TOURISM DISCOURSE MEETS MIGRATION DISCOURSE: GODFATHER PROMOTIONAL WEBSITES TO SICILY

Abstract

In recent years, film-induced tourism has promoted tours to film locations through various travel websites, focusing on the symbolic and cultural value that some tourists associate with their favourite film scenes. Among the film locations that have long fascinated tourists in Sicily, the Godfather Tour or Mafia Tour seems to have a particular cultural value for a specific target group of tourists: Italian-Americans. It is well known that the Godfather saga reflects the stereotypical image that Americans have of Sicilian-American immigrants, but also evokes traditional Sicilian culture and the feelings of Sicilian immigrants who, in reaction to isolation and in defence of their identity, have tried to achieve the American dream. Based on these assumptions, this paper deals with the contemporary cultural tourism referring to The Godfather film and the Mafia phenomenon in Sicily. It will be shown how the tourism discourse found in a selected corpus of American tour operators, promotes the film locations and recalls some scenes as something fascinating, evoking the identity of Italian-Americans through specific linguistic persuasive strategies.