The Godfather Effect
The novel had a “Godfather Effect” on American culture. As noted by author Tom Santopietro, The Godfather was a turning point in American cultural consciousness. With its emphasis on proud ethnicity, The Godfather changed not just the way Italian-Americans saw themselves, but how Americans of all backgrounds viewed their individual and national self-identities, their possibilities, and attendant disappointments.
The "Godfather Effect" had a broader philosophical dimension, as well. As noted by Santopietro, "what Puzo delivered - brilliantly - was nothing less than a disquisition on the madness, glory, and failure of the American dream." Early in the novel, Amerigo Bonasera declares “I believe in America.” The novel then depicts a nation where Mafia and big business are two sides of the same coin: both are corrupt, tell the truth selectively, and do exactly as they wish.
This insight is bluntly stated by Michael Corleone, who recommends that Italian-Americans “must learn from the philanthropists like the Rockefellers – first you rob everybody, then you give to the poor.”
Read more about this topic: The Godfather (novel)
Famous quotes containing the words godfather and/or effect:
“His white head hung out like a carpet bag
and his crotch turned blue as a blood blister,
and Godfather death, as it is written,
put a finger on his back
for the big blackout,
the big no.”
—Anne Sexton (1928–1974)
“No being exists or can exist which is not related to space in some way. God is everywhere, created minds are somewhere, and body is in the space that it occupies; and whatever is neither everywhere nor anywhere does not exist. And hence it follows that space is an effect arising from the first existence of being, because when any being is postulated, space is postulated.”
—Isaac Newton (1642–1727)