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Mafia
The Five Families are New York City’s five major organized crime syndicates in the Italian-American Mafia. Their structure dates to 1931, when a Sicilian mob figure named Salvatore Maranzano formerly organized warring factions of Italian-American criminals into Five Family groups with demarcated territories and a hierarchical structure. Each of the Five Families report to a ruling Commission, the Mafia’s governing body that mediates disputes among the families. In The Godfather, the Five Families are the Corleone, Tattaglia, Barzini, Cuneo, and Stracci families. The real-life Five Families are the Bonanno, Colombo, Gambino, Genovese, and Lucchese crime families.
Five Families Quotes in The Godfather
The The Godfather quotes below are all either spoken by Five Families or refer to Five Families. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 20 Quotes
Nothing was more calming, more conducive to pure reason, than the atmosphere of money.
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Don Corleone has just brokered a peace meeting between the heads of the Five Families and other Mafia families across the country. After the murder of Sonny, the Don hopes to avoid further bloodshed by negotiating an end to Five Families War. Fittingly, the mobsters assemble in a bank conference room. This passage marks one of several instances in which Puzo emphasizes that money, above all else, fuels the Mob. At its core, the Mafia Families are profit-generating enterprises: their only goal is make money by any means necessary, legal or illegal. The supremacy of money hangs over the very Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis cons
“We are all men who have refused to be fools, who have refused to be puppets dancing on a string pulled by the men on high. We have been fortunate here in this country […] Some of you have sons who are professors, scientists, musicians, and you are fortunate. Perhaps your grandchildren will become the new pezzonovanti.”
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At the peace meeting between the Five Families, Don Corleone explains why he hopes the Mafia will move towards legitimacy in the future. In this process, however, he speaks to the Mafia’s complicated view of legitimate society: the mob both rejects and embraces the legitimate power of the pezzonanvante. At first, Don Corleone compares the pezzonovante (the “big shot” doctors, lawyers, politicians, etc.) to the puppet masters who try to turn Mafia members into puppets “dancing on a string” from “on high.” The last phrase indicates that Don Corleone sees the pezzonavonate’s position as one of self-designated moral superiority. Yet, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi
Chapter 28 Quotes
“Revenge is a dish that tastes best when it is cold.”
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Here, Michael and Don Corleone meet with Tom Hagen, Sal Tessio, and Peter Clemenza to inform them of their plan to reassert the Corleone Family’s dominance over the Five Families and finally end the Mafia war. This passage accompanies the transition of leadership from Don Corleone to Michael, and it epitomizes the qualities that made Vito Corleone such as effective Mafia leader. The Don likens vengeance to a dish “that tastes best when it is cold” to emphasize how patience is an essential trait a Don must possess. Much like a man who waits to enjoy food after it cools Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molest
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Five Families Term Timeline in The Godfather
The timeline below shows where the term Five Families appears in The Godfather. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 11
...Michael that the hits will pit the Corleones in a war with all of the Five Families but insists that “these things have to happen once every ten years or so. It...
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...bomb into the Corleone mall, and two Corleone soldiers are murdered in another restaurant. The Five Families War of 1946 has begun.
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Chapter 14
...combination of calculated violence and tactful negotiation, Don Corleone organizes a working peace between the Five Families that control the criminal underworld. As World War II breaks out, the Don takes comfort...
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Chapter 17
...Sonny exit Don Corleone’s bedroom to discuss the ongoing war between the Corleones and the Five Families . Tessio explains that the other families have lost money in the wake of the...
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...infiltration—operations that are, by nature, more clandestine and therefore less vulnerable to attack. Meanwhile, the Five Families continue to murder Corleone associates in the garment and banking sectors, and they manage to...
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...on major Family matters. The war is now in a stalemate, but only because the Five Families have not yet dealt a crippling blow to the Corleone Family.
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Chapter 19
...Corleone massacres an army of pimps, “shylocks,” union officials, and bookmakers who work for the Five Families . The slaughter proves satisfying, but it does not turn the tide of the war...
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...seek vengeance without his approval. “There will be no further acts of war against the Five Families without my express and personal wish,” the Don insists. He also orders all Family business...
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Chapter 20
Sonny Corleone’s death hits the criminal underworld like a lightning bolt, as the Five Families scramble to prepare for the retaliation they believe is sure to come from the Corleones....
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...Families to come to the peace meeting,” Don Corleone meets with the heads of the Five Families and of the other Families across the country. The meeting takes place in the conference...
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...should be the Family’s top priority. He is more concerned about the police than the Five Families in regards to Michael’s situation. Despite the new peace, Don Corleone orders even more fortifications...
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Chapter 28
...meeting with Don Corleone, Tom Hagen, Carlo, Clemenza, and Tessio. Since the meeting of the Five Families and Don Corleone’s retirement, the Corleone Family’s strength has declined, leaving the Barzini Family as...
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Chapter 29
Don Corleone’s funeral is a “royal” occasion. The Dons of the Five Families attend with their caporegimes and Consiglieres, and a small army of Don Corleone’s friends come...
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...Family and forge an allegiance with Barzini that will end the long-simmering war between the Five Families . Unlike the late Don Corleone, however, Tessio does not understand that “political connections and...
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