‘Real Italians and wogs’: The discursive construction of Italian identity among first generation Italian immigrants in Western Australia

Abstract

We explore the discursive construction of Italian identity among a bilingual sample of Italian-born Western Australians. Focus groups were held with two groups: Italians who had migrated to Australia as children and a group who had migrated as adults. We found intra-and inter-individual differences in identity construction, with much discourse devoted to demonstrating Italian authenticity and negotiating ethnic category boundaries. Shared markers of authenticity included language, heritage and food. The groups varied in their selection of referent groups to make authenticity claims, with the child migrants drawing upon the shared Australian stereotype of 'wogs' to construct and authenticate their Italian-ness. In contrast, adult migrants constructed Italian identity through comparisons with the dominant Australian ethnic group and in relation to a broader 'migrant' identity. The findings highlight the fluid and complex nature of ethnic identity and the need for further exploration of how it is constructed in talk.

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