Re: Tony and Carmela: Anatomy of an Attraction

11
I forgot to add how this all could play into the symbolism of that seminal, very important dream Tony narrated to Melfi in the pilot. As many know, Chase has often stated the ending of the series would "close a circle". While that could mean a lot of different things, the one idea that I keep coming back to is that first dream, the reinvestigation of it, even its revelation as prophecy-come-true.

Tony works to unscrew the screw from his belly button, to detatch the psychological umbilical cord that ties him to his unfortunate parentage and that has made him an exponent of all their crimes and human inadequacies. To do this, he must, among other things, reject the Soprano definition of what it means to be a man. He must endure "castration" in the eyes of his parents.

But he fears that, if he does so, the wife who (he believes) is with him because of that very kind of manhood will leave him. In other words, the duck will fly off with his penis.

How ironic if he conquers that fear, unscrews the belly button, endures the castration (thus becoming a "soprano"), all with his wife's support, only to lose her to death, fulfilling the dream as prophecy but in a much different way?
Tony, his spirits crushed after b-lining to the fridge first thing in the morning: "Who ate the last piece of cake?"
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