Espressione dell'identità etnica fra gli italoamericani di Washington, D.C.

Abstract

This research project examines the expression of ethnic identity among members of the Italian American community in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The study is based on the theory of identity as a social construction, as explained by researchers such as Anna De Fina, Zygmunt Bauman, and Judith Butler, among others. With this approach in mind, the study design is based primarily on interviews with 13 Italian Americans who live in the Washington, D.C. metro area. Through an analysis of these interviews, a few main themes through which the participants express their ethnic identity as Italian Americans are identified: food, family, travel to ancestral hometown, and stereotypes. For each theme, specific examples are drawn from the corpus of interviews and analyzed in an attempt to show how the participants express their ethnic identity. Examples include linguistic strategies such as code-switching and the repetition of Italian words, shared “Italian” values, narratives focused on immigrant ancestors, and concern over negative stereotypes about Italian Americans. Despite the fact that interviewees express a variety of identity types – be they regional, immigrant, Italian, or Italian American – it is clear that their ethnic identity plays an important role in their everyday lives.