E-book
Mafia culture and the power of symbols, rituals, and myth
Record details
- ISBN: 1442222263
- ISBN: 9781442222267
- ISBN: 1442222271
- ISBN: 9781442222274
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Physical Description:
1 online resource
remote - Publisher: Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., [2013]
Content descriptions
| Source of Description Note: | Print version record. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Mafia Organized crime TRUE CRIME -- Organized Crime Mafia Organized crime |
| Genre: | Electronic books. |
- Choice Reviews : Choice Reviews 2013 December
Journalist Nicaso (Middlebury College) and anthropologist Danesi (Toronto) demystify the Mafia. Instead of perpetuating the cinematic image of Mafia members as misunderstood patriarchs, the authors spotlight the discrepancies between popular culture and reality. More importantly, they shatter the myth that all Italian mob families operate alike, as well as the myth that organized street gangs, in general, are one-dimensional entities, making this book a valuable addition to the scholarship on organized crime. Nicaso and Danesi clearly show that what keeps these organizations' "thugness" disguised as honorable criminality are the cultural markers and rituals that become the social glue for members. Included in these markers and rituals are distinct clothing, vocabulary, nicknames, and initiations intended to provide a veneer of exclusivity to members. Nicaso and Danesi drive home the point that no gangs, including the Mafia, can be classified together in a homogenous lump. Both anthropological and sociological, the book is exhaustively researched yet lightly written, assumedly to reach a wider audience, particularly at the less initiated undergraduate level. Summing Up: Recommended. All levels/libraries. General Readers; Lower-division Undergraduates; Upper-division Undergraduates; Graduate Students; Researchers/Faculty; Two-year Technical Program Students; Professionals/Practitioners. L. L. Hansen Western New England University Copyright 2013 American Library Association.
