In the early twentieth century, the Black Hand was a type of freelance criminal active in New York’s Little Italy. Black hands extorted so-called “protection money” from storekeepers and individuals that, in reality, merely protected people from retaliation by the Black Hand. Don Fanucci is the most prominent example of the Black Hand in Puzo’s novel.
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Black Hand Term Timeline in The Godfather
The timeline below shows where the term Black Hand appears in The Godfather. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 14
...Vito’s Little Italy neighborhood, a man named Don Fanucci (a representative of the proto-Mafia “ Black Hand ”) uses threats of physical violence to extort money from other Italians. One day, a...
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...Vito asks, “what can he do to the three of us?” Clemenza answers that the Black Hand has powerful “brutes” for friends who can retaliate against those who do not pay up....
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