Customer Reviews

The Psychology of the Sopranos: Love, Death, Desire and Betrayal in America's Favorite Gangster Family

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like most Sopranos fans, I don't start Monday morning at work until my colleagues and I have thoroughly analyzed the episode of the night before. We all have some psych in our background and the discussions are lively and, not surprisingly, clearly include individual projection. Now, an insightful book by a psychoanalyst! Pinch me! This is one of the panel of psychoanalysts who critiques and analyzes on "Slate" after each episode. He provides understanding to story lines and characters that were previously debatable; that is, if you accept that his analysis is the final word! And you may not always.

Why didn't Tony "get" the rapist? Now I know. Why are we all so drawn to this series? Writing is great, sure, but the reasons are much more complex and personal. The relationships are examined and illuminated. Lines and images I've forgotten are brought back, and with clarification. Subtle inclusion of references to classic movies and literature in the lines or settings are examined. Our fascination with Tony is explained in context to what we struggle with personally daily. I now have a logical understanding of why I like this obviously psychopatic killer mobster!

My friends and I have a ritual of providing the best line of the night and we rarely mimic each other. The lines brought back in the book left a smile on my face. Some that I missed or forgot about were hilarious, and I even underlined passages.

This book was a gift from a fellow "Sorpranoette," Courtney Conlin. It fascinated and captivated me. If you are a Sorpranos fan, and especially if you are into analyzing the plots and characters, if you have unanswered questions, if you strive to learn more about human motivations, and most of all your own, you will not be able to put this book down!

This entertaining book actually enhanced my viewing experience. I watch the Sopranos on videotape -- gulping down three episodes at a time -- and I gone back to Season 1 with the help of this book. Gabbard picks up nuances that eluded me on first viewing.

Most interesting is Gabbard's portrayal of the therapist, Jennifer Melfi. Not surprisingly, he is pro-therapy. While acknowledging Jennifer's mistakes -- especially her problems with boundaries -- Gabbard insists that Melfi does, after all, recover from those mistakes. And I'm glad he, too, found some of Jennifer's scenes "improbable," such as her visit to her own therapist with her ex-husband and son. He shed some light on the mystery of Carmela's therapist, the man referred by Dr. Melfi who told Carmela to take the kids and leave. Apparently this therapeutic style is based on input from a real therapist who informally consults with the show.

I'm a little puzzled by Gabbard's references to A.J., Anthony Junior, who appears to be in middle school. On the one hand, Gabbard seems a little too forgiving of the psychologist in A.J.'s school, a man who has trouble communicating with laypeople. Telling the parents that A.J. has "five out of nine" symptoms of ADD doesn't help anyone. And I think Gabbard misinterprets a scene where big sister Meadow, from her infinite wisdom as a college student, helps A.J. interpret Frost's famous poem, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening. Gabbard says the scene highlights the difference in their academic levels, but I've met few straight teenaged boys who were moved by poetry. If they understand symbolism, they're not willing to admit it.
Gabbard also picks up the verbal cruelty Tony inflicts on his young son: "If this is my male heir -- you want me to have a vasectomy?" Yet he ignores the father-and-son moments between Tony and A.J., such as the night they were squirting whipped cream directly from jar into mouth. And the family does get together for dinner just about every night -- more than a lot of households do.
Just the fact that I, like many readers, will be stimulated to argue and question Gabbard's book shows its strength: Gabbard's analysis is tough and thought-provoking. There was perhaps too much rehash of the Sopranos episodes (with some errors noted by other reviewers) and too little reflection on why television characters have so much influence.

For instance, men have been showing up in therapists' offices in larger numbers since Tony Soprano first met with Dr. Melfi. Do they identify with Tony -- or do they hope to find a gorgeous, brilliant female therapist who wears short skirts as she crosses her legs? And is there a message for female clients here? The women end up with graying, conservative males who'd put most of us to sleep. Next book, maybe.

As a psychiatrist-in-training who admires Gabbard's writings aimed at mental health professionals, I was interested to see how this book would read. He has managed to write an analysis (pun intended) of the Sopranos that is highly enjoyable as well as enlightening. Although he is writing to a lay audience and has tried to avoid psychoanalytic jargon, this book is not at all dumbed down. You just might find yourself learning something about psychodynamic theory while plumbing the depths of Tony's psyche. I think TV fans and shrinks alike (not to mention those in both categories) will get much out of this book, and have a good time in the process.

Overall, I'd say this book would be a very worthwhile addition to a Sopranos' addict's library. But it's not a perfect read. Since the good outweighs the bad in it, I'll start with that:

1. Easy to read but you never get the feeling that you're being talked down to by the author.

2. Very insightful about Tony Soprano's personality, his prognonis, relationship with Melfi, and his wife.

3. Made me appreciate just how complex the Sopranos is as a TV show (lightyears ahead of most of the other TV out there).

Now the bad . . .

1. Author would have been well-advised to get a Sopranos' fanatic to proofread his book --to get rid of the number of minor mistakes he makes when recounting the plot.

2. Author seems to regard all killing as equally immoral (As a former military man, I found that quite offensive --sometimes you don't have any choice but to fight).

3. Author sometimes over-psychoanalyzes the show (I for one do not believe that men join the Mafia because it allows them to escape into an alternate "family" without overbearing maternal presences!).

Still, I think it is a good book. That being said, it's a little slim for a hardback. Adding a chapter which deconstructs whatever episode the author considers to be the most psychologically complex would add some heft to it.

This book handles the psychology aspect of the Sopranos which I find the most complelling. It highlights why the psychology in the Sopranos is more realistic than anything seen before and elevates the series to a higher level. There are many shows and movies about Italian-American mobsters. This one is very special and rises above most. The show has its own style and consciousness. Psychology of the Sopranos highlights that style and enlightens us furthur.

I found the book to be entertaining and thought provoking in light of bringing the soprano's to everyday living. I think the author did a good job directing the readers attention to "hollywood" and to the reality of the subject. I did find a couple of points interesting and perhaps not throughly reseached, pg. 100 the author refers to susan smith from NC, susan smith and this incident occurred in SC. Coming from an "sicilian background," I found the term "swimming with the fishes," interesting since I always heard this phrase associated with death as "sleeping with the fishes," indicating death and sleep, rather than swimming which indicates action. Overall, it was an interesting read and I enjoyed the style the writer used to convey his message.

This book is well written, but it is not much more than an extended newspaper article. Gabbard enjoys himself opening up some interesting lines of thought and giving an overview to the series. Well worth a look.

I found the book to be entertaining with some thought provoking topics related to the ordinary lives of a high profile mobster and that of the everyday person. I did like how the author pointed to the differences of "hollywood" and the realistic nature behind the soprano's.I liked the author's honesty in regards to the nature of murder. I agree with his professional judgment, Murder is Murder whether you have been brainwashed to believe that you have justification or you have some serious mental disorder. I did feel the book lacked detailed research as in the example on PG.100. Susan Smith and this incident concerning her occurred in South Carolina rather than North Carolina. Another point, coming from a "Scilian background," was the phase "swimming with the fishes," I found interesting since I have only heard this phrase in relation to death as "sleeping with the fishes," sleeping referring to death as opposed to swimming which would indicate action. Otherwise the book as stated was entertaining and if one wishes could really proffer from the author's professional skills he brings to the material.

A large number of obvious mistakes about the plot make the book a very irritating read.

Why surprising? Because here and there, Psychoanalysis in America was supposed to be absent. "The Sopranos" is a strong objection to this: the series begins with a session, and in a very Freudian-Lacanian atmosphere: the waiting room of the analyst. Now, Dr Gabbard has been the first without a doubt, to write unambiguously (p.59): "Nowhere in American cinema or television have audiences ever witnessed the erotic tension that emerges in therapy handled so credibly."
Why? Because this "tension" has the name of "transference", and it exists so far as it continues existing as pure tension, the tension of a void. This void is what opens the window of difference between desire and the structure of desire. Tony has the opportunity to see some light in this gap, and this is the cause for him to continue his analysis. As a matter of fact, only analysis gives us something more real than the crude reality of crime and evil, only psychoanalysis has ventured its exploration in this field. "There is nothing more humane than crime" wrote Jacques-Alain Miller. And Dr Gabbard writes in p. 77 of his book: "Psychoanalytic treatment is not practices in an ambiance of "either/or"--treatment always takes place in the land of "both/and".
Why only 3 stars for this good book? Because it stills uses "old terminology", side by side in recognizing the "Shakespearean" aura of "The Sopranos", old terminology as "psychopath", "sociopath", etc. Tony is a criminal, but also a criminal with a profound ethical sensibility. Dr Gabbard's book, even in utilizing these disconcerting terms, goes between its own lines sometimes, and I may recommend its reading, with the advice of trying to "see" and "read" a little bit beyond those psychiatric, "mental health" boundaries .