Looking Through My Mother's Eyes: Life Stories of Nine Italian Immigrant Women in Canada

Joseph Leydon teaches geography at the University of Toronto.

This book is based on the author’s interviews with nine Italian women
who immigrated to Canada. Its main thesis is that—through the use of
songs, lullabies, bawdy riddles, and trickster tales—these women
reveal their hostility toward the repressive cultural values and
practices of Italian society, subvert their socially prescribed roles,
and criticize the status quo.

The book begins with a review of current academic research in the areas
of feminist scholarship, traditional Italian society, and approaches to
the study of “life stories.” Summaries and interpretations of the
women’s life stories and respective folk items follow. They are
problematic for a number of reasons. First, we are given little
information on the origins or authorship of the folk items that Del
Negro deconstructs. If—as seems to be the case—some of these items
were written by men, how can they be construed as forms of female
rebellion? Second, it is not apparent that Del Negro’s subjects agree
with her interpretations. Are these women really challenging,
criticizing, and expressing resentment or are they merely reciting folk
tales and songs that have passed from generation to generation? Third,
if Del Negro’s deconstruction is correct, how have these forms of
rebellion affected the lives of subsequent generations of Italian women?
The failure to deal with these fundamental questions and the imposition
of the author’s own interpretations greatly undermine the usefulness
of this book.