6. Xenofobia and neo-patriotism

No industrialized country has quite such a self-deprecating view of itself as Italy, articulated as a lucid insight into how badly things work. The natural reflex is to emphasize how well they work abroad. If 'Northern' countries are somewhat despised for their cold, rigid approach to life, they are above all extolled for being honest, efficient and 'progressive'. Objective factors largely corroborate this view, but there is an important psychological element as welL which is worth underlining. Italians qua Italians have a basic lack of self-confidence which makes them ill disposed to lind qualities even in each other - regionalism again; hence they look abroad for a role model. A historic anxietv to be accepted with dignity at the international forum leads to an exaggerated tendency to accommodate one's prospective peers. The other main reason for loving everything foreign is the natural Italian talent for shameless cultural and consumer assimilation, rather like the stereotype Texan millionaire shouting 'I'll buy that!' Other countries might think twice before lifting wholesale enormous chunks of a foreign culture, but not in Italy. Any thing can be repackaged and sold in Italy provided it is American - sports, clothing, foodstuffs, social mores., office equipment.



(I) Ilalians abroad: emigration
One of the most persistent causes of Italy's inferiority complex has been the humiliating role which emigrants have had to endure since the early 19th century'. The intense poverty which forced so many Italians to emi-grate was often matched by even worse conditions in the host country', causing many to come back to Italy. Others naturally' came home for the opposite reason:
having made their fortunes, they' came home to enjoy' them. The Italians' tendency as emigrants to maintain highly introspective cultural traditions and community ties explains their high-profile image as an immigrant entity: they brought southern Italy with them. 'Brooklyjnese' is the name they give to the Anglo-Italian patois spoken in New York. As bad as the poverty' they' had to endure was the reputation for being so near the bottom of the ethnic pile. Hence the extraordinary' pride felt in Italy' for 'the sons of Italy" who do well abroad. Even though the families of people like Lord Charles Forte, Mario Cuomo and Madonna (there was recently' a strong move to erect a statue to her in her grandparents' native village in the Abruzzi) mav have emigrated generations ago, they remain fundamentally' Italians. Only in te last few years has Italy's new cliche image as te ultimate designer nation started to overshadow that of te terminally poverty-stricken peasant factory.