The Mafia is a type of organized crime syndicate whose principle operations include organizing and overseeing illegal activities such as racketeering, extortion, prostitution, drug trafficking, bootlegging, political corruption, union infiltration, murder for hire, and gambling, among others. The Mafia also settles disputes among criminal factions and protects them from one another’s’ cheating. In addition, Mafias dispense extralegal justice by playing the role of a government for the criminal underworld and offering protection for people who cannot go to legitimate authorities because they are involved in illegal markets. In popular culture, “the Mafia,” or Cosa Nostra (“our thing”) usually refers specifically to the Italian-American crime families (as depicted in The Godfather) that have long dominated organized crime in New York, Chicago, and other cities. The word “Mafia” has diverse origins, but likely derives from the nineteenth-century Sicilian term mafiusu, which loosely translates to “swagger” or “bravado” and refers to an arrogant bully who is also fearless and enterprising. Italian mobsters’ brash criminal behavior, combined with their frequent, often exaggerated displays of masculine bravado has associated them with the term “Mafia” in the popular imagination.
Mafia Quotes in The Godfather
The The Godfather quotes below are all either spoken by Mafia or refer to Mafia. 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 1
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It was part of the Don’s greatness that he profited from everything.
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“I believe in America. America has made my fortune.”
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“I’ll make him an offer he can’t refuse.”
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“A lawyer with his briefcase can steal more than a hundred men with guns.”
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Chapter 8
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“Even the shooting of your father was business, not personal. You should know that by now.”
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Chapter 9
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He was surprised to find himself so secretive with Kay. He loved her, he trusted her, but he would never tell her anything about his father or the Family. She was an outsider.
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Chapter 14
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When he became a Don and asked opponents to sit down and reason with him, they understood it was the last chance to resolve an affair without bloodshed and murder.
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Chapter 16
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She might be a daughter of the Great Don but she was his wife, she was his property now and he could treat her as he pleased.
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Chapter 19
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She was quite content not to share the pain of her men, after all did they share the pain of women?
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Chapter 20
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Nothing was more calming, more conducive to pure reason, than the atmosphere of money.
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“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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Chapter 23
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Merit meant nothing. Talent meant nothing. Work meant nothing. The Mafia Godfather gave you your profession as a gift.
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Chapter 25
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“You’ll be my wife but you won’t be my partner in life, as I think they say. Not an equal partner. That can’t be.”
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Chapter 27
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“But don’t ever take sides with anybody against the Family again.”
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Chapter 28
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“Revenge is a dish that tastes best when it is cold.”
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Chapter 29
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He would see to it that they joined the general family of humanity, but he, as a powerful and prudent parent, would most certainly keep a wary eye on that general family.
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Chapter 30
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He understood that he would be happier in the world the Corleones had created than in the world outside.
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Mafia Term Timeline in The Godfather
The timeline below shows where the term Mafia appears in The Godfather. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
Don Corleone understands that being a Mafia Don attracts the presence of law enforcement. He disapproves of Sonny’s angry display because he...
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...Woltz to reconsider his response to Don Corleone, the producer angrily warns him, “if that Mafia goombah tries any rough stuff, he’ll find out I’m not a band leader.” A disappointed...
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Chapter 6
...planning the murder of his protégé, Paulie. He had brought Paulie up studiously through the Mafia ranks until Paulie “made his bones” and established a good living within the Corleone Family...
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Chapter 10
...police captain, and that attacking the two men would cause an uproar both in the Mafia and among the police and other officials who are on the Corleones’ payroll. “The Corleone...
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Chapter 11
...McCluskey found it easy to collaborate with him and Sollozzo, especially since he believes no Mafia hood would dare kill a police officer.
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...drives off. The next day, police departments across the city declare that contacts with the Mafia will cease until they find McCluskey’s killer. An assailant tosses a bomb into the Corleone...
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Chapter 14
...Godfather was born Vito Andolini in the village of Corleone, in turn-of-the-century Sicily. There, the Mafia acted like a “Second government” that was more powerful than the actual government in Rome....
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...avoid crossing a “man of respect” who is “reputed to be a member of the Mafia of Sicily.”
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When Don Corleone proposes a partnership with the Mafia boss Salvatore Maranzano, who controls the gambling rackets in Brooklyn, Maranzano spurns his offer. Corleone...
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Seeking to rid New York of all organized crime save for the five major Mafia families, Don Corleone enlists Sonny as his go-to executioner behind only the more fearsome Luca...
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Chapter 17
...“personal authority” and therefore “cannot be countenanced.” As the police “desire for vengeance” against the Mafia fades, departments once again let the Families operate most of their operations with minimal interference.
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The Mafia war reveals the Corleones are unsuited for a protracted struggle. Tessio and Clemenza are competent...
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Chapter 18
...Corleone “with a feeling of the utmost despair.” He is well aware of the ongoing Mafia war and fears that he may be targeted by Don Corleone’s enemies. Suddenly, he hears...
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Chapter 19
The narrative goes back in time. As the Mafia war rages on, Sonny Corleone massacres an army of pimps, “shylocks,” union officials, and bookmakers...
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Chapter 20
...Family has roots in southern Sicily, where it was among the most fearsome of all Mafia branches. Members of the Family embrace a blood loyalty that is “severe even for a...
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...America had to offer,” they “became negotiators and hostages in the peace efforts of warring Mafia families.” They specialize in hostage swapping to ensure protection for mob representatives. When Michael Corleone,...
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...is too lucrative and therefore impossible to avoid. Don Zaluci of Detroit proposes that the Mafia keep drugs “respectable” by not peddling narcotics near schools and limiting the trafficking to “colored”...
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...are members of legitimate society, and that this legitimacy is the future for which the Mafia rulers should strive.
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Chapter 23
...Michael Corleone fled to Sicily. Being in Sicily helps Michael understand why his family became Mafia criminals. In Sicily, “he saw what they would have been if they had chosen not...
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...is fond of both books and prostitutes, and he entertains Michael with stories of the Mafia’s past exploits. Michael learns that the word “Mafia” originally meant “a place of refuge,” and...
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The Mafia established its power through the code of omerta and its role as an organization that...
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...his medical literature” and only passed his medical exams “through the good offices” of a Mafia chief. This demonstrates why the Sicilian Mafia is “cancerous to the society it inhabited.” Under...
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...Dr. Taza attributes to a damaged facial nerve (a favorite spot on the body for Mafia torturers). Don Tommasino is dealing with delinquent Mafia thugs in Palermo who view him as...
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...sinks as he asks Michael if he is “a friend of the friends,” meaning the Mafia.
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Although Michael denies being a member of the Mafia, the café owner surmises otherwise. He identifies himself as Signor Vitelli and tells Michael to...
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