Italian Seduction: A Dark Force

"The Means of Seduction" is a piece from author Tobias Jones' book, "The Dark Heart of Italy". Simply in terms of providing a piece with an accurate and descriptive title that permeates the entirety of the article, Jones succeeds. The title aptly describes the overall focus of the piece and its purpose. We see this in several areas, from television to eroticism to politics, and it applies to all of then. Perhaps the darkest example of the seduction Jones speaks of is in reference to Berlusconi and his media hold; "By now the most convincing explanation, albeit the most mundane, for Berlusconi's political appeal is the simple fact that he controls three television channels. Having a politician who owns three television channels turns any election into the equivalent of a football match in which one team kicks-off with a three-goal advantage". This is also an example of how he makes an insightful observation but, makes it relatable by describing it in terms of an understandable comparison.
Jones is a perceptive and extremely insightful writer, instead of just dictating information to the reader, the reader learns through him and his experiences. The piece is well written and instead of just making blanket statements he makes a point then supports the observation with facts. An example of this can be seen when he discusses the excessive nature of advertising Italian television; he supports the observation with the fact, "57% of all Italian advertising budgets are sunk into television; in Britain the figure is 33.5%, in Germany only 23%".
While the piece is undeniable educational there are a lot of topics to keep track of and some tangents, a rather lengthy italicized one in particular, is a bit confusing in some parts but, he does a very good job at talking about the visual aspect of Italian culture. This is discussed in most length with reference to their television culture and the eroticism that permeates almost every area of their culture, immensely overpowering the literary aspect. He tells us how truly visual a society Italy really is with observations like, "To survive, the edible - the little pavilions on street corners which sell newspapers - have to double as fetish shops, selling gadgets and videos and soft-porn magazines alongside the newsprint". As someone who noticed this for the first time and proceeded to perform an awkwardly obvious double take, I can attest to the accuracy of this statement and the significance behind it.
Alongside the history and information though Jones also writes humorously about the differences between British and Italian manners, referencing an instance where he had to tell his Italian football mates that they could not refer to their British counterparts as beautiful or dear, the Italians of course wimpy did not understand this coldness. It is in this way, in addition to the history and facts that Jones informs his reader, this time through personal experience.
As I mentioned before he is a very perceptive writer and he makes many important insights into the culture and place, regarding issues such as the lack of literary importance, the prevalence of eroticism and the lack of feminism. He does not sugar coat the latter and says very matter-of-factly, "It becomea clear that Italy is the land that feminism forgot". In case you are doubting this point he references several examples included one television debate he watched where the woman hosting the debate, "...other than serving the men coffee, took off an item of clothing each time the political debate became tedious". It is these type of bold examples and insights that are seen throughout the piece in every area, even comparing Berlusconi to Musselini and having no qualms about it. Jones is clearly a skilled writer and makes a strong argument for the darkness of "the means of seduction" that entice Italians at every opportunity.

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