The game of " Tocco "is a very old popular tradition
in Sicily which has always been played by working-class people. The
original point of this game is to drink in a circle of friends around
the same table. The rules stipulate that the two main characters, "U
padruni" and "u sutta" (The boss and his assistant ) actually decide
which players have to drink or not, and in which order. When u'Padruni
passes judgment, the only one who has got the power to modify his sentence
is u'Sutta, by suggesting other orders or by opposing his view. The
couple also keep a whole bottle of wine and drink it between themselves,
but the real purpose of the game is to enjoy a drink with their friends,
excluding the opposite gang who, at that point, are not able to quench
their thirst. Certainly the game is amusing when played between friends,
but it can also cruel in that a table companion has to join in without
drinking a single drop. This is also reinforced when the thirst is sharpened from eating savoury
food which is consumed to absorb the alcohol. Since the dynamics of
"Tocco" are based on hierarchy and decision -making, this game has also
been used like a supreme court to solve outstanding disputes between
two or more people of the same community. That is why very often, when
there are two rival gangs at the same table, they are ready to fight,
sometimes to the death, if the tension is too strong. In any case, in
the game of "Tocco" there will always be a judge and a defendant someone
stronger someone weaker, a winner and a loser just like the Mafia is
structured
There has to be
an order imposed from the boss throughout the game which sometimes assumes
the characteristics of a war.