A Lesson From History of the God Father - Research Paper Example

 The most famous island of Italy, Sicily, has a bloody history that modern historians and researchers link to how the Mafia flourished around the world. Books have been written about this wonderful yet hostile place and its people. Movies were produced to portray the colorful but tumultuous lives of the Italians who travelled around the globe to find change but were seemingly gripped by their culture of war. Mario Puzo’s The Godfather (1972) is but one among the many stories that have been told and retold that pictures the lives of Italians who moved to New York and founded a group that was to be known as the Mafia. Although initially, the characters in the story who played major roles in the formation of the group did not foresee such future nor plan to gain wealth through illegal means, their culture of doing their best to protect each other surmounted during troubled times. The Godfather is the story of five families who allied with each other to ensure their protection and success in the businesses they dealt with. However, it particularly tells the story of the family of Vito Corleone, known as the ‘godfather’ who, in other groups would be of the same level as ‘the pope’ (bestofsicily.com). The story reflects similarities with facts about the existence of the Mafia which to some are just like legends, bringing to life stories that are difficult to believe. The organization deals with illegal activities particularly gambling and prostitution as well as murder. In order to protect his family from the abusive “La Mano Nera” or the “Black Hand” known for extorting helpless immigrants (Jain) who usually have problems with their immigration papers or are vulnerable enough to be victims of people who overpower them with fear, the ‘godfather’ killed such oppressors. The ‘godfather’ or ‘don’ known as Vito Corleone was a young immigrant to the United States who was forced to leave his small town, Corleone in Sicily, in order to escape death from the hands of the people who killed his family. He then proved to become the man his enemies feared him to become, a person able to kill, skilled in performing his job and witty to devise plans that often shows he could outwit the majority of the members of the Mafia. The story tells how the ‘five families’ or the core members of the organized crime plan against each other to gain power and get the lion’s share of the dirty money they gain from their illegal businesses. As assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Chertoff said in 2001, that the leaders of the four families that were facing trial that time, that these crime leaders were “fighting with each other, backstabbing each other, each one trying to get a larger share of the illegal proceeds, dominated by a single principle – greed” (Magnuson, 2001). Indeed, this picture was presented in the movie in probably the same fashion that might have truly occurred in the Mafia. Cosa Nostra, meaning Italian- American Mafia or simply American Mafia (Jain, 2012), was mentioned several times in the film. This is just one of the jargons used in the underworld to keep their secrets among themselves. Omerta, meaning “manhood” which eventually became synonymous to the Mafia’s code of silence (bestofsicily.com), is another jargon the underworld uses. Aside from the words used among members of organized crime, they also exchange messages through actions that no one else could decipher but themselves. An example of this would be the package of fishes sent to Sonny, son of Vito, to tell him that Luca Brasi, a trusted servant, is already dead and has been dropped in the sea with the fishes. Moreover, ‘communion’ is a term used to mean that there would be a body dumped into the sea. As the movie showed the restless history of the Corleone family through flashback, viewers also get a glimpse of the history of Corleone, Sicily. The island has a long history of insurgencies with Italians rising against invaders, and the poor rising against abusive rich families (google.com, 2012) until it seemed to have become a part of every Sicilian that somehow followed them to the places that they migrated to. As they say, people should learn from history, yet, the film shows that the characters did not seem to learn from their past. At least in terms of growing from barbaric activities to more cultivated ones. There had been a lot of improvements in the lives of the characters, when they migrating from the poor island of Sicily to the land known to be the place where dreams come true, among them were financial freedom and power. The characters might have changed their way of dressing from the manner peasants did to how respectable citizens dressed but still, their minds and attitudes were as uncivilized as their fathers or perhaps even worse. Their means of gaining wealth are despicable and one might not be able to imagine how the members of the Mafia were able to eat from the fruit of dirty businesses or how they were able to sleep after killing people especially if they include innocent members of their enemies’ families. The story of the godfather clearly presents that money, fame and power is not what keeps a person safe, happy and peaceful. It actually presents the ironic reality that sometimes, the very things people think would bring them happiness, are the ones that bring them misery, the ones they think will protect them actually will put them in danger and the ones that they want to protect become the most defenseless. The film that relates two life stories is quite long but it is worth the time viewers spend in front of the screen because it is very illuminating. References Jain, Vedant. (2012). Mafia in America. Ezine Articles. Retrieved from: http://ezinearticles.com/?Mafia-in-America&id=1481531 Magnuson, Ed. (June 24, 2001). Hitting the Mafia. Time U.S. retrieved from: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,145082,00.html The History of Sicily: A Brief Overview of Sicily’s Fascinating Story. Think Sicily. n.a. (2012). Retrieved from: www.google.com.ph/search?sugexp=chrome,mod=9&sourceid =chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=sicily+history The Mafia. Best of Sicily: A Guide to Sicilian Travel and all that is Sicilian. n.a. (n.d.). Retrieved from: http://www.bestofsicily.com/mafia.htm Ruddy, Albert S. (Producer), & Copolla, Francis Ford. Puzo (Director). (1972). The Godfather (Motion picture). USA: Paramount Pictures. Read More