Conflict Across the Atlantic: Women, Family and Mass Male Migration in Sicily, 1880–1920

Abstract

This article looks at the effect of transoceanic migration on rural Sicilian families. The author focuses on the conflicts, stresses, and transformations experienced by members of transnational families. While the reality of migration rarely reflected the popular notion that emigration would ruin families, the experience did create deep divisions between migrant men and the women who remained behind. Even before men migrated, husbands and wives struggled over the initial decision to emigrate. From their differing positions within the family, men and women separately weighed the potential benefits and risks of migration. When women encouraged their husbands to work overseas, the experience of migration often created new dreams and opportunities that divided family members. This essay highlights the deeply gendered nature of transnational migration, and the role of the family in altering ideas of husband, wife, mother, and father.