North of myself: a refashioning of masculinity in two best-selling novels on both sides of the Atlantic

Abstract

This article traces a number of striking similarities between two novels: José Luis Sampedro's La sonrisa etnlsca (1985) and Pat Conroy's The Prince of Tides (1986). Both of them portray their heroes' problematic transitions from their rural Southern cultures to a Northern metropolis. More interesting and transcendental, though, is the two characters' inner journeys to retrieve some aspects of their identities that they had not been fully aware of before. Moving to a different environment and meeting other people have the unexpected effect of producing a profound transformation in how these characters understand their own masculinity. By the end of the novels, Salvatore Roncone and Tom Wingo can hardly be said to be the same men they were at the outset of the story.