Cannoli, sciù, iris, and cassata. Sicilian pastries in Pif’s debut novel "… che Dio perdona a tutti"

If we consider the material nature of food itself, we may simply state that its function is to satisfy a basic need and that it represents the response to the stimulus of hunger. Yet, “much research from the social sciences shows that there is more to food than its material nature and that it takes on cultural connotations.” (Martinengo 2015: 9). Indeed, the importance of food as an expression of cultural identity is a fact, as “elaboration of the cultural significance of food and eating focuses on social values, meanings and beliefs rather than on dietary requirements and nutritional values” (Murcott 1982: 203). Such issues have been extensively investigated by scholars from different disciplines, who all agree in emphasizing the paramountcy of food in relation to culture and identity. The cultural importance of food is even more evident if we consider the specific case of desserts. As a matter of fact, “dessert is fundamentally completely unnecessary from a nutritional standpoint” (Krondl 2011). Dessert, Krondl says, is akin to music, architecture, painting and sculpture. Whatever drives us to make and consume sweets triggers the same desires that brought us Notre Dame, the Taj Mahal and Disneyland. Desserts reflect what makes our species unique. Moreover, according to the scholar, Italy belongs to those areas that he calls “dessert superpowers”, which have a particularly important dessert tradition. Sicily, in particular, is definitely renowned for its pastry tradition. It is no surprise, then, that most novels set in Sicily refer at some point to its famous pastries. This paper will analyse the case of Pif’s debut novel “… che Dio perdona a tutti”, whose main character is obsessed with pastries, and, consequently, presents an extremely vast number of references to them.