. pp. 1-6
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  1. The Sopranos as Tipping Point in the Second Coming of HBO
  2. pp. 7-16
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  1. From Made Men to Mad Men: What Matthew Weiner Learned from David Chase
  2. pp. 17-22
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  1. The Sopranos: If Nothing Is Real, You Have Overpaid for Your Carpet
  2. pp. 23-40
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  1. Author(iz)ing Chase
  2. pp. 41-56
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  1. "Half a Wiseguy": Paulie Walnuts, Meet Tom Stoppard
  2. pp. 57-64
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  1. Christopher, Osama, and A.J.: Contemporary Narcissism and Terrorism in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 65-80
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  1. "When It Comes to Daughters, All Bets Are Off": The Seductive Father-Daughter Relationship of Tony and Meadow Soprano
  2. pp. 81-92
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  1. "Blabbermouth Cunts"; or, Speaking in Tongues: Narrative Crises for Women in The Sopranos and Feminist Dilemmas
  2. pp. 93-104
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  1. Honoring the Social Compact: The Last Temptation of Melfi
  2. pp. 105-113
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  1. A "Finook" in the Crew: Vito Spatafore, The Sopranos, and the Queering of the Mafia Genre
  2. pp. 114-126
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  1. The Producers: The Dangers of Filmmaking in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 127-136
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  1. Comfortably Numb?: The Sopranos, New Brutalism, and the Last Temptation of Chris
  2. pp. 137-148
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  1. Fishes and Football Coaches: The Narrative Necessity of Dreams in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 149-156
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  1. From Here to InFinnerty: Tony Soprano and the American Way
  2. pp. 157-165
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  1. "Whatever Happened to Stop and Smell the Roses?": The Sopranos as Anti-therapeutic Narrative
  2. pp. 166-182
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  1. Mangia Mafia!: Food, Punishment, and Cultural Identity in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 183-195
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  1. The Guinea as Tragic Hero: The Complex Representation of Italian Americans in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 196-207
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  1. "All Caucasians Look Alike": Dreams of Whiteness at the End of The Sopranos
  2. pp. 208-220
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  1. Representations of Law and Justice in The Sopranos: An Introduction
  2. pp. 221-228
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  1. Lawyer-Client Relations as Seen in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 229-231
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  1. "This Isn't a Negotiation": "Getting to Yes" with Tony Soprano
  2. pp. 232-242
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  1. The Price of Stereotype: The Representation of the Mafia in Italy and the United States in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 243-245
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  1. The Image of Justice in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 246-256
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  1. "Funny about God, and Fate, and Shit Like That": The Imminent Unexpected in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 257-265
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  1. The Sopranos and History
  2. pp. 266-276
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  1. Silence in The Sopranos
  2. pp. 277-288
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  1. "What's Different between You and Me": Carmela, the Audience, and the End
  2. pp. 289-296
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  1. Unpredictable but Inevitable: That Last Scene
  2. pp. 297-302
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  1. No Justice for All: The FBI, Cut to Black, and David Chase's Final Hit
  2. pp. 303-312
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  1. The Sopranos and the Closure Junkies
  2. pp. 313-316
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  1. Acknowledgments
  2. pp. 317-318
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  1. Appendix A: Characters
  2. pp. 319-322
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  1. Appendix B: Episode Guide
  2. pp. 323-326
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  1. Appendix C: Intertextual References and Allusions in Season Six / Compiled by Sara Caitlin Lavery
  2. pp. 327-338
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  1. Appendix D: A Conversation with Dominic Chianese, The Sopranos' Uncle Junior
  2. pp. 339-362
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  1. Bibliography
  2. pp. 363-375
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  1. Contributors
  2. pp. 377-381
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  1. Index
  2. pp. 383-392
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