Gender Roles In Pietro Germi's Divorzio All Italiana

Pietro Germi’s Divorzio all’italiana is a satirical comedy from 1962 that was based on the novel Un delitto d 'onore. Although it was originally a romantic story, Germi adopted it into t a story made so dramatic that it turned into a tragicomedy. To contribute to the humor of the film, portrayal of the rigid gender roles is seen along with the strict Catholic principles in Italian Society in the 1960s. Divorzio all’italiana presents gender roles by showing the premarital expectations of women, a man’s role in defending his family’s honor, and male masculinity.
Divorzio all’italiana is set in 1960s Sicily. Ferdinando Cefalù, a born aristocrat, has been married to Rosalia for twelve years and is very annoyed of her over-nurturing behaviors towards …show more content…
There are three principle cultural codes that influence the lives of Sicilians which are honor, cunning, and friendship. Honor is the most important code and involves the family maintaining good appearances and having a respectable reputation (Reich 52). The woman is especially important in this role. Daughters are expected to keep their virginity until marriage. If a female doesn’t remain pure until marriage, it effects the honor of the family greatly because women are important symbols of family worth (Reich 52). As we see in the movie, midwifes are called upon to examine the woman if there is any suspicion of her not being pure. When Angela’s father finds, in her journal, a section about a supposed lover she has, he assume she is no longer pure. He calls a midwife to give her an examination to make sure she still has her virginity (Reich 72). This is very important to him as visible by how angry he reacts. Before calling the midwife, the father yells and abuses Angela until he is dragged out of the room by Fefé. This is one example that shows how unfair gender expectations are because sons are not subjected to tests like this, nor are they held to the same expectations (Bondanella …show more content…
Boys grow up encouraged to behave more aggressively and controlling than girls. Girls are reprimanded for this type of behavior, and instead are taught to be gentle and compliant. They are also expected to help with domestic duties and have a modest behavior at all times. Boys are expected to look after their sisters to insure that they keep their virginity since it deeply affects the family’s honor (Reich 53). Germi does a great job in incorporating these gender roles into Divorzio all’italiana. In the film, Fefé’s sister, Agnese, is engaged to be married to her boyfriend, Rosario. They are often seen fooling around and interrupted by Fefé by accident. Each time the couple gets very startled and apologizes to Fefé since they assume he is very bothered and offended by this, as she is risking the family’s honor. Men in the family are called cuckholds if they fail to keep their sister/daughter away from predators. Fefé does not show much of a reaction, though, because he is too distracted with his own desires (Reich 72). This is very hypocritical of him, because his plan to murder his wife revolves around protecting his