The Legacy of the "Roaring Twenties" in VH1's Mob Wives

"...The Twenties was not a ten-year binge during which everybody got rich and danced the Charleston in speakeasies while drinking bootleg hooch. Certainly the reaction to America's participation in World War I- which ended on 11 November 1918- triggered disillusionment, moral reevaluation, social experiment, and hedonism. Although Fitzgerald joined the parties and chronicled them, he wrote in judgment. The Twenties were primarily an era of possibilities and aspiration- a dominant Fitzgerald theme...'"

                

Matthew J. Brocculi, the preface of The Great Gatsby, 1992

F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby undoubtedly portrays that the 1920's was an era for accomplishing that which was previously nearly impossible; it was not longer necessary that one be born into an upper class family to eventually end up with a very high socioeconomic status. The existence of self-made men, those who did not inherit their wealth, but earned it, was becoming increasingly common. Fitzgerald's character, Jay Gatsby, is a perfect example of this. He went from living in the Mid West with a considerable lack of money to living in an imposing, old European-style mansion in East Egg of Long Island. However, the American Dream, starting with rags and ending up with riches, and doing so fair and square, is not the only major aspect of the twenties that Fitzgerald demonstrates in The Great Gatsby.  "Hedonism" and "moral reevaluation" are terms that many people today would use to characterize the 1920's; these concepts go together and help form the themes of the novel that have undermined the relevance and the positive notions of the American Dream from Fitzgerald's time to present. Fitzgerald implies that Gatsby may have obtained his fortune in a less-than- conventional way. The rumors of Gatsby's bootlegging and other possible infractions against legal and/or social regulations make his rags to riches story seem slightly less inspiring, and a whole-lot more interesting.




Our culture today definitely has developed a keen fascination with crime. Audiences are all the more entertained when a story has a little taboo, or a little danger, or even a lot of straight-up illegal activity. Considering the success of entertainment classics like The Sopranos and The Godfather, and the frenzy of excited media around any slightly sketchy situation, the numerous criminal investigation shows on network television proves society's interest in all things improper has only been flourishing since the revolution against social standards and boundaries of the twenties. The characters of The Great Gatsby are much less reserved than the generation before them, and openly discussing secrets and drama is a new and invigorating part of socializing. The fact that Gatsby, starting from scratch, earned an immense fortune is not nearly as interesting the fact that he did so in such a scandalous way. Similarly, the women of VH1's reality television show, Mob Wives, have one-upped all of the other shows about the controversies among groups of wealthy women. Mob Wives  follows the lives or four women whose fathers and/or husbands have been incarcerated for Mafia related felonies. The women live extravagantly and publicly. They buy nice clothes and attend countless parties, where they start fights that include shouting intimate details of each other's lives. The most interesting aspect is what sets it apart from other reality shows about disillusioned rich women: they are all related to criminals. Unfortunately for Fitzgerald, his era of possibilities and aspirations was contaminated by the widespread self-indulgence and loss of propriety by the American people after WWI that he resented so much. This scary spin-off of Real Housewives undoubtedly portrays that the very things Fitzgerald critiqued about the twenties are the things that have remained a part of American Society. 

Besides the show corresponding with Fitzgerald's  representation of society's fascination with crime, Mob Wives demonstrates the idea that being wealthy means one is constantly performing for others as though acting wealthy is as important as being wealthy, a significant theme in The Great Gatsby. The West Egg's lavish displays of wealth are unsettling to those from East Egg. Daisy Buchanan, and East Egg resident of a historically wealthy family, is "offended" by the extravagance of one of Gatsby's parties. For Daisy, and others considered as having "old money" find the nouveau rich's flashiness to be a type of mockery, as though they are making a farce of their lifestyle, of their ancestors' lifestyle. Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro, like Daisy, is distressed by the over the top behavior, or "performance" by the women of Mob Wives. He calls it "disgraceful". He feels as though it is portraying Italian Americans and Staten Islanders in a bad light. Victoria Gotti is also horrified by the show and claims that it is scripted. The women have responded by saying they are not attempting to represent anyone but themselves and that the show is definitely not scripted. The show has been given positive reviews from non-New Yorkers and non-Italian Americans. Nick Carraway would probably respect the women and their show, as he found a way to respect Gatsby despite all of the superficial, gaudy partying Gatsby participated in that Nick wholeheartedly resented. Similarly to the way Nick appreciated Gatsby's authentic earnestness to be successful, many critics don't interpret the women's openness to sharing their stories, but respect it.

In both The Great Gatsby and Mob Wives, the performance involved for being rich and famous required that people abandon certain, very real, parts of their lives. When Jay Gatsby, born James Gatz, decided it was time for him to create a new life or himself, he left his past behind completely. He wanted to be able to start his life over completely, without any details of his past affecting his future. He changed his name and estranged himself from his family.
Gatsby abandoned family Gatz to Gatsby. Renee Graziano of Mob Wives also had to chose to not have her father, Anthony Graziano, be a part of her life anymore because she chose to do the show. Mafia activity is supposed to be top secret, and all of these women have been criticized by their loved ones for "being snitches" or "selling out". Renee wants to use this show as a way for her to start rebuilding a life separate from the mob, so she sacrificed her relationship with her father to be a Mob Wife. An issue affecting all of the women is Karen Gravano's decision to write a tell-all book, in which she plans to include detailed information about her family's conflict with Renee's family and Drita's husband, Lee, whom she dated many years ago. The women found it hard to support their friend when they had no idea what was going to be published about them or their families in Karen's book. Before anyone could even confront Karen about it, she made it clear that she does not care what they think about what she has to say. Karen has prioritized her celebrity status to please, momentarily, her curious fans, and she has sacrificed the trust of the other women. Karen is taking an approach just like that of Gatsby to accomplish her goal. She is forcing out reality, and in the end, she may be disappointed.