Overview
In September 2015, I joined Bangor University as Lecturer in Italian Studies and Head of Italian. Before then, I was Associate Lecturer at the University of Exeter and Teaching Fellow at the University of Bath. My research expertise is on the cultural dimension mafia-type organised crime, with a specific reference to the Sicilian mafia and the role that cultural codes play in communicative and interactional dynamics at both an identitary and a structural level.
I hold a PhD in Italian Studies from Strathclyde University (2013), with a doctoral thesis on the role of religion in selected communicative contexts and in the dynamics through which the identities, roles, and authority of mafia leaders can be constructed, presented to, and perceived by the rest of the mafia community. I also hold a Master's degree in Contemporary Italian Culture and History from University College London (2008), and a BA in Translation and Interpretation from the University of Chieti (2002).
In January 2018, I have been awarded a two-year Marie Sklodowska-Curie Research Fellowship to be hosted by the Department of Political and Juridical Sciences of the University of Messina. The Fellowship will extend from 1 September 2018 to 30 August 2020.
Additional Contact Information
Email: r.merlino@bangor.ac.uk
Phone: +44 (0) 1248382125
Room: 405, New Arts Building
Qualifications
- PhD: PhD: 'In the Name of the Godfather: A Study of the Role of Religious Rituality and Performativity in the Sicilian Mafia'
University of Strathclyde, 2009–2013 - MA: MA in Contemporary Italian Culture and History
University College London, 2007–2008 - BA: BA in Spanish and English Language and Literature
Università di Pescara, 2002
Postgraduate Project Opportunities
Publications
2019
- PublishedFacilitating the Italian Mafia: The Grey Zone of Complicity and Collusion
Allum, F., Merlino, R. & Colletti, A., 2019, In: South European Society and Politics. 24, 1, p. 79-101
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedPizzini: Sicilian mafia culture between continuity and change
Merlino, R., 27 Sep 2019, Italian Mafias Today: Territory, Business and Politics. Allum, F., Clough Marinaro, I. & Sciarrone, R. (eds.). Edward Elgar, p. 125–141 17 p.
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review
2017
- PublishedPapi, cupole e mandarini tardivi: Religiosità e identità nelle parole del boss Michele Greco
Merlino, R., Mar 2017, L'immaginario devoto tra organizzazioni mafiose e lotta alla mafia. Rome : Viella Editrice, p. 61-82
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review
2015
- PublishedDevotion and Identity in the History of the Sicilian Mafia. The Case of Provenzano
Merlino, R., 4 Mar 2015, In: Reset Dialogues on Civilizations.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedSicilian Mafia, Patron Saints, and Religious Processions:The Consistent Face of an EverChanging Criminal Organization
Merlino, R., 1 Jan 2015, In: California Italian Studies Journal. 5, 1
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2014
- PublishedTales of Trauma, Identity, and God: The Memoirs of Mafia Boss Michele Greco and Leonardo Vitale
Merlino, R., 1 Dec 2014, In: European Review of Organised Crime. 1, 2, p. 49-75
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2013
- PublishedMafia, devotion and religious festivals : power between the sacred and the profane.
Merlino, R., 4 Nov 2013
Research output: Non-textual form › Web publication/site - PublishedThe Sacred Oath of a Secret Ritual: Performing Authority and Submission in the Mafia Initiation Ceremony
Merlino, R., 6 Dec 2013, In: FORUM: University of Edinburgh Postgraduate Journal of Culture and the Arts. 17
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2012
- PublishedFrom a Man to a ‘Man of Honour’: The Role of Religion in the Initiation Ritual of the Sicilian Mafia
Merlino, R., 1 Nov 2012, In: International Journal of the Humanities. 9, 11, p. 59-70
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - Published‘Con il volere di Dio’: Bernardo Provenzano and religious symbolic ritual
Merlino, R., 19 Mar 2012, In: Modern Italy. 17, 3, p. 365-381
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review